Myrtle Beach, South Carolina – A Food Lion grocery store located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina that voluntarily closed down for an asbestos investigation has now reopened. The store was closed after it was discovered that asbestos dust may have been released in the store.

Myra Reece, Chief of the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Controls Bureau of Air Quality said that the dust may have been released up to a month before the exposure risks were discovered. A contractor who began to remove floor tiles in February is believed to have done so using procedures that may have released asbestos fibers from mastic that was used to lay the tiles.

Myra Reece says that anyone who had visited the 3890 S. Kings Highway, Myrtle Beach store between February 18 and March 25 should be aware that asbestos dust may have been present and a small amount of asbestos exposure may have occurred.

Asbestos—which was a very common component of a large range of construction materials between the 1940s and the 1980s—is the only known cause of asbestosis and mesothelioma, two incurable lung diseases. While asbestosis typically only occurs following repeated exposure, mesothelioma may only require a small amount of exposure. Mesothelioma is a cancer that develops in the lining of the lungs. The cancer usually develops between three and five decades after exposure to asbestos.

At the time, the DHEC concerned about the possibility that people who were in the store during those few weeks may have inhaled asbestos dust or fibers, or purchased items that had been contaminated with asbestos.

Air samples taken in the store while the renovation project was being carried out indicated there was no airborne asbestos. However other samples taken by the DHEC showed that chrysotile asbestos was present on some of the store’s surfaces.

DHEC state epidemiologist Erik R. Svendsen, PhD, said that people in the store between the noted dates may have been exposed to asbestos, but “the potential for long term health effects [was] low.”

The store hired a company to carry out supervised asbestos abatement. The project was supervised by the DHEC, according to Food Lion spokesperson Karen Peterson. The asbestos removal was completed quickly, and the company decided to take advantage of the closure to improve the store with additional renovations.

DHEC Public Information Director Adam Myrick said that it was extremely unlikely that anyone in the store—even between the dates of 18 to 25 March—will have any health problems result from asbestos exposure in the store.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 6th, 2008 at 9:29 am and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, South Carolina. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.