Murder and Hazardous Chemicals

 The following article was written by Shanna Audain, a grade 12 student at Father John Redmond High School.

It is not often that I have had to think about workplace safety in my own home.   In fact, as a student I will admit that I have rarely had to think about workplace safety at all.  Last week however, I was confronted with the fact that not all jobs are as safe as others.

A few weeks ago, a tragic incident took place in the building I live in.  An elderly, double amputee man was murdered in cold blood. After the police secured the gruesome crime scene, the forensic team arrived. I watched as a forensic team worked non-stop for approximately a week to gather as much evidence as possible. In doing their job, checking for fingerprints, blood samples, etc., lots of chemicals were used. This left the unit in a toxic state. 

As a result of the forensic team’s harmful and toxic chemicals in the apartment where the crime took place, the locks for the unit had to be changed to ensure that nobody entered.  Also, a police officer patrolled the floor so that no nosy neighbours would try to get a sneak peak at a real CSI episode. One of the side effects of these chemicals is damage to the nervous system and the brain. The person may be unaware of immediate effects, but later on, the effects could be fatal. For protection, the forensic team had to wear “astronaut” looking outfits to certify the safety of each worker from head to toe.

After the forensic team’s job was completed, the building was left looking very grimy. The walls, stairwell, floors and doors were left covered in this black looking ‘soot’. A specially trained crew was then provided for this clean-up. This clean-up included the ripping out of the dry wall and floors in the unit. They had approximately 2 weeks to take apart and clean, as the chemicals could spread and damage neighbouring units, thus making them harmful and unliveable.

Through the thoroughness of this clean-up, the specialists’ efforts to guarantee the resident’s safety was unbelievable. If they had inhaled the toxins in the atmosphere, the consequences could have been life altering. They assured their own safety by wearing the appropriate attire along with minding others by doing their job thoroughly and efficiently.

It is very important to note the crew’s approach to the situation; the proper attire, the safety of the residents and the safety of themselves. My first thought was to clean up the mess using a bit of soap and water but I was so wrong. It would have jeopardized the health of both the residents and myself. This definitely required more than soap and water, it required specially trained personnel.

Last week I came to the conclusion that while all jobs may not be as risk free as others – there are precautions that can be taken to ensure that workers are protected in their environments – even if that means you have to wear a “space-suit”!