Nearly 200 former Gurkha soldiers were left unprotected to deadly dust from the asbestos material, while building a luxury apartment on a multi-million pound building site a court heard recently.
The workers were not given overalls or gears to ward off the harmful asbestos dust. The ordinary dust masks and safety goggles, boots and ear plugs were not sufficient to ward off the dangerous material.
A survey at the site found asbestos on the floor, ceiling, tiles, adhesive, door surrounds, lavatory cistern and on the floor ducts and stairs. The workers were exposed to these conditions from February to April 2013 and again between February and June in 2014.
Rebecca Chalkley, prosecuting, said the workers would not know if they had been affected by the asbestos for the next 25 to 30 years, saying that “we just don't know what the long-term effects will be.”
An asbestos contractor said that the building looked like a 'war zone' and that the company did not care about the risks to the workers. Judge Heather Norton heard the company bosses did not impart any asbestos awareness training, and then went into liquidation, for a company with an average £10 million, this information was received with suspicion.