Cancer at MCPS schools

[Anonymous]

How often is radon tested? The levels fluctuate throughout the year. Both old and new schools can have radon issues and without proper monitoring, we would never know.

These are easy tests that can easily be done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How often is radon tested? The levels fluctuate throughout the year. Both old and new schools can have radon issues and without proper monitoring, we would never know.

These are easy tests that can easily be done.

It might take PTAs stepping up to pay for the tests or staff conducting their own tests. The focus of MCPS is to not identify and fix problems even if there are dangers to the health of staff and students

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How often is radon tested? The levels fluctuate throughout the year. Both old and new schools can have radon issues and without proper monitoring, we would never know.

These are easy tests that can easily be done.

It might take PTAs stepping up to pay for the tests or staff conducting their own tests. The focus of MCPS is to not identify and fix problems even if there are dangers to the health of staff and students

Pretty terrible. The long term effects are detrimental for something that can be so easily monitored.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also, I don't know if what the post said about cleaning asbestos tiles by hand without masks was true, but if it was, the MCPS administration would face fines and/or five years criminal penalty. https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/criminal-provisions-clean-air-act And that's for each offense, btw.

It was a staff member who tested a ceiling tile in her classroom on the second floor, not MCPS. The principal was told of the results but it’s questionable if any reports were made or anything but the bat abatement occurred. Therefore, when the pipe burst occurred on the first floor, school administrators had plausible deniability. The focus was to clean up the mess which was done by custodians disposing of the tiles into black plastic bags. No protective gear. No plastic sheeting to keep asbestos dust away from the rest of the school which was occupied with staff and students.

MCPS should have reasonably checked for asbestos before they initiated the cleanup of tiles manufactured in the 1960’s. More could have been done to minimize the risk to staff and students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, I don't know if what the post said about cleaning asbestos tiles by hand without masks was true, but if it was, the MCPS administration would face fines and/or five years criminal penalty. https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/criminal-provisions-clean-air-act And that's for each offense, btw.

It was a staff member who tested a ceiling tile in her classroom on the second floor, not MCPS. The principal was told of the results but it’s questionable if any reports were made or anything but the bat abatement occurred. Therefore, when the pipe burst occurred on the first floor, school administrators had plausible deniability. The focus was to clean up the mess which was done by custodians disposing of the tiles into black plastic bags. No protective gear. No plastic sheeting to keep asbestos dust away from the rest of the school which was occupied with staff and students.

MCPS should have reasonably checked for asbestos before they initiated the cleanup of tiles manufactured in the 1960’s. More could have been done to minimize the risk to staff and students.

I would think that "plausible deniability" could be considered "gross negligence" (if not "criminal conspiracy") if someone was able to prove that evidence of asbestos was given to MCPS Administrators, and those administrators failed to act upon that information. If nothing else, I would give the evidence to the press or Maryland IG. That way no one could argue "I didn't know". There is no excuse for MCPS Administrators knowingly exposing students, staff, and teachers to cancer-causing agents.

[Anonymous]

zero that I'm aware of, at the kids' elementary, middle and high schools.

I think you're looking at confirmation bias.

Cancer is common everywhere. When I had cancer, it seemed like suddenly tons of people around me also had cancer. Same as when I was pregnant (suddenly seeing pregnant women everywhere.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:zero that I'm aware of, at the kids' elementary, middle and high schools.

I think you're looking at confirmation bias.

Cancer is common everywhere. When I had cancer, it seemed like suddenly tons of people around me also had cancer. Same as when I was pregnant (suddenly seeing pregnant women everywhere.)

Nice try, but you really should study math, not sophistry.

Although there are about 448 per 100,000 new cases of cancer diagnosed in the U.S. each year, there were only about 17 (to 21, depending on which source you use) cases per 100,000 in children. You would also have to reduce that number by about 25%, since MCPS does not offer daycare from ages 0-5. That equates to 13 to 16 per 100,000. Since Beverly Farms ES only has about 585 children, not 100,000, that means that there should be 0.08 (we'll be generous and round up) chance of a child being diagnosed with cancer in any given year. That's about 1 child diagnosed with cancer in 11 years. For the staff the numbers are comparable, but the point is there is no way in statistical hell that it's possible for 18 cases of cancer to be at that school within a 10'ish year period.

However, it also matters what type of cancer it is. The statistics above are for ALL forms of cancer (e.g. leukemias 4.57, brain tumors 3.09, lymphomas 2.62 and so on).

Although the number of cancers at that school does seem high, but the real indicator would be an association to a cancer type associated with asbestos (e.g. mesotheliomas, lungs, larynx, ovary). That is because the most common types of cancers found in children are:

Leukemia

Brain and spinal cord tumors

Neuroblastoma

Wilms tumor

Lymphoma (including both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin)

Rhabdomyosarcoma

Retinoblastoma

Bone cancer (including osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma)

Any cancer outside of these types would stick out like a smoking gun.

