Snohomish County Training Officers Snohomish County Training Officers
This program was developed by Jim Branstrom, the Public Safety Manager at Snohomish County Airport, Paine Field, Everett WA.
The content has been updated and modified to fit the needs of the Snohomish County Training Officers
I am not a expert in asbestos, however I am an AHERA certified Asbestos Building Inspector and have been teaching and leaning about asbestos for years.
This program is assembled to provide an awareness level of training and understanding for the firefighter. It
is based on EPA and OSHA
information and publications. While
the information is considered
accurate, it should not be used for
making decisions on asbestos
abatement and disposal projects. Each asbestos project should be based on the latest rulings and guidelines issued by EPA and OSHA and all local representing agencies.
•A naturally occuring fibrous mineral
•A rock currently mined
in Canada, Russia and not currently in the United States.
• Asbestos is naturally
present in the atmosphere. • It is present in many rock
Chrysotile ‐ "white asbestos" has fine, flexible, silky fibers with high tensile strength and accounts for over 95 percent of the asbestos used worldwide.
•Amosite ‐ "brown asbestos" is made up of long, brittle,
needle‐like fibers. Amosite bonds well with plastics and is
often used in heat insulating materials.
•Crocidolite ‐ "blue asbestos" is the strongest asbestos. It is
usually found in conjunction with chrysotile in wrapping, sheeting, piping and boiler wrap.
•Tremolite, actinolite, and anthophyllite ‐ these asbestos
forms are seldom seen and rarely found in building or commercial products.
To a firefighter, the type of asbestos encountered at a structure fire makes no difference in the level of protection needed.
However….
Recent studies seem to indicate that the amphibole group (brown and blue asbestos) may present a greater level of health danger than
the common chrysotile. These
minerals are also used in friction
surfaces such as brakes and
•Asbestos has been used for many years. The
word ASBESTOS is derived from ancient
Greek, meaning inextinguishable.
•It was used as wicks in sacred lamps. •It was woven into cloth for robes and
tablecloths.
•It was also used for mummification of the
With the discovery of large asbestos deposits in Canada in the late 1800s it emerged as an additive to many products.
*Asbestos is still mined, processed and used in Canada.
••ItIt isis aa goodgood insulatorinsulator
••ItIt holdsholds upup wellwell toto heat,heat, ‐‐ fireprooffireproof underunder
normal fire situations
normal fire situations
••WhenWhen itit waswas addedadded toto otherother materials,materials, itit
strengthened them
strengthened them
••ItIt doesn’tdoesn’t rotrot andand isis imperviousimpervious toto mostmost
chemicals
Because of these characteristics, it was applied to boilers and steam pipes. Much of this type of asbestos containing material is almost 100% asbestos with only enough binder material to keep it in place.
•When added to concrete, the fiber strength of
the asbestos reinforced the concrete.
•Concrete water mains and concrete board in the
form of 4 x 8 sheets and shingle siding owed their strength to asbestos fibers.
•During the 1930s, it was found that it improved
almost any material that it was added to. It was
•As was discovered later, it was not a healthy thing to expose people to asbestos fiber.
• Asbestos use continued long after there was an indication
that there was a health problem involved. In the mid 1970s the government begin to curtail the use of asbestos.
•The lack of awareness or knowledge of the health dangers caused an uncontrolled and unregulated use of asbestos.
•Workers in the mining, milling, processing and application
of asbestos containing products used no respiratory protection.
Movie sets such as Bing Crosby’ White Christmas and the
snow scene from The Wizard of Oz ‐ as well as many
others ‐ used a good deal of asbestos fiber. At the time,
•Asbestos was woven
into curtains, firefighter
suits and rescue
blankets.
•Welders gloves and
jackets were made of
leather and asbestos
• Airport firefighters used entry suits made of almost 100% asbestos fabric.
•Fire departments carried rescue blankets of the
same material to protect crash victims during cutting operations.
•Data from this era in our history points to the dangers of asbestos.
•There is evidence that the health aspects of
asbestos were known early in this century. This antidotal information was largely ignored in the United States until the 1970’s.
* Claims that the asbestos manufactures
knew of the health risks were a central
point in the class action asbestos lawsuits
Although many bad things have been said about
asbestos. ‐ Here is a list of the things that are NOT
properties of asbestos.
