A finnish surplus store called Varusteleka has recently made a recall regarding soviet gas mask filters because they have been found to contain asbestos. Reason why I'm posting this information here is because one of the masks affected is the same gas mask that the "MR. Foster" Killing Floor character uses, namely the soviet GP-5 gas mask, which I've seen multiple people cosplaying around the world. The Finnish Safety and Chemical Agency (TUKES) tested the filters of 12 randomly selected masks from Varusteleka and 100% of them were reported to contain asbestos. For those unfamiliar with the anatomy of gas masks, the filter is the green can that is screwed in front of the GP-5 mask. And for those unfamiliar with asbestos it is a toxic material and you can find more information about it in the link below.
Information about the recall with the test results (in finnish):
https://www.facebook.com/Varusteleka/posts/10154683636951776
Information about health risks involving asbestos
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos#Health_impact
If you know of people who cosplay as Mr. Foster or people who own a GP-5 gas mask, please make them aware of this issue and have them contact the place of purchase about dealing with the filters. Asbestos is a toxic material that needs to be disposed of correctly.
Information about the recall with the test results (in finnish):
https://www.facebook.com/Varusteleka/posts/10154683636951776
Information about health risks involving asbestos
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos#Health_impact
If you know of people who cosplay as Mr. Foster or people who own a GP-5 gas mask, please make them aware of this issue and have them contact the place of purchase about dealing with the filters. Asbestos is a toxic material that needs to be disposed of correctly.
