Asbestos News Roundup: 7.30.10

July 30th, 2010. By LucyC

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

Asbestos Lawsuits

Madison County, IL: Twelve new asbestos lawsuits were filed in Madison County from June 14- 20. They include a suit filed by Donald Bauer of Texas who worked in maintenance and as a lineboy gassing airplanes, as well as a welder/fabricator from 1959 until 1992. His suit alleges that he developed asbestos mesothelioma through exposure to asbestos-containing products during his work. 

Another of the suits was filed by Lornalee Rapinchuk of Illinois, who was a clerk, production line worker and home health assistant at various locations from 1954 until 1985. Rapinchuck alleges that she has mesothelioma, and was secondarily exposed to asbestos fibers through her father, Thomas Manz, who worked as a construction worker and painter; through her brother, Charles Manz, who worked as a painter; and through her husband, Thomas G. Rapinchuk, who worked as a sheet metal worker, press operator, draftsman and engineering detailer from 1955 until 1995. 

In yet another asbestos suit, Gary Vogel of Kentucky claims the recently deceased John Vogel developed mesothelioma after his work at Sidney Kline from 1940 until 1941, at Clark Electric from 1941 until 1943, as a member of the U.S. Navy from 1943 until 1945, as a member of the Naval Ordinance from 1946 until 1976, at Beam and Colville Realtors from the late 1970s until the mid 1980s and at Al Vogel Constructing from the mid 1980s to the late 1980s. 

Asbestos Whistleblower Suit

Genesee County, MI: A whistleblower suit has been filed by a former Genesee County Community Action Resource Department (GCCARD) worker Ray Barker. The Genesee County program helps thousands of people that need insulation in their homes. Barker was employed as a weatherization worker for GCCARD. One of his duties was to install insulation in the attics of homes around Genesee County, which he did.  However, after pointing out the dangers of asbestos to workers and homeowners, he was fired.

“I was told it was perfectly safe,” Barker told connectmidmichigan.com. “It’s not. When I brought this to their attention, they fired me.” 

“I think it is our obligation to say something for the safety of others,” Barker said. Nevertheless, Barker claims workers were sent into attics containing vermiculite without training or warning. 

According to the connectmichigan.com story, GCCARD claims Barker was not fired for bringing concerns to his managers’ attention. Apparently other workers also voiced concerns. A spokesperson for GCCARD said that they “reacted by researching the issue and buying more safety equipment,” and sealing off homes from the attic during work in homes with vermiculite insulation. (connectmidmichigan.com)

Asbestos Hot Spots

Huntsville, AL: The Blossomwood Elementary School building is having asbestos removed before being torn down, according to Huntsville City School leaders. The school was built in 1954, a time when asbestos was widely used in construction. 

Kyle Koski of Huntsville school’s safety and transportation division said that they have known the asbestos was there and for quite some time. He added that asbestos is also likely present in the majority of homes and businesses in Huntsville that were built before 1980. 

The first phase of this demolition project will deal with asbestos abatement before actual demolition occurs. Crews that specialize in dealing with asbestos will be doing the removal. (WAFF.com)

Boston, MA: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reached an agreement with four companies to the tune of $13 million, which, the EPA says will speed up the work being done on a polluted Superfund site in Walpole. The settlement was reached with WR Grace and Co, Tyco Healthcare, and two firms that currently own the site. 

The agreement reportedly calls for the dredging of contaminated soil and sediment and the treating of contaminated groundwater at the site, among other terms and conditions. 

The Blackburn and Union Privileges Superfund site has been a national priority since 1994, according the EPA. The Neponset River flows through the site, which was used by a predecessor WR Grace to make asbestos brake linings from 1915 through to 1936. And, a predecessor of Tyco Healthcare used caustic solutions to make cotton fabrics from 1946 to about 1983.

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Mesothelioma

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