02 August 2018
Several facilities in Fort Regent have been closed as a precautionary measure, following the discovery of possible asbestos-related material in an electrical cupboard.
The toilets and changing rooms serving the gym, and some nearby areas, have been temporarily closed while the material is analysed and the Fort is extensively re-inspected and tested for asbestos.
The material was discovered on Tuesday (31 July) by a member of Fort Regent technical staff in an electrical cupboard containing an air handling unit. The air handling unit was shut down to prevent the possible spread of the material, and the changing rooms and toilets served by the air handling unit were also closed. Alternative facilities are being made available while this work takes place.
The Health and Safety Inspectorate was notified and NAS Laboratories (the States of Jersey’s asbestos consultants) have carried out air quality tests to check for airborne respirable fibre risk. All the air test results have been below the clearance indicator level of 0.01 fibres per millilitre. NAS are today carrying out further air sampling, and these samples will be sent for electron microscopy analysis, to determine whether or not they contain asbestos fibres.
No indication of exposure
At this stage, there is no indication that any member of the public or Fort Regent staff has been exposed to asbestos due to this incident.
The gym toilets and changing rooms were closed on 31 July as a direct result of the discovery of the material in the electrical cupboard. Some non-public rooms behind the free weights area have also been closed as a precautionary measure, and this weekend two free weights rooms will be cleared and sealed off to proactively remove asbestos material that may present a future concern. This follows an inspection by Fort Regent staff and technical experts, which raised concerns that bubbling paint in the area could degenerate and that asbestos beneath the paint might be exposed.
A number of other non-public areas, including storage areas along the north and west side of the building have also been temporarily closed, and some tenants have been relocated.
A detailed asbestos re-inspection of Fort Regent will begin on Monday 6 August and will take three days. The results of the detailed analysis of the materials should be available by the middle of the week, after which any further action will be confirmed.
Fort Regent will keep customers updated about any impacts on services, facilities and classes through the fortregent.je website and its Facebook account.
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