Asbestos News Roundup: 4.29.10

April 29th, 2010. By LucyC

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

Asbestos Lawsuits

Charleston, WV: The widow of William D. Thompson is suing her late husband’s employer, CSX Transportation, Inc, alleging wrongful death in an asbestos-related suit.

Mary Thompson’s husband worked for CSX from 1971 until 1988 and during that time, she alleges he was exposed to toxic substances, including asbestos, chemicals and diesel exhaust, which in whole or in part, caused him to develop lung cancer, which he was diagnosed with in July 2008.

The complaint alleges that CSX did not provide a reasonably safe work environment; furnish Mr. Thompson with safe and suitable tools and equipment; warn Mr. Thompson of the true nature and hazardous effects of the asbestos, chemicals and diesel fumes; test asbestos-containing products prior to requiring employees to work with them; and formulate and implement a safe method for handling asbestos, chemicals and diesel fumes. (WVRecord.com)

Madison County, IL: Seventeen new asbestos lawsuits have been filed in recent weeks in Madison County, among them, a suit brought by Orlene Dicks of Florida who claims her late husband, Emory Lee Dicks, developed mesothelioma after his work as a boatswains mate and truck driver at various locations from 1942 until 1964 and from 1966 until 1978.

And Teresa Montesano of California, also recently widowed, claims her husband, Ronney Montesano, who developed mesothelioma and subsequently died, was exposed to the lethal substance during his work in a variety of environments which would all have used asbestos. He worked as a member of the U.S. Navy; as a mill work performer and as a worker at Gray’s Harbor for 10 years, as an insulator, as a home remodeler in the 1960s and as an automotive repair worker in the 1960s and the 1970s. (MadisonRecord.com)

Asbestos Settlements

Mercerville, NJ: New Jersey based Congoleum Corp, a manufacturer of commercial and residential resilient flooring, has reached a settlement with insurer Chartis Companies in which the insurer will pay $40 million over six years in exchange for a buyback of certain subject insurance policies. The $40 million will be paid into the trust formed by Congoleum’s plan of reorganization for distribution to asbestos claimants. The settlement is subject to court approval and other conditions. (Claimsjournal.com)

Asbestos Jail Time

Sicily, Italy: Three ex-executives of an Italian shipbuilding company have been jailed in connection with the deaths of numerous workers due to asbestos exposure. As reported by AFP, the former executives of Fincantieri were sentenced by a Sicilian court on Monday for negligent homicide following the deaths of 37 workers. As noted in the report, the company allegedly used the toxic material following a ban on it in Italy.

Prosecutors are quoted by the AFP as stating during closing arguments, “The danger of asbestos has been known since the 1950s. Nevertheless, Fincantieri failed to take the most basic steps to prevent the inhalation of asbestos dust and fibres.”

As further noted in the report, the largest asbestos contamination class action lawsuit to ever be filed opened last year in Turin, with approximately 6,000 individuals having joined in. (Wired.prnew.com) 

Workers’ Memorial Day

On a final note—this from Build Safe UAE, a construction industry watchdog organization. The agency states that as many as two million workers are killed annually in accidents at work or by illnesses caused by occupational exposure to toxins like asbestos. 

Asbestos, which is found in over 30 million buildings nationwide, and in countless more across the world, is a naturally occurring mineral used in a vast number of consumer products like attic insulation and floor tiles. If asbestos becomes friable and is released into the air, workers may inhale the claw-shaped fibers, which can cling to the lining of the lungs and may eventually form a malignancy known as mesothelioma. (Transworldnews)

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Mesothelioma

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