Asbestos Problems Found in 5% of Schools

Inspectors have found evidence of asbestos contamination in about 5% of the more than 100 Los Angeles schools they have examined so far in emergency spot checks, and district officials promised swift action Friday to clean up the mess and suspend any contractors who are responsible.

The announcement followed the closure Friday of Palisades High School. Officials said contractors had apparently discharged deadly asbestos fibers into the air in two buildings on the campus.

Three more schools were identified Friday as having potential asbestos problems, prompting inspectors to close off rooms while they are tested. District inspectors have conducted spot checks at about 120 schools, and plan to look at about 30 more this weekend.

One of six schools named earlier as having potential asbestos problems, Roosevelt High was cleared by inspectors Friday, its principal said. Besides Palisades High, the district this week warned of asbestos contamination at Woodlawn Elementary School in Bell, Columbus Middle School in Canoga Park, Hamilton High School in the Pico-Robertson area and Century Park Elementary School in Inglewood.

The three new schools named Friday are Monte Vista Elementary School in Highland Park, Virgil Middle School in the Westlake area and Washington Prep High School.

District Chief Operating Officer Howard Miller late Friday authorized the suspension of any contractors found to be in violation of asbestos policy. Angelo Bellomo of the district’s environmental safety team said it was clear that some contractors were negligent.

“The construction contractors did not put into place the protective measures they would have put into place if they believed it was an asbestos-containing area,” Bellomo said. “The breakdown was that simple and that serious.”

Barry Groveman, head of the district’s environmental safety team, said the district also intends to notify everyone who might have been exposed to asbestos fibers, which can lodge in the lungs and cause cancer.

Most of the schools where asbestos problems were identified operated without disruption Friday, and principals downplayed the significance of the discoveries.

But the inspections forced cancellation of a football game Friday night between Palisades and Hamilton high schools, as well as concerts Friday and today at Hamilton, where the auditorium was ordered closed for the weekend.

The reaction of parents and students was mostly muted at the six schools identified Thursday by school officials. Some expressed outrage, however.

“There’s a disaster going on down there,” said Ben Margolis, a lawyer and pharmacist whose 16-year-old son, Jonathan, attends Palisades.

“It just shows the total incompetence of the school district,” he fumed. “It just shows reckless disregard for the welfare of teachers and students.”

About 150 students arrived at Palisades on Friday morning, having received no warning that the school would be closed. They were herded into an auditorium for an explanation by Assistant Principal Linda Hosford.

The students reacted with bewilderment and glee. “I’ve been up all night, have some mercy,” Hosford told the rambunctious students.

Principal Donald Savarese said it was unclear whether the school would be open Monday.

Savarese said district health inspectors would continue to examine buildings throughout the weekend.

At Hamilton High, environmental inspectors ordered school officials to close the Norman J. Pattiz Concert Hall on Wednesday. On Friday morning, yellow warning tape was stretched across each entrance to the hall and a large fan sucked air out of the building, blowing it outside through a large plastic conduit.

Principal David Winter said environmental investigators were concerned that asbestos might have been released into the air inside the building when contractors installed a new security and fire alarm system.

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Times staff writers Matea Gold and Karima Haynes and special correspondent Monte Morin contributed to this story.

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This story has been edited to reflect a correction to the original published text. A school was misnamed - it is Washington Prep High School.

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