UPDATED: Asbestos Concerns Close Junior, Senior High Schools

While Monday’s closure of St. Louis Park senior and junior high schools due to asbestos concerns might be a first, the issue of asbestos is nothing new for the district.

Bob Laney, the district's assistant superintendent, said during a relocated school board meeting Monday night that older tiles that might contain asbestos are in all St. Louis Park schools. Worn-down tiles in both the senior and junior high schools were what raised red flags over the weekend, and ultimately led to asbestos being detected at the high school and the two shutdowns. The schools remain closed Tuesday as further tests are done, with no word yet on when classes will resume.

When inhaled, asbestos can lead to various lung problems, including mesothelioma, which is a type of cancer. District spokeswoman Sara Thompson said no one at the two schools has reported any type of health issue.

Asbestos concerns are fairly common with older tiling from the 1960s and 1970s, like that at the two schools, said Diedra Hudgens, a project manager with the Institute for Environmental Assessment, which is doing testing for the district. The asbestos is generally kept safely away from people when floors are properly sealed, but significant wear and tear can release asbestos fibers.

That’s why the school district created an asbestos management plan in 1995. The plan calls for asbestos testing at all the district’s schools every six months. The last test at the high school, which was in November, came back negative.

The plan also calls for regular replacement of older tile. Thompson said this occurs on a "pretty regular basis,” but budget constraints and other factors keep the work from happening overnight.

“We’re doing our best to do that,” Thompson said of replacing older tile, “but as with all maintenance, it has a schedule, and there’s only so much that can be replaced at a time.”

Asked whether the school shutdowns would accelerate that schedule, Thompson said, “That’s something we’ll have to look at.”

Hudgens said she expects that all remaining testing and clean up can be completed by Wednesday morning at the latest.

Check with St. Louis Park Patch for updates to this story.