[Anonymous]

Would a leak that caused visible mold on a tile cause asbestos dust to escape into the air? Maybe make it disintegrate into dust?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:zero that I'm aware of, at the kids' elementary, middle and high schools.

I think you're looking at confirmation bias.

Cancer is common everywhere. When I had cancer, it seemed like suddenly tons of people around me also had cancer. Same as when I was pregnant (suddenly seeing pregnant women everywhere.)

Nice try, but you really should study math, not sophistry.

Although there are about 448 per 100,000 new cases of cancer diagnosed in the U.S. each year, there were only about 17 (to 21, depending on which source you use) cases per 100,000 in children. You would also have to reduce that number by about 25%, since MCPS does not offer daycare from ages 0-5. That equates to 13 to 16 per 100,000. Since Beverly Farms ES only has about 585 children, not 100,000, that means that there should be 0.08 (we'll be generous and round up) chance of a child being diagnosed with cancer in any given year. That's about 1 child diagnosed with cancer in 11 years. For the staff the numbers are comparable, but the point is there is no way in statistical hell that it's possible for 18 cases of cancer to be at that school within a 10'ish year period.

However, it also matters what type of cancer it is. The statistics above are for ALL forms of cancer (e.g. leukemias 4.57, brain tumors 3.09, lymphomas 2.62 and so on).

Although the number of cancers at that school does seem high, but the real indicator would be an association to a cancer type associated with asbestos (e.g. mesotheliomas, lungs, larynx, ovary). That is because the most common types of cancers found in children are:

Leukemia

Brain and spinal cord tumors

Neuroblastoma

Wilms tumor

Lymphoma (including both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin)

Rhabdomyosarcoma

Retinoblastoma

Bone cancer (including osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma)

Any cancer outside of these types would stick out like a smoking gun.

So, what is your conclusion?

[Anonymous]

I'm not an expert but I was in a building that was being remediated for asbestos. I was told that asbestos was at one time poured into different materials as well as used in tiles and pipe wraps since it was a flame-retardant material. What people didn't know at the time is that it will begin to deteriorate into fibers just from age.

The technical term is "friability". This document contains a good summary of the issues involved.

https://www.uah.edu/images/administrative/facilities/oehs/asbestos_awareness_secured.pdf

Ironically enough, asbestos causes lung scarring (a form of pulmonary fibrosis known as asbestosis), so covid could theoretically aggravate the condition even further, but it's only a personal supposition.

Any asbestos product has to be greater than 60 years old by now, since asbestos was outlawed in the 70's and stockpiles ran out in the early-to-mid-80's. That means that pretty much any old asbestos product in a building is friable by now.

This is why MCPS can't play games with this. They must take action if there is asbestos in ANY MCPS building. This is not an arguable poliltical point. Inaction is criminally illegal and action is a medical necessity.

[Anonymous]

Oh and the conclusion you asked for?

"Virtually all cases of mesothelioma are linked with asbestos exposure."
https://www.uah.edu/images/administrative/facilities/oehs/asbestos_awareness_secured.pdf

That means that if there is even a single case of mesothelioma, and the asbestos was reported but not remediated, or if this was reported to the BOE or CO and they took no action; I would save those emails.

[Anonymous]

[e-mail]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh and the conclusion you asked for?

"Virtually all cases of mesothelioma are linked with asbestos exposure."
https://www.uah.edu/images/administrative/facilities/oehs/asbestos_awareness_secured.pdf

That means that if there is even a single case of mesothelioma, and the asbestos was reported but not remediated, or if this was reported to the BOE or CO and they took no action; I would save those emails.

The mere presence of asbestos-containing building materials does not require removal and abatement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh and the conclusion you asked for?

"Virtually all cases of mesothelioma are linked with asbestos exposure."
https://www.uah.edu/images/administrative/facilities/oehs/asbestos_awareness_secured.pdf

That means that if there is even a single case of mesothelioma, and the asbestos was reported but not remediated, or if this was reported to the BOE or CO and they took no action; I would save those emails.

The mere presence of asbestos-containing building materials does not require removal and abatement.

There are some reports that say its best to leave it alone. Many houses have it too and other things so kids/adults could be getting it from their homes if they are all living near each other with homes built at the same time. We covered ours up. Some of the tiles don't have asbestos but the mastic might.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh and the conclusion you asked for?

"Virtually all cases of mesothelioma are linked with asbestos exposure."
https://www.uah.edu/images/administrative/facilities/oehs/asbestos_awareness_secured.pdf

That means that if there is even a single case of mesothelioma, and the asbestos was reported but not remediated, or if this was reported to the BOE or CO and they took no action; I would save those emails.

Was there a case of mesothelioma?