KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- An environmental cleanup is under way after asbestos was found at the Clarion Hotel near the Kansas City International Airport.

Acting on an anonymous tip, authorities said that they discovered workers at the hotel were removing ceiling texture containing asbestos, which is a known cancer-causing agent.

The renovation project had been going on for 60 days. City officials said that the project involved removing ceiling texture from all five floors including hallways, common areas and guest rooms.

City officials said that hotel representatives never got a permit for the renovation project and no engineering controls or barriers were set up to protect guests and workers from exposure to asbestos.

"We learned that the project had been planned, yet an appropriate permit was not issued by our office for the renovation project," said Bert Malone, with the Kansas City, Mo., Health Department.

The project was shut down and the areas were closed off on orders of health inspectors.

The Clarion at 11832 N.W. Plaza Drive shut down following air-sampling tests from an independent contractor.

KMBC's Peggy Breit reported that hundreds of people may have been exposed and that health officials are trying to track the people most at risk.

Health officials said tests showed consistent contamination, but there was a relatively low-risk for everyone exposed.

"I want to reassure people that the levels of exposure we're talking about here, particularly for non-workers, is at extremely low levels," said Dr. Rex Archer, with the KCMO Health Department.

The Health Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been meeting with hotel representatives oversee the plan to fix it. The hotel will remain closed until the work is finished, which may be another six weeks.

Breit reported that workers cleaning up the contamination are wearing protective clothing.

The hotel owners could face fines in the case.

Asbestos was a common part of buildings erected before 1970 -- that's when its role as a cancer-causing agent became clear. Studies show that asbestos exposure and smoking can be a lethal mix.

Web Links

www.Cancer.gov

EPA

Abestos Resource Center