A whistleblower who warned the city of San Diego about “life-threatening” conditions in a city-owned downtown high-rise claims he was ignored by supervisors.
Civil engineer Marlon Perez described dangerous conditions in a Feb. 4, 2020 letter, such as a high risk of asbestos exposure and fire hazards in the building. Perez claimed that a Public Works Department decision to put an unqualified person in charge of a renovation project put more than one thousand workers at risk.
According to Perez, the city was aware of “substantial asbestos” contamination inside the building. Despite their knowledge of the building’s condition, the city supervisor described the building as “free of asbestos and 100 percent safe for workers to enter.”
However, the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District found the worksite unsafe due to the asbestos contamination.
Read the full story from NBC San Diego: Whistleblower Claims City Ignored Warnings About Asbestos and Fire Safety at Downtown High Rise.