Fear in the garden (From Barry And District News)

Fear in the garden

A BARRY woman reacted in horror after discovering the garden of her council-owned property might be contaminated with asbestos.

The woman, who has lived in the Montgomery Road property for around two years, was informed about the potential asbestos problem by a council worker, who had come around to rake shards of glass.

The woman, who does not want to be named, said: "The workman came on Thursday, July 28, to remove some glass from the back garden, but while he was there, he pointed to something in the garden and told me it was asbestos.

"I don"t know much about asbestos. I asked him if it was dangerous. He told me it wasn"t, as long as I don"t snap it."

But she added: "I have been snapping it and putting it into bin bags with my 11-year-old daughter. We then put the bags out for the binmen."

The Barry & District News contacted Vale of Glamorgan Council about the potential asbestos problem on Friday, July 29 - afterwards, three council workers went around to inspect the property.

The woman confirmed this and said: "Three men from the council came on Friday. They all said the material in the garden was asbestos."

She added: "They took some away. But they weren"t wearing any special clothing, and they didn"t seem concerned that I had been snapping the asbestos, or leaving it out for the bin men to collect."

Council Operation Manager John Gleeson said: "Council personnel visited the site on Friday (July 29).

"Shards of glass and other materials were removed in an appropriate manner, and the site will be investigated."

A spokesperson for the Health and Safety Executive said: "In a stable state asbestos is safe. If concerned by possible health risks, then the occupant and those affected should visit their GP."

* Asbestos was used extensively in building from the 1950s to the mid-80s. Some has been removed, but many buildings still contain asbestos.