Asbestos: School secretary on medication for rest of life
13 December 2007
 |
| Featherstone Wood Primary School, formerly Bandley Hill Junior School |
A SCHOOL secretary must take medication every day for the rest of her life after asbestos particles were found in her lungs.
Following The Comet's revelation last week that asbestos lurks in 165 schools in Comet country, a secretary, who did not want to be named, contacted us with her story.
She said: "I worked in Bandley Hill Junior School in Stevenage, now known as Featherstone Wood Primary School, for 22 years.
"As a result of a bronchoscopy two years ago it was found that I had asbestos particles in my lungs.
"I was shocked. The consultant asked if I had been in contact with asbestos in my working life, to which I replied that I hardly thought so as I was a secretary in a school.
"It appears that this is where I have got it from and, as a result, I have to take medication every day for the rest of my life."
"I haven't got the lung capacity any more," she added.
The woman, who lives in Stevenage, must also undergo medical checks once a year.
Speaking of the presence of asbestos in the school she worked in, she said: "As far as I can recall, I was only told asbestos was in the boiler house.
"When I was there they did either remove it or seal it; they did some work to do with that. That was probably a couple of years before I left.
"As for it being in school... I was the school's secretary so any information would come through me to the head, and I know the head at that point would have said, but nothing like that was ever imparted to us.
"The only thing we knew about was the boiler house."
The Comet has been accused of scaremongering with last week's story.
The secretary said: "I don't think you are scaremongering.
"My opinion is that, with any form of government, they wait for a disaster to happen and then they do something. It's so typical of the powers that be.
"I think the local authorities seem to think you are making a mountain out of a mole hill and they turn away.
"They will wait for someone to die before they do something.
"I think they should do something now.
Share or bookmark this with...
All original material on this page, unless specified by another URL, is the property of Archant and may not be reproduced without permission. Click here to find out more...