Mesothelioma And Asbestos Awareness Center: Military Cover-ups of Asbestos Exposure Around The World Present Serious Health Issues

It has been confirmed that hundreds of soldiers in the New Zealand military have been exposed to asbestos during their training at the former Longburn Freezing Works site. The army claims they were never made aware of the danger.

The owner of the property, Ken Thurston, did not inform the army of the possible asbestos risk at the former Longburn Freezing Works. The military has held ten exercises at the site, where a fire in March 2007 resulted in the release of asbestos fibers into the air. Once informed, the New Zealand army stopped using the site and began an investigation in July 2008.

Colonel Tim Keating said the army used the Longburn site to train for urban warfare. The army updates their procedures to ensure safety at training sites but, also relies on the landowners to be open with the army about any health or safety concerns with the property.

Although the military knows that the soldiers were exposed to asbestos, there is no immediate test to check if the fibers entered the body. Exposure to asbestos can lead to a number of diseases including asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer. The difficulty in diagnosis is the long latency period of asbestos-related diseases. Symptoms will not appear for 20 to 50 years and by that time, treatments are not usually effective. Currently, there is no cure for malignant mesothelioma but palliative treatments involve a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.

Asbestos-related diseases can be caused by any level of exposure but the length of time can increase chances of developing illness. Col. Keating says that the solders were only at the Longburn training site for short periods of time.

Mr. Thurston cannot be prosecuted because the six-month statute of limitations had run out by the time that the investigation began. In the future, Col. Keating said he would not rely on the landowner but would contact the District Council. Had the army checked, they would have been told the building was dangerous because of both fire damage and asbestos. The army says it was only informed of the structural damage.

The Department of Labour said they had briefed Mr. Thurston on the asbestos dangers and he should have informed the military of the findings.

The U.S. has dealt with similar situations in their own military. Many former Navy soldiers are learning they have an asbestos-related disease after being exposed while serving on ships. It is predicted that over a million workers are said to have been exposed to asbestos while working at or near navel shipyards.

Recently, at the Fort Bragg Army Base in North Carolina, ten soldiers were ordered to rip up old floor tiles and, while they were allegedly warned about asbestos exposure, none were given any protective equipment. One of the soldiers sent a piece of the tile to his father, who had it tested for asbestos. Lab tests showed that the tile had levels of asbestos 25 times higher than allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asbestos usage laws. Air quality tests later confirmed that there was no asbestos contamination in the air, but the soldiers will be given medical tests once a year for the next five years followed, by tests once every five years.

For additional information about mesothelioma cancer, please visit the Mesothelioma and Asbestos Awareness Center. The MAA Center website is accredited by the Health On The Net Foundation, and has been approved by DisabilityInfo.gov as a reliable source of information for veterans and members of the military community.

Sources:

Manawatu Standard News

ABC News

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