Atlantic was called to respond to an emergency project involving a boiler loss. This particular instance involved a property management company, a three-family residence, and a defunct asbestos snowman boiler. Multifamily residences (3 family or greater) are under the regulation of the Rhode Island Department of Health and thus require an industrial hygiene firm to write and submit an Asbestos Abatement Plan to RIDOH for approval. This process can be time-consuming and can set any project back 4-6 weeks. Unfortunately, the client did not have this amount of time to wait, due to January’s typical freezing temperatures.
Due to the emergent nature of the client’s issue, Atlantic was able to coordinate with a third party industrial hygiene firm to request an emergency waiver from the RIDOH. We quickly mobilized to the site in order to see what we and the client were up against. The hygiene firm followed shortly behind us, performing pre-air samples and an initial inspection. Meanwhile, we guided our client to request the emergency waiver from RIDOH and provided them with constant guidance along the way. With our fast-acting team and motivated clients, we were able to obtain the waiver and proceed with scheduling the abatement work for the following day.
That Friday, Atlantic sent a crew of four Asbestos Supervisors to perform the abatement, demolition, and disposal of the large snowman boiler. The crew worked diligently for the entire day, starting at 7:30 AM with the preparation of our containment, sealed under full negative air pressure and three chamber decontamination unit to enter and exit, ensuring no cross-contamination during the project would occur. Once the containment was fully erected, our crew, fully donned in personal protective equipment (tyvek suits, respirators, gloves, etc.) began to abate the boiler. While it took the majority of the workday, our crew was able to successfully abate, demo, and dispose of the once present snowman boiler. Post abatement, the industrial hygienist was called in for a final visual inspection and an air clearance test. These results take approximately two-hours until they are fully ready, but once they were, the hygienist was able to read the results on site, confirming a clean and safe space.
As soon as we got the green light, our crew tore down our containment, leaving the residence free and clear of all asbestos-containing materials. This allowed for the property management company to have his plumber come in directly after to begin the emergency installation of a new boiler, so there was no down time for the tenant. Following the abatement, the hygienist submitted all proper paperwork to the State within the mandated 10 day period, illustrating that all work was properly performed according to all State and Federal Regulations. All waste was properly transferred to our on-site asbestos trailer, until its final destination to the licensed asbestos-accepting landfill, Minerva Enterprises, located in Ohio.
In the end, Atlantic didn’t skip a beat; we were left with an extremely happy client, and tenants who were kept warm in a heated residence.
Are you in a situation that requires emergency abatement? Contact us today for assistance!
