Columbia couple left with ‘absolutely nothing’ after fleeing asbestos-filled apartment
What started out as a plumbing issue at a Richland County apartment complex has spiraled into a weeks-long nightmare for two former residents who were displaced after inspectors found asbestos in their home.
Asbestos, a mineral that was once commonly used in building materials, can cause diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer if it is inhaled.
Inspectors found asbestos in two units at the Copperfield Apartments off Broad River Road, according to a report from the Department of Health and Environmental Control. Two months later, DHEC officials say the apartment has yet to abate either unit.
DHEC also cited the apartment for violating two federal asbestos safety regulations. Those rules require property owners to inspect for asbestos ahead of any renovation or demolition projects and to secure an asbestos project license before doing any work related to abatement.
Ronji Richardson, a regional manager for Sante Realty Investments, the Arizona based company that owns Copperfield Apartments, declined to comment.
‘We have absolutely nothing’
Former residents Tony Whittemore and his girlfriend, Emily Therrien, said they had to leave most of their belongings behind when they evacuated the contaminated apartment. Between the items they have to replace and the money they spent on hotel rooms, Whittemore said they have lost thousands of dollars.
“We have absolutely nothing,” he said. “Everything that we worked for was just ripped away so quickly.”
When Whittemore and Therrien moved here from Vermont earlier this year, they were excited for a fresh start in a new place. But the moment they arrived at the Copperfield Apartments, the couple knew something was off.
“It was kind of dirty, there was a really foul smell, I found all these different spots on the ceiling of water damage,” he said. “It was kind of like they didn’t touch anything, just painted over the problems.”
Over the course of several months, Whittemore reported a host of issues to the property managers ranging from ant infestations to broken cabinets. He said the apartment was slow to respond and, ultimately, many of his problems went unresolved.
At the end of May, Whittemore watched as his neighbor was forced to evacuate her apartment. For weeks, Whittemore said the neighbor’s toilet had been “overflowing with sewage.” After a plumber was brought in to fix the problem, the neighbor called DHEC and an inspector was sent to the apartment.
According to the inspection report, asbestos was detected in two building materials used in her apartment.
Soon after, Whittemore began dealing with plumbing problems of his own. A crack in the ceiling caused water to pour down into the apartment. Random puddles of water appeared in his dining room.
Once again, a plumber was called in to address the issue. After the plumber began renovating, Whittemore called in a complaint to DHEC. Once again, lab results showed that a building material in his apartment contained asbestos. Whittemore, Therrien and their roommate were told to evacuate immediately.
“We kind of just up and left,” Whittemore said, adding that he and his girlfriend only took about a week’s worth of clothes with them.
The couple ended up living in hotels for more than a month before moving to a new apartment complex. They are still hoping to retrieve what’s left at the Copperfield Apartments, but Whittemore estimates that about 40% of their belongings— including their couch, mattresses, towels and clothes — cannot be salvaged.
“We’ve called the apartment every day,” he said. “Their response is we cannot find a vendor that wants to come out and do the work.”
Tracking the asbestos problem
Linda Reinstein, president of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, said Whittemore’s situation is not uncommon, and that many residential buildings across the country still contain asbestos.
“Asbestos was widely used in structures up until the 1980s, but technically it could still be used today since it has not been banned,” Reinstein said. “This is a man-made disaster that causes over 40,000 Americans to die each year from preventable diseases.”
The Copperfield Apartments were built in 1972, according to the Richland County GIS mapping system.
Though the federal government has various safety regulations meant to prevent asbestos related diseases, there is no formal system in place for tracking asbestos abatement. That makes it difficult to tell how widespread the problem is.
In the past year, DHEC inspected 252 structures for asbestos across the state, according to spokesperson Derrek Asberry.
“We know asbestos exists in many of these, but that figure is not tracked since the presence of asbestos does not constitute a public health concern,” he said.
Asbestos becomes dangerous when it gets broken up and is able to be inhaled. When that happens, Asberry said DHEC would “require the building be vacated until remediation was completed.”
DHEC could potentially reprimand the property owner for the two violations cited at the Copperfield Apartments, but agency spokeswoman Laura Renwick said she could not comment on the details of the enforcement process because the case was ongoing.
DHEC said it has no plans to further inspect the apartment complex.
There are two ways to determine if you have been exposed to asbestos in your home. First, you can call the manufacturer of any product you suspect may contain asbestos. Common sources of asbestos in the home include ceiling tile, bath panel, pipe lagging and loose fill insulation, according to the DHEC website.
You can also have the suspected material tested in a lab. DHEC maintains a list of asbestos professionals who can perform inspections and lab tests on its website. You can also find one in the Yellow Pages under the heading “Environmental Consultants.”
For more information, visit the DHEC website or call the department’s asbestos section at (803) 898-4289.
