Asbestos Mesothelioma Archive
Asbestos News Roundup: 5.13.11
May 13th, 2011. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of asbestos hot spots from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
Asbestos Lawsuits
St. Clair County, IL: Forty-one companies have been named as defendants in the latest asbestos suit to be filed in St