Hoboken Train Crash Stirs Asbestos Concerns

High asbestos levels and extensive debris delayed the federal investigation of the Hoboken train crash in New Jersey for more than a week, officials said.
Although officials reopened the majority of the rails at the Hoboken terminal this week, efforts to completely clean the century-old terminal will take even longer.
The Sept. 29 crash killed 34-year-old Fabiola Bittar de Kroon and injured more than a hundred passengers and others waiting at the station. De Kroon was standing on the platform at the Hoboken train station when falling debris struck her, authorities said.
The debris from the crash immediately became a concern for investigators. Not only did large pieces of wreckage hamper investigators’ access to the locomotive, but ­high levels of toxic asbestos in the air made the task of removing debris difficult and hazardous.
It also delayed investigators from reaching crucial evidence from the train, including event recorders and onboard cameras.
“Extensive monitoring and testing has been and continues to be done by OSHA [the Occupational Safety and Health Administration],” Christopher O’Neil, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, told Asbestos.com by email.
Four days after the Hoboken train crash, O’Neil said air quality levels were far below permissible levels for workers who may be exposed to the toxin day after day for 8-hour periods.
NJ Transit, the state-owned public transportation system managing debris removal operations, hired...

Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - October 19, 2016 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Walter Pacheco Tags: asbestos exposure in hoboken asbestos exposure in new jersey asbestos in hoboken hoboken train crash mesothelioma new jersey asbestos new jersey train crash occupational asbestos exposure in new jersey Source Type: news