Fire-Damaged Asbestos Demolition

On an intact building it can, and that is the normal sequence. After a significant fire the structure is usually unsound, which makes sending people in to strip material by hand unsafe. That leaves machinery, and the moment mechanical plant is used to disturb asbestos the work has to be carried out under friable conditions and Class A controls: water suppression running throughout, the structure brought down by excavator and the material loaded out as it goes. The demolition becomes the removal method, which is why it takes a Class A licence rather than a demolition contractor and a separate removalist. Sections 452 and 453 of the WHS Regulation require asbestos to be removed before demolition so far as is reasonably practicable, and a duty holder who does not remove it first has to evidence why that was not practicable. A structure that is unsound, or where collapse is imminent, is the exception the regulation contemplates, and the evidence for it is part of what we document.

Not always, but assume it is until it has been assessed. Heat and firefighting water break down the cement binder that holds the fibres, so the classification depends on the condition of the material on the day rather than on what product was originally installed. The other half of the test is access: once a structure is unsound and the work has to be done mechanically, friable controls apply regardless of how the sheeting started out. We have the material assessed before pricing.

We can work directly with the insurer or loss adjuster and issue documentation in the format they need, scope of works, methodology, air monitoring results, clearance certificate and waste tracking. Most claims stall on missing documentation rather than on the work itself.

A single-storey house is typically one to two weeks including site setup, notification period, demolition, soil validation and clearance. The WHSQ notification period of at least five days is the fixed part; the rest depends on access, soil contamination and how much of the structure is still standing.

It gets assessed. Fire debris almost always spreads asbestos fragments into the surrounding ground, so the soil is sampled, delineated and, where it is impacted, excavated and validated before the site is signed off. Skipping it leaves the problem for the next contractor and the next owner.

We do not build, but we hand the site back cleared, validated and documented, with everything a builder or certifier needs to start. Slab and footing removal is quoted separately depending on the rebuild plan.