Ponsonby School Fire: Asbestos Hazard Leaves Residents Homeless, Still Chasing Answers

Ponsonby homeowners, still waiting for answers 11 days after being forced out of their homes by asbestos from a school fire, are experiencing anxiety attacks and delays in returning to their jobs.

Now Green Rep. Chloe Swarbrick and Rep. Simon Court are championing the cause of residents in a bid to get government agencies to step up and coordinate the asbestos cleanup.

Residents’ homes were contaminated when Ponsonby Middle School in central Auckland erupted in a “fierce” fire a few doors down on 8 December.

The fire ignited on the roof of the school with multiple explosions and a cloud of smoke that could carry asbestos up to 100 meters down the neighboring street.

A day later, Auckland Regional Public Health teams advised 12 homeowners to leave their properties until they were cleaned.

But residents said they had since been left to clean up the mess themselves.

Interior designer Jill Goatcher was one of the people unable to return home and was concerned that thousands of dollars in damage had been done to her home and that the artwork designs would be kept in the garage.

“I had a very stressful year and the fire was the turning point, so one day I had a nervous breakdown and woke up in the Auckland hospital,” he said.

“And now, trying to pick up the pieces, we don’t get any help.”

In a public meeting called today, they said they had not received any news of any financial support from the government, even though the fire was on a Ministry of Education property.

No agency had intervened to coordinate the cleanup approach, they said.

Act MP Court previously worked as an engineer for a consulting firm that oversaw the cleanup of asbestos-contaminated sites.

Best practice involved appointing a project manager to ensure that all cleanup plans were peer-reviewed by independent companies and that the process was coordinated across contaminated sites, he said.

Currently, residents’ insurers had come together to manage cleanup at their homes, but this was not being coordinated with remediation work at Ponsonby Middle School.

“If they don’t take a project management approach, there is a risk of cross-contamination between sites or not getting it all,” Court said.

“And then people on the road will be re-victimized saying, ‘I want to sell my property and someone has asked for an asbestos test and look, I’ve found more.’

Worse still, they could be exposed to health risks.

“If it’s in your home and it hasn’t been cleaned properly, there is a significant ongoing risk.”

He also criticized Auckland’s regional public health councils to residents.

Dr. David Sinclair, ARPHS medical health officer, said the risk to people in the neighborhood remained low.

“While asbestos is known to have harmful health effects, this generally occurs after high-level exposure over long periods of time,” he said.

However, health officials previously told residents of 12 homes closest to the school that they should avoid staying there until the properties are cleaned.

But the Court questioned how health officials could have known that only 12 homes were affected without testing.

A leaflet that was dropped in mailboxes also advised residents to bag and throw away “the clippings from the first lawn mowing after the fire.”

Young Father Charlie Thatham, from one of the affected houses, thought that meant he needed to mow the lawn, but was later told by an independent expert that it was the worst thing he could have done.

Since then, an insurance appraiser discovered that your property was contaminated.

The Auckland City Council along with public health officials said yesterday that specialized contractors were expected to begin removing asbestos debris from nine affected homes in the coming days.

“The home insurers will be working with residents on the schedule for their return. The education ministry also has insurers involved in this process,” the statement read.

The cleanup was expected to take place at the same time as operations at Ponsonby Intermediate to avoid any new contamination, he said.

“Affected residents have been asked to vacate their buildings until remediation is complete, and these properties will have curbs and signs warning that people should not enter the property without protective gear.”

“Auckland City Council and ARPHS are considering the results of the insurance company loss adjusters’ investigations and assessing any remaining risks. WorkSafe must also approve any planned remediation work.”

The talk from council and public health officials was a first for Goatcher, who said he had not heard a peep from officials.

With Christmas tight and the stress of her dilemma mounting, she just hoped she could get back home as soon as possible.

Dr Denise Barnfather, Auckland Public Health health officer, said she was “sorry to hear that some residents felt that the response to the fire could have been handled differently.”

“With a fire of this type, it is important that multiple agencies participate in the response, and we are working closely with all agencies to ensure that the risk of contamination remains low, as it is now.”

“Our priority is to assess the risk to public health and provide advice to agencies and residents. We have been in personal contact with several residents who contacted them with questions. Information and advice on the situation was provided to residents and is available on our website, and we encourage all residents to contact us with questions “