Widow urges asbestos warnings for homes

A Canberra woman whose husband died of an asbestos-related disease wants the ACT Government to issue warning notices to residents of older houses that may contain the material.

A Canberra woman whose husband died of an asbestos-related disease wants the ACT Government to issue warning notices to residents of older houses that may contain the material.Elizabeth Thurbon’s husband Peter died last year from mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos dust while cutting fibro sheets in his work as a builder.Mrs Thurbon says the ACT Government has not yet acted on an earlier plea from her to issue the warning notices.She has asked building unions to raise the matter again at this weekend’s ALP conference.”When we’ve got young families who can’t afford new homes, they’re buying small older homes… and in the eaves and in the bathrooms there’s fibro asbestos,” she said.”They’re renovating this, they’re sanding it to paint it and they’re totally unaware.”(Source: ABC Health, July 2004)