Dear Editor,
During Asbestos Awareness Month my fellow ambassadors Cherie Barber, Don Burke, Scott Cam, Barry Du Bois, Scott McGregor and I speak with one voice to all Australians about the dangers of asbestos to homeowners, renovators, tradies and handymen hoping they’ll hear our potentially life-saving message.
For those who think asbestos-related diseases are a thing of the past, think again. There is no safe level of exposure to asbestos fibres and if breathed in, it can have the potential to cause mesothelioma, a deadly cancer that can take 20 to 50 years to develop. There is no cure and people have a very short life expectancy – just 10 to12 months after diagnosis.
I lost a good mate Harold Hopkins to mesothelioma because he breathed in asbestos fibres when he was a young bloke on building sites so I know first-hand how dangerous asbestos can be. Asbestos can be found in at least 1 in 3 Australian homes and it doesn’t matter what kind of home you live in, brick, weatherboard, clad or fibro, so if it was built or renovated before 1987, it will most likely contain asbestos. Australian’s need to think smart, think safe and get to kNOw asbestos this NOvember by visiting asbestosawareness.com.au because it’s not worth the risk!
Attached are two photographs, one with my fellow Asbestos Awareness Ambassadors Don Burke OAM, Scott McGregor and Barry Du Bois and the other includes Serafina Salucci, a young mother with mesothelioma who inhaled the deadly asbestos fibres as a kid while her parents were renovating.
For more information, media releases and high res images you can visit www.asbestosawareness.com.au in the downloads section or contact campaign managers Clare Collins or Alice Collins on 02 9518 4744 or email asbestosawareness@
Sincerely,
John Jarratt
Ambassador: Asbestos Awareness Month Campaign
PO BOX 944 Strawberry Hills NSW 2012