•Even though it is often referred to as a toxin, it is not a poison, in the classic sense of the definition . •It causes no chemical burns or reactions. •It emits no fume or gas; it can’t be detected on a meter, litmus paper or with a Dragger tube. •The particles that pose a health hazard can’t be seen with the naked eye. •If someone tells you that they can smell, see or sense asbestos in a material or building…
•The same things that make asbestos a good addition to building materials also makes it bad for your health!
•Other minerals break down to dust. Asbestos is a
fiber that can be continually divided and still remain a fiber.
•Compare an asbestos
fiber to a rope Each strand can be unraveled and still remain a fiber.
•Asbestos will divide like this down to unseen, microscopic fibers that are 1200 times smaller than a human hair.
•It is the small unseen
fibers, >5 microns in
length that present the greatest problem.
This is a human hair compared
•The small fibers that get past the *natural defenses of the body
enter the lungs in a spear‐like
form.
•With proper aim and trajectory,
these fibers can penetrate an
alveolus in the lung.
•Now, one of the strengths of
asbestos comes into play – it doesn’t degrade or dissolve.
•So the body compensates for this
foreign substance. Scar tissue
surrounds the offending fiber. The scar tissue prevents the exchange of oxygen. (See your handout for a real explanation.)
Asbestosis is a serious, chronic, non‐cancerous
respiratory disease.
Asbestosis is the result of many, repeated
bombardments of asbestos fibers.
*Symptoms
*Symptoms ofof asbestosisasbestosis includeinclude shortnessshortness ofof breath
breath andand aa drydry cracklingcrackling soundsound inin thethe lungslungs whilewhile inhaling
inhaling..
If the effects of ASBESTOSIS last for more than 4‐hours…contact your physician. Side effects are death, dying, kicking the can, buying the farm and checking out.
Mesothelioma is unlike asbestosis in the exposure requirements for the disease to
develop. While there is a somewhat direct
correlation between regular high‐level exposure
to asbestos and asbestosis.
Mesothelioma occurs more often among people with regular exposure. However it is also found among people with little known exposure. Mesothelioma results from a fiber somehow passing from the lungs to the pleura.
It’s a little like winning the
Lotto. If you buy a lot of
tickets, your odds increase. However, people have been known to win with a single ticket.
Actor Steve McQueen died of a mesothelioma. He had no history of working in the asbestos industry.
The younger people are
when they inhale
asbestos, the more likely
they are to develop
mesothelioma. This is
why the enormous
efforts are being made
to prevent school
children from being
•Asbestos related diseases have a “Latency Period” of up to 30 years.
•If a person is diagnosed with an asbestos
related problem today, the exposure occurred many years prior.
•Even a heavy exposure today would not be
detected in a physical exam tomorrow.
•Just because you feel well following such an
exposure doesn’t mean that you haven’t incurred some damage.
Because it can take 30 years for the disease
to show up ‐ doesn’t indicate that you
should just send old people into the asbestos environment.
•If you like living on the edge, mix
smoking and asbestos exposure.
•A smoker has a 10x’s greater chance
of lung cancer than a non‐smoker.
•Combined smoker/asbestos
exposure increases it to as much as
•Only a very small percentage of ceiling tile contains asbestos.
•This uses a wood product fiber and
occasionally a little asbestos was added to reinforce the face.
•Boilers, boiler tanks and other
insulated tank units.
Friable Friable
•Piping for hot water and steam
heating and power units.
Friable
•This is “AirCell” It
looks like cardboard but is almost 100% asbestos.
•This is a tank being repaired.
•Notice how the asbestos is
installed in tile‐like blocks.
•This material has a very high
•Asbestos/Concrete siding ‐ known as CAB (concrete
asbestos board) or Transite.
•Manufactured in shingle, shake and 4’ x 8’ sheets.
•Was sometimes used as an imitation slate roofing.
•Abatement ‐ removal
•Enclosing
•Encapsulating
•Repair and maintaining
Asbestos can be handled
in four ways:
The objective of asbestos management
•Abatement – removal
•This is the most expensive option.
•Generally involves full enclosure of an area of the
Sometimes removal is the only option.
• Enclosing
• Encapsulating
This involves covering over
the ACM or sealing it with a
heavy‐based latex paint or
other product.
Air from this heat vent caused a continued release of fiber. A coat of encapsulating paint will reduce the problem.
•Repair and maintaining.
