In Cleburne, Texas, a wall that collapsed in a local apartment building complex has displaced tenants and raised concerns about asbestos. Those exposed to asbestos sometimes develop mesothelioma, and even exposure to asbestos in small amounts can lead to the development of fatal diseases. According to Cleburne Fire Chief Clint Ishmael, asbestos may be an issue at the 30 year old site. "At this point, we haven't done any asbestos testing," Ishmael said. "It's quite possible there may be asbestos on the inside. If they start doing major repairs, there may have to be asbestos testing."
The incident occurred last week at the Cleburne Plaza Apartments. Families in two units had to be moved out, and are living temporarily in a local hotel. No injuries occurred. The collapse of the rock wall revealed insulation which could contain asbestos, as well as wood framework.
"It looks like moisture from the recent rains got in behind that one wall," Ishmael said. "It caused the gyp rock to get wet. That made the weight of the plaster more than the wall could bear. Essentially, the plaster peeled off and came down in a big heap."
"Our main concern is how many other places in the complex may have similar problems. The building department went through and looked at some of these walls, and they believed there were some problems. This wall had a catastrophic failure without warning. Had somebody been underneath it,that would have been a real problem...We requested that the [apartment] company get a structural engineer to come out."
"We don't know if there are additional problems," Ishmael said, "and we are trying to err on the side of caution and keep this from being a bigger problem."
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