Recovery risks

The road to recovery from Hurricane Katrina is fraught with risks. Public health officials worry about asbestos, lead and mold exposures from shoddy demolition work. There are elevated benzene levels. Topsoil contaminated with banned pesticides, arsenic and other industrial toxins from flooded refineries, factories, gas stations and waste dumps. Then there's the Katrina cough. Its symptoms - coughing, sore throats, runny noses and respiratory problems - are similar to those experienced by many Ground Zero cleanup workers in the aftermath of 9/11.

Worker safety groups claim contractors often hire Latino immigrants from nearby cities like Houston and send them on demolition jobs without respirators or any awareness of the health hazards they might confront. Some Brazilian and Honduran workers are not familiar with the words for asbestos and lead even in their primary language, according to the safety advocates.

They also allege that contractors ignore safety practices that can be costly and time-consuming. Among their claims: Workers in cherry pickers maneuver dangerously close to live power lines; men on roofing repair jobs are not tied off; workers at landfills and debris collection areas, where millions of pounds of spoiled chickens and shrimp add a stench to the high levels of dust, go without respiratory protection.