Asbestos found at Peabody hotel

PEABODY – Visitors hoping to stay at The Holiday Inn on Route 1 in Peabody will have to make other arrangements, as the hotel chain was forced to close after building materials tested positive for asbestos.The hazardous discovery arose after a guest filed an anonymous complaint to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection on Wednesday.”What happened is they (the Holiday Inn) had not had a survey done of the building before starting renovations to determine if any materials contained asbestos that could be disturbed,” said Peabody Health Director Sharon Cameron.Joe Ferson, spokesman for the DEP, said an inspector was sent out to the facility and found asbestos on several tiles and mastic, an adhesive used on tiles. The inspector also noticed that permits had not been obtained nor sought for asbestos abatement.Management was contacted immediately and informed of the results, as well as instructed to hire an asbestos consultant to properly remove and contain areas where the commonly known cancer-causing agent existed.”The safety and well-being of all guests and employees at the Holiday Inn Peabody is the primary concern of the hotel’s owner and management team,” said a hotel spokesperson.Most guests were relocated Friday, while others were permitted to stay until Saturday morning, said Cameron.The reception and lobby areas have also been moved to a safer part of the hotel so visitors are not subjected to asbestos. The hotel has since stopped accepting reservations until state and local health officials deem the facility safe.Cameron said that cleanup is under way and will focus primarily on the lobby and function rooms first.Once clearance is given, the hotel may receive its occupancy permit for event purposes only.Guest rooms will have to undergo their own inspection before overnight stays are permitted.The difficult decision to temporarily close the hotel was made by Cameron, the city’s building inspector Kevin Goggin, the DEP, and the State Department of Occupational Safety.Ferson said there’s no end point in sight, as health officials will have to test each area that has been deemed remediated by the asbestos contractor to ensure that is safe.