More than a dozen workers exposed to asbestos in Edmonton public schools last year

Hundreds of pages of documents detailing potential asbestos exposures at Edmonton’s largest school division reveal human error led to more than a dozen worker exposures last year.

Hundreds of pages of documents detailing potential asbestos exposures at Edmonton’s largest school division reveal human error led to more than a dozen worker exposures last year.

CTV News Edmonton obtained the documents through a Freedom of Information (FOIP) request after hearing complaints from former and current workers around hazardous materials safety at the division.

One of the complaints was about a former worker – 50-year-old Jason McCallum – who has since been charged with forging asbestos test reports.

The obtained documents reveal several other exposure cases that occurred after McCallum left the division in 2022.

In the spring of last year, an internal report states 15 workers were “potentially exposed” during flood cleanup at Greenfield Elementary School.

A leak from a classroom sink flooded two other classrooms on April 24, 2023.

More than a week later, an investigation found damaged asbestos-containing drywall was demolished but exactly when and by whom couldn’t be pinpointed.