The reports from the testing done during the February 2023 closure of the Stewart Biology Building are now available online. You will find the reports on the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) website. We will continue to post the results from the monthly air tests undertaken since the reopening.
After extensive cleaning and air-testing, we are pleased to announce that the South Block of the Stewart Biology Building is safe for use and is open effective immediately. This follows the re-opening of the North Block last week.
All in-person teaching, research, administrative work and other activities in the South Block may resume as of tomorrow.
On Friday, a fresh round of cleaning took place in the South Block of the Stewart Biology Building. New air samples were taken over the weekend and sent to a lab for analysis, and as was the case for previous tests, we are happy to share that these results are in full compliance with Quebec regulatory standards.
Following yesterday’s reopening of the Stewart Biology Building’s North Block, we had hoped to complete cleaning and testing in the South Block today, and reopen it this evening once it was confirmed that the test results met Quebec government safety standards.
Unfortunately, the cleaning in the South Block is not yet complete. This in turn has delayed the air testing in the South Block. The result is that we will not receive air test results until the evening of Monday, February 27.
After extensive cleaning and air-testing, we are glad to announce that the North Block of the Stewart Biology Building is safe for use, and is open effective immediately.
Last Thursday, we noted that some areas of the Stewart Biology Building would be re-cleaned, and that a fresh round of air tests would determine whether the building could re-open sometime this week. The re-cleaning was completed over the weekend, and new air samples will soon be taken from the North and South Blocks for testing.
Since our previous update, extensive testing has taken place in the North Block of the building, and the affected areas have undergone comprehensive cleaning under asbestos safety protocols. Results so far are encouraging. Wipe tests have helped to guide and target our air-testing and cleaning efforts, and following our cleaning operation, all air tests have indicated that this area is now safe for use.
We are writing to provide users of the Stewart Biology Building with an update as to timelines for a safe re-opening. While damage occurred in both the North and South blocks, the North will be able to open sooner than the South.
As mentioned in the message sent to the Stewart Biology listservs and posted on the web this morning, tests revealed the presence of asbestos in some building materials damaged by flooding. To be cautious, testing has been extended to other areas of the building not covered in the initial round of tests.
Assessment, testing, and clean-up are well underway in the Stewart Biology Building, following the flooding on Sunday caused by burst pipes. As many of you are aware, the building contains asbestos, as do many buildings of its era. Out of an abundance of caution, testing protocols and follow-up cleaning procedures (where indicated by test results) have therefore been undertaken in the affected areas. As some public access areas have also been affected, the entire building complex has been shut until testing and clean-up have been completed.
Extreme temperatures over the weekend have caused pipes to burst in the Stewart Biology Building.
It will take at least two more days to complete the clean-up and thoroughly assess the extent of the damage. Therefore, the building (North and South blocks) will remain closed until at least Thursday morning.