Asbestos News

More than a dozen workers in Switzerland were exposed to asbestos when they used a paint containing the naturally occurring substance on rail cars.

It was discovered that the carcinogenic paint was used during the refurbishment of rail cars in Bellinzona, according to SwissInfo.ch.

While Federal Railways says that no passengers were exposed to the asbestos, the news provider reports that 16 workers came in contact with the substance.

Such exposure can have deadly consequences as the inhalation of the deadly mineral fiber - which was once widely used as an insulator and flame retardant - has been proven to cause a number of serious illnesses such as asbestosis, lung cancer and malignant mesothelioma. These asbestos-caused diseases claim the lives of 107,000 people each year around the planet, according to the World Health Organization.

Authorities did say that the amount of asbestos found at the site was small and stable.

The transport workers' trades union is now calling for all similar railway cars to be monitored for asbestos. In addition, the labor group is asking that the exposed workers have their health monitored for the rest of their lives.