Most grey nomads who have done some travelling in Western Australia will be familiar with the asbestos-filled Outback town of Wittenoom.
Many will have even driven in the area, most likely with the windows firmly closed. It is unlikely though that many have hopped out, taken a few lusty lungfuls of contaminated air and posed for a photo by the ‘Danger’ signs.
And yet it appears this is the new mega-trend for Instagram users seeking to impress their social media followers.
Yahoo News reports that ‘influencers’ seem to delight dabbling in the risk using hashtags like ‘blue asbestos’ and ‘ghost town’ in their pictures.
It says that even with signs warning travellers to stay in their cars if they have to pass through the Pilbara town, many often spend the night camping there.
“I can’t wait to go, it looks beautiful,” one person wrote. “It’s stunning,” another added.
Another Instagram user reportedly described Wittenoom as ‘Australia’s Chernobyl’, while posting a photo of the danger warning sign in the town.
Yahoo News says Wittenoom is the largest contaminated site in the Southern Hemisphere with about 50,000 hectares of asbestos-riddled land so dangerous that the Western Australian government delisted the town from official maps in 2006. There is no power and the roads have been torn up.
The Wittenoom mine was shut down in 1966 as the health threat of asbestos became clearer. It is estimated that 2,000 of the 13,000 mine workers and families who lived in the town have since died of asbestos-related illnesses.
One traveller stayed overnight with one of the three residents who remain in the town and claimed the health threat was long gone.
“The area is safe now, but the fear of the asbestos mine looms over this area and the Australian government is persistent in wishing to delete the existence of this town,” Instagram user Steven Alyian wrote.
However, the National Centre of Asbestos Related Diseases advisory chair, Melita Markey, warned that inhaling even one particle was all it might take to develop mesothelioma.
“There’s a lot of asbestos in Wittenoom and it has very strong winds blowing around you,” she told the West Australian. “The consequences aren’t worth it … you’re playing Russian roulette with your life.”
I went their on a job, to asses, for the WA government in 99′. We satayed at the camping area in town for 3 weeks, it was quite windy at the time, wearing. rebreather masks the whole time. The entire towns, soil was laid with asbestos tailings, even at the camping area. We deemed and area around the town, and mine up to 10 km from was unsafe, and the roads thru the area to be bypassed permanently, although this was never done. I even went their in 83′ , but was niaive in the fact of asbestos being dangerous then.
Thank you for your clarity on the danger. I once did the asbestos removal training and graduated. After the training, I had no interest in removing asbestos. Instagram is the new youtube, with people doing really really dumb stuff to get the ad revenue.
The operation at the time, was the biggest in safety systems put in place,, before we actually started investigating, that I have ever done before or since. A roadtrain, with 100 thousand litres of fresh water. A mobile lab, and an 34 foot 3 axle caravan. 4 environmental scientists , including myself. 2 decom tents per caravan, Including a blacklight room each, for particles, It was an operation, in not getting particles on or in our bodies. Full body suits. We did not have aircond. fitted to i the vans, so we wouldn’t be tempted to use them. Could not use the airconds. in the 2 X 4wds, just everything closed up. But tourists in the area walking around like they were on holidays. Not a care in the world.
Crawled all through that place back in the 70’s and I’m still kicking thank goodness.
Yes in 2003 but didn’t get out of the vehicle.
We had a chap working for us on the farm in the 60’s who had worked at Wittenoom and he gave me a small piece of blue asbestos. It lay around the place for years.
Yes, we went there many times in the mid to late 80’s; doing the gorges, whilst living in Karratha, and often working in Tom Price. Hamersley Gorge is just awesome; especially the top pool with the quite large round rock in the bottom. Still here, 70 on the 31st Dec.
Done the same Gary. Worked at Tom Price in the 70’s. Always went over to Wittenoom on the off shift. Got into mischief around the town and had a good time at the pub. Also enjoyed swimming at the Gorge. Friend of mine passed away from that dreadful disease five years ago. He lived in the town as a kid and used to play on the Asbestos mounds after school sliding down the mounds on a car bonnet.
My father and I spent 3 nights camping in the gorge next to one of the water holes. I work in mining and know the danger of asbestos. It’s a shame the mining went on there it’s a beautiful area many better than Karijini. Asbestos is in the hole of the Pilbara especially in every mine site that I have worked in over the last 30 years. Are they going to shut them down? I don’t think so.
I went up there from Newman in 1974 to go to the Wittenoom races and tour the gorges. We slept in sleeping bags on the ground and sat and cooked on the ground just outside the opening to one of the mines.
Knowing what we now know – I wouldn’t do that.
I spent a week in the Wittenoom hospital early 1970s and worked on iron ore exploration 10 km out of Wittenoom. Still above ground but got a letter each year from Perth Hospital asking if I was still ok. They stopped about 10 years ago.
Use to go there regularly from Paraburdoo in the early seventies the pub was still going then the gorges were great for camping and swimming had a nice piece of rock containing asbestosis in a band through it chucked it away in the nineties when I found out how dangerous it could be