Newport News citizens worried about possible asbestos exposure from construction site

Newport News, VA - Residents of the Marshall Place neighborhood located in southeast area of the city began to express concerns about asbestos exposure three weeks ago when they saw demolition work being done at the nearby, former industrial plant site, Mariner's Watch.

They were worried that the workers had not accounted for and taken care of the presence of asbestos on the site.

Resident Howard Bell, a sufferer from asbestosis who had been exposed to the material working at the shipyard for decades, said he experienced a tightening of his lungs and trouble breathing while the demolition was going on.

City officials are assuring residents that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Quality are working with the construction crews to make sure all hazardous materials, including asbestos, are handled and removed according to safety regulations. A DEQ manager also stated that a pollution inspector would come this week to check the work, and the city would require proof from the owner that asbestos has been disposed of properly.

Residents also wanted to know if the construction project on the site was in preparation for the building of a long-expected upscale development.

The owner of the property had been granted the city's approval in 2004 for an upscale residential development project. The city had agreed to rezone the 26-acre property from industrial to residential, hoping to revitalize the waterfront area.

City officials are saying that the current demolition underway is step in that direction but added that it would be a long time before the owner is ready to begin the development stage.

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