Eleven people have been fired from the Hav- och vattenmyndigheten* in Gothenburg, following the disposal of the research ship Argos after asbestos findings on board. Two people have been diagnosed with changes on their lungs, which may be a result of the asbestos exposure.
"It is now clear that we will scrap Argos and they will lose their jobs. It is very unfortunate and I say this with sadness," says Anna Jöborn, manager at Hav- och vattenmyndigheten, to P4 Göteborg.
"It is a failure for us that we can't keep our ship and that we don't have the possibility to keep the staff."
Argos has not been in service since early 2011 due to the asbestos. But according to Göteborgs-Posten there are documents from the early 1990s that show the problem was known back then as well.
A police investigation has been launched into suspected work environment offences.
--- *Hav- och vattenmyndigheten = the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management
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