•This would mean patching
any damage and monitoring to prevent future damage and fiber release.
A firefighter entering a building during or after a fire
can not count on the
Friable/Non‐Friable conditions
•Consider this Vinyl/Asbestos floor tile subjected to fire. The vinyl burns away leaving only the loose asbestos fiber.
•Concrete Asbestos Board CAB or
Transite subjected to flame. The concrete spalls away leaving asbestos fiber.
•Almost any material
subjected to intense heat
will burn away ‐ except for
the asbestos
•To the firefighter, this
means that you are
working in a friable
•The hazardous and toxic atmosphere created by the fire often dissipates rather quickly.
•The hazardous atmosphere created by the release of
asbestos fiber does not.
•The fibers that have the greatest potential for respiratory
damage can’t be seen.
•These fibers can remain airborne for hours.
•The SCBA worn by the firefighter will protect from this
The HEPA half‐mask (magenta cartridge) will stop
99% the asbestos from
getting in your lungs.
You can buy the half mask for $25 to $30 at Lowes/ Home Depot and it will
protect you when working off duty!
•If the mask is to be removed,
decon the facepiece area before removal.
•When changing bottles, decon
any possible debris from the connection area.
•Respiratory protection, SCBAs, must also be used during the fire investigation period if the damaged area is suspected to have asbestos contamination.
•Once you suspect that an area is
contaminated, it is not easy to change that suspicion.
•There is no acceptable reason to
allow an unmasked person, Fire Investigator, Fire Marshal or
Chief, into a suspected
•Wet down any debris being moved during overhaul and
investigation.
•vehicle.
•Wash off firefighting gear at the
fire scene.
•On return to station, bag turnouts
for appropriate laundry.
•Do not transport clothing or
•First, “Do No Harm”
•Do not unnecessarily track or move asbestos fiber
into uncontaminated areas.
•If you have exposed a large amount of asbestos,
tape off the area to warn others.
•Second, Inform the Owner
•You can’t control what the owner will do with his
asbestos problem.
•Don’t leave the owner with the excuse, “I didn’t
•Larger scale asbestos removal projects
•“CONTAINMENT” is lining the room with two layers of
plastic and has these elements:
•The seams are lapped and taped together.
•“Negative Air” machines are set up to lower the air
pressure in the containment.
•A double air‐lock door system with a shower facility is
set up at the entry to the containment.
•Workers in containment are in respirators and Tyvek
•The Uniform Fire Code makes certain requirements of
the fire department.
•UFC Section 8707 requires the “Chief” to be
notified 24 hours prior to a removal project.
•Section 8707 requires flame resistant plastic film
and proper signs.
•Other Code sections allow the department to
require proper exiting and maintenance of fire
•Asbestos abatement projects that require a “containment”
should be inspected for:
•Exiting
•Covered sprinkler heads
•Fire extinguishers
•Containment material
•Warning signs
•Plans for the replacement of any fire‐proofing materials
•Exits in containment are generally limited to one.
•If the travel distance to the exit could be too great. >200
feet in an unsprinklered building, Alternative exiting may be required.
•Some departments have
allowed the marking of a second exit in the plastic film that can be cut open in the event of a fire.
•Inspectors must require that the sprinkler heads are not covered by the plastic containment.
•If your department normally allows the use of
light‐weight plastic or paper bags over sprinkler
heads in areas like spray booths, you could allow their use here .
•Ample fire extinguishers should be required in
•If spray‐on asbestos fire‐proofing is being removed,
check plans of the replacement. U.B.C Table 7‐B.
•The size and use of the building probably required the
fire rating achieved by the asbestos. U.B.C. Table 5‐B.
Example: A “B” occupancy built as a type II Fire
Rated has a basic allowable size of 12 stories of 39,900 sq. ft. each. Remove the fire proofing and the basic allowable is 2 stories of 12,000 sq. ft. each.
•A Fire Call to a building where asbestos is being removed can add a new dimension.
•Exits can be compromised by the “containment”.
•The negative air machines are drawing air towards the
containment.
•Inside the containment the air is contaminated with
•An EMS call for a worker in “containment” must be
handled as a Haz‐Mat call by the medics.
•Entry into the
containment requires full protective gear.
•The victim and all
medics and equipment must be decontaminated
prior to loading and
•Has the production of asbestos ceased?
•Has the use of all asbestos been banned?
