Asbestos News Roundup: 5.9.13 – Second-Hand Asbestos Risk

May 9th, 2013. By LucyC

A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.

Family Members at Risk for Asbestos Disease

The recent case of John Mays, below, who died from mesothelioma, highlights how asbestos dust represents a danger not just to those who worked in heavy industry, but also to their family members who were in daily contact with them.

The lawsuit filed on behalf of the estate of the late John Mays, claims he suffered secondary asbestos exposure through his father who was a laborer. Recently, we also reported on the case of a 78-year old women succumbed to asbestos mesothelioma which she developed as a result of having breathed in second-hand asbestos fibers as she shook out the work clothes of her husband and son, who worked at a power station.

There are many cases of family members developing asbestos disease as a result of secondary asbestos exposure—secondary exposure caused, for example, by wives beating their husband’s dusty overalls as they hung on a washing line, or shaking them off in a doorway before putting them in a washing machine. Their husbands worked in industries such as mining, ship-building, construction, plumbing and electrical.

Children and even grandchildren have also been put at risk, running up to a returning parent to give them a hug as they return from work, or sitting on their knee as they wear their dusty work clothes. The risk of loved ones being accidentally exposed is unfortunate and just adds to the tragic legacy of asbestos. But as this latest case shows, it is something that family members need to be made aware of.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Schenectady, NY: An asbestos lawsuit has been filed on behalf of Norman Westover in the New York Supreme Court’s 4th Judicial District in Schenectady to recover damages for Mr. Westover’s lung cancer, which, according to the lawsuit, was allegedly caused by asbestos exposure.

According to the filed complaint, Mr. Westover was allegedly exposed to dangerous asbestos fibers on a daily basis during his twenty-plus-year career at the International Paper mill located in Ticonderoga, NY. International Paper purchased the pulp mill, which had been operating on the western shores of Lake Champlain near the Vermont border since the late 19th century, in 1926. In the late 1960s, International Paper began decommissioning the original mill and, in 1971, opened a new mill at the location which is still operating today. The mill produces 850 tons of paper a day, employs approximately 600 workers and contracts with 650 loggers and truckers in New York and Vermont.

International Paper was formed in 1898 upon the merger of 18 paper mills in the northeast. The company was responsible for supplying 60% of the newsprint in the country. International Paper’s Hudson River Mill, located in nearby Corinth, where the Sacandaga River joins the Hudson, was a major pioneer in the development of the modern paper industry. In the early 20th century, the Hudson River Mill was one of International Paper’s largest plants and served both as the company’s principal office and a place where paper workers helped shape the direction of the industry’s early labor movement.

As per the asbestos lawsuit papers, during his tenure at International Paper, Mr. Westover worked in both the original and new mill and he held a variety of positions that allegedly exposed him to asbestos fibers used in connection with mill machinery, including, but not limited to, cutters, dryers, rollers, boilers, pumps, and valves. Mr. Westover was also allegedly exposed to asbestos that was used in an abundance to insulate component parts of the original and new mill and the related piping and wiring. (digitaljournal.com)

St. Clair, IL: An asbestos lawsuit has been filed on behalf of Neda Flake-Mays, who is special administrator of the estate of John Mays, alleging 60 defendant companies caused Mays to develop lung cancer after his exposure to asbestos-containing products throughout his career.

According to the lawsuit, Mays worked as a bulldozer driver at Job Corps Cooking from 1963 until 1965, as flooring maker at E.L. Bruce from 1965 until 1967, as a wood paneling maker at Evans Products from 1967 until 1969 and as a chemical mixer and operator at Humko Chemical from 1969 until 1991. The complaint also claims Mays suffered secondary asbestos exposure through his father who was a laborer at Nikki Brothers.

Flake-Mays lawsuit claims the defendants should have known of the harmful effects of asbestos, but failed to exercise reasonable care and caution for the plaintiffs’ or their deceased relative’s safety.

As a result of his asbestos-related diseases, the lawsuit states Mays became disabled and disfigured, incurred medical costs and suffered great physical pain and mental anguish. Further, Mays became prevented from pursuing his normal course of employment and, as a result, lost large sums of money that would have accrued to him.

In her 10-count complaint, Flake-Mays is seeking a judgment of more than $150,000, economic damages of more than $200,000, punitive and exemplary damages of more than $50,000, compensatory damages of more than $100,000, punitive damages in an amount sufficient to punish the defendants, plus costs and other relief the court deems just.

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Exposure, asbestos law, asbestos lawsuit, Asbestos Mesothelioma

This was posted on Thursday, May 9th, 2013 at 4:48 pm and is filed under Asbestos Mesothelioma, lawsuits . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.