Asbestos Sand Crisis Widens as Schools Close Across Three States

Authorities warn cleanup will take days as schools in the ACT, Tasmania, and SA respond to asbestos found in recalled sand products.

Fencing and warning tape seen around playground equipment at a park where asbestos has been found at Hosken Reserve in Coburg North, Melbourne, Australia, on April 5, 2024. AAP Image/Joel Carrett

Twenty-five public schools in Canberra will remain closed on Nov. 18, with dozens of others reopening or operating on a limited basis as authorities continue removing coloured play sand suspected of containing asbestos.

The ACT government shut 70 public schools on Nov. 17 after several sand products were recalled by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).