Asbestos News Roundup: 9.10.10

September 10th, 2010. By LucyC

A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Jefferson County, TX: Surviving family members of four deceased refinery workers in Texas, have filed a wrongful death suit that names 78 defendant companies. Family members of Betty Laverne, Jimmie Ray Sonnier, William Harold Tinney and Perkins Young allege that the defendants exposed the workers to asbestos through their work, and that exposure led to their deaths from asbestos-related diseases. 

According to the complaint, the plaintiffs worked as craftsmen and construction tradesmen at the refineries, chemical plants and other industrial facilities in Jefferson, Orange and Harris counties. The suit alleges that the workers were exposed to asbestos through thermal and electrical insulation products, flooring materials, textiles, gaskets, wicking and packing, mastics, cement products, coatings and other uses of asbestos. Further, the family members contend that “Even after defendants knew the truth about the propensity of asbestos they remained mute when by reasonable effort they could have prevented the risk of cancer and asbestosis from afflicting the Plaintiffs.”

The suit claims that the defendants’ negligent acts include failure to exercise reasonable care to protect the plaintiffs from dangers and unreasonable risks of harm known to exist.

The 78 defendants are divided into “premises defendants” which are the refineries, chemical plants and shipyards; “product defendants” that make the asbestos containing products; and “distributor defendants” that sold or supplied the products.

The defendants named in the suit are 4520 Corp., A.W. Chesterton Co., Air Liquide America, American Petroleum Institute, American Standard, Ametek, AMF Inc., Aqua-Chem, Babcock Borsig Power, BASF Corp., Bechtel Construction, Bechtel Corp., Bechtel Group, Bechtel Power, BP Amoco Chemical Co., BP Corp. NA, Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, Bridgestone Americas Inc., Bryan Steam, Chevron Phillips, Chevron USA, Coen Co., Conoco Phillips, Crane Co., Delta Industrial, Dow Chemical, E.I. DuPont de Nemours, Entergy Texas, Ethyl Corp., ExxonMobil Corp. and ExxonMobil Oil Corp.

Also FBCO Inc., Firestone Diversified Products, Fluor Corp., Fluor Enterprises, Foster Wheeler Energy Corp., General Refractories Co., Global Remediation, Greene Tweed and Co., Grefco Inc., HB Zachary (Texas), HB Zachary Co., Henry Vogt Machine Co., Holman Boiler Works, Huntsman Petrochemical, IMO Industries, Jason Inc., Johnston Boiler, Kvaerner US Inc., Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., Mine Safety Appliances, Minstar Inc., Mitternight Boiler Works, Monsanto Co., Mundy Industrial Maintenance, Natkin & Co. and Nooter Corp.

And Owens-Illinois, Parsons Infrastructure and Technology, Resco Holdings, Santa Fe Braun Inc., Sepco Corp., Sequoia Ventures, Shell Oil Co., Sinclair Oil Corp., Sunoco Inc., Superior Boiler Works, Total Petrochemicals USA, Trinity Construction, Triplex Inc., U.S. Steel Corp., URS Energy & Construction, Velsicol Chemical, Viacom, W.S. Bellows Construction, Wheelerbrator Technologies, Worley Parsons Group and Zurn Industries. (SE Texas Record)

New Orleans, LA: Julius Boudreaux, a Louisiana resident who recently learned he was epxosed to asbestos more than 30 years ago, has filed a federal lawsuit against J. Ray McDermott Inc. and McDermott Inc. claiming he fears developing cancer.

Boudreaux worked for the defendant from 1965 through 1968 as a rigger working in the Gulf of Mexico and 1968 through 1971 as a rigger and hoist operator in the waters of Egypt, Brazil, and the North Sea. He also worked from 1976 through 1978 in the Gulf of Mexico as a hoist operator and rigger leader-man.

In his suit, Boudreaux alleges that the defendant companies failed to provide him with safe and appropriate tools for work or a safe workplace, failing to ensure safe guidelines, failing to adequately train and supervise its employees and failing to identify and warn of known hazards. (Louisiana Record) 

Asbestos Hot Spots

Asbestos, PQ: Canadian Cancer Society calls the decision ‘deplorable’. The provincial government of Quebec has agreed to guarantee a $3.5 million line of credit to support one of Canada’ last and largest asbestos mines, located in Asbestos, Quebec.

Supporters of the infamous Jeffrey Asbestos Mine say that if the mine can attract a further $58 million it needs to keep operating, it will create 400 direct and 1,000 indirect jobs, and allow the mine to remain open for another 25 years.

Andre Beaulieu, a spokesperson for the Quebec branch of the Canadian Cancer Society, says that asbestos “accounts for about 90,000 deaths each year.” “The government … should provide a transition support to affected communities and find new economies and new businesses locally,” Beaulieu said. He is asking for a global ban on the production of asbestos in all its forms. (CBC.ca)

Mesothelioma Asbestos Awareness Day – September 26

This year, Mesothelioma Awareness Day is scheduled for September 26. In New York, public awareness campaigns will include a window display for the entire month of September at 10 Rockefeller Plaza. This includes a video about the signs and symptoms of mesothelioma, according to the Meso Foundation, a non-profit advocacy group dedicated to finding a cure for mesothelioma.

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Mesothelioma

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