Big E’s Emergency Asbestos Rip-out Team Protecting the Air
Story Number: NNS060627-02
Release Date: 6/27/2006 8:14:00 AM
By By Journalist 1st Class (SW) Hendrick L. Dickson, USS Enterprise Public Affairs
USS ENTERPRISE, At Sea (NNS) -- USS Enterprise's (CVN 65) Emergency Asbestos Rip-Out Team (EART) is busying making sure the ship’s insulation and lagging is asbestos free.
When Big E is in port and asbestos is found to be in shipboard insulation or lagging, a civilian contractor is normally bought on board to remove it, but with Big E currently on a six-month deployment that asbestos removal falls on EART.
“We assemble underway whenever asbestos is discovered,” said Machinist's Mate 3rd Class Derek Begay, EART member. “A lot of the crew don’t know what we do. We come and isolate the area and remove whatever insulation needs to be removed. And we repair the place where the insulation was as well.”
While the crew is taught to avoid contact with asbestos, these Sailors are trained and qualified to handle asbestos safely.
“We work with the Safety Department, getting samples on older pipes that we know have been around for a while,” said Machinist's Mate 3rd Class James Shimchick, EART member. “We’ve worked around piping with insulation for a while, so we can pretty much tell if it’s going to be asbestos just by looking at it. Once the results come back, we go through our chain of command to determine if it is urgent enough to remove or not.”
Routine activity like walking around the ship does not expose Sailors to asbestos. However, when Sailors decide to remove insulation or lagging from shipboard piping, then it can become a problem. It is important the crew knows the proper precautions to take before attempting to do such jobs.
“If any lagging has to be ripped out, it first has to be tested,” said Machinist's Mate 1st Class (SW) John Townsend, of the Safety Department. “They need to call us. We’ll come and pull a sample out and take it to our analysis people to determine what type of asbestos it is and what actions need to be taken,” added Townsend.
“Nobody has permission to cut any lagging before you get a lagging sample,” added Shimchick. “If you cut lagging before we get a sample you are in the wrong. You have no idea what you’re exposing yourself to.”
Once asbestos is found in a major system, EART is called in to take care of the scene. They handle the job with a lot of caution, including donning protective coveralls, gloves and shoes and wearing respirators.
The EART members don’t seem to mind being uncomfortable for a while as long as they know they’re providing a service for the crew.
“It feels good when you can get out there and do something not a lot of people on board can do,” said Machinist's Mate Firman Aaron Eads, EART member. “There are only about eight to 10 people on board who are qualified to do this. It’s good to get out here and help out with safety issues like this, and prevent people from getting sick down the road.”
