City of Newcastle will seek to recover more than $300,000 in clean-up costs after a Mayfield fire scattered suspected asbestos fragments across the suburb five weeks ago.
The inferno broke out on the afternoon of May 18 at Hunter Valley Whitegoods, where the roof of the building was made of asbestos.
Weeks on, homes in an eight-hectare area south-west of the fire site remain under assessment, but residents finally have an avenue to make claims for contamination and property damage.
A City of Newcastle spokeswoman said public spaces where material suspected to be asbestos was found have now been cleared, certified and reopened, with no further sites expected to be identified.
"City of Newcastle is continuing to work with residents and property owners in the eight-hectare area to the south-west of the fire that was identified as at risk of contamination," she said.
"We have updated them today on a new process to lodge a claim with the property owner's representative for asbestos contamination or property damage caused by the fire at 1 Denison Street on Monday, May 18.
"This follows our ongoing advocacy on behalf of the community to the property owner to meet their obligations to address contamination issues."
The council is managing the recovery, coordinating inspections by licensed asbestos assessors and providing updates to the community.
"We will seek to recover more than $300,000 in costs associated with the clean-up of public spaces and the ongoing management of the broader clean-up in the area," the council spokeswoman said.
Xcelerate has been engaged to manage any claims relating to asbestos contamination and property damage.
QBE, the nominated insurance company of the fire site, said it recognises the situation is "difficult" and has had a "significant impact" on the community.
"Our focus is on supporting our customer through the claims process and working constructively with relevant authorities as they respond to the incident," a QBE spokeswoman said.
"A dedicated contact centre has been established through Xcelerate to provide community members with a clear pathway for inquiries.
"QBE will consider and assess any claims submitted in line with the terms, conditions and limits of the policy."
The Newcastle Herald understands that while insurance may help fund the asbestos clean-up following the fire, claims by neighbouring property owners for asbestos-related losses may not be covered under liability policies.
Clean-up costs often sit within the overall insured sum and are not covered separately, which means the extent to which those costs can be reimbursed depends on how much of the policy limit is taken up by the insured's own loss.
A council information page about the fire said the risk to the broader community remained low, with air monitoring during the initial street clean-up finding "no evidence" of airborne asbestos above the detection limit.
The risk increases when asbestos is broken up or handled incorrectly, which is why the council has urged residents to avoid disturbing any fragments.
SafeWork NSW has confirmed it is still making inquiries into the fire.
"SafeWork NSW inspectors attended the site on multiple occasions following notification of the fire," a SafeWork NSW spokeswoman said.
"On each occasion, SafeWork NSW inspectors confirmed appropriate controls were in place for the clean-up activities under way, including asbestos removal and demolition work."
More information about how to make a claim is available on City of Newcastle's website.
