Demolition workers put their health on the line ripping out potentially lethal asbestos from the Government Computer site in Chessington.

Wearing only T-shirts and shorts, the workers exposed themselves to the dangerous dust in Leatherhead Road. And residents, some living just 30 yards away from the site, fear they too could suffer in the long-term.

Now the Health and Safety Executive has launched an investigation into why better precautions were not taken.

The area has been sealed off with polythene, and a decontamination unit - with people wearing special protective clothing - has been drafted in.

Kingston and Richmond health authority disease control expert Dr Barry Walsh, trying to put people's minds at ease, said one-off exposure is "extremely unlikely" to spark major health problems.

But Bruce Hamblin, who lives in nearby Gladeside Close, said the workers knew they were ignoring strict safety rules.

"It was only when they saw me taking photographs with a telephoto lens that they began pulling on protective clothing and hosing down the area," Mr Hamblin said.

A spokesman for developers Wimpey Homes said the firm had full confidence in Tower Demolition, and the maximum-level precautions now in place were a precautionary measure installed purely in response to residents' concerns.

He said staff had originally thought they were dealing with glass fibre but "somewhere along the line" realised it was asbestos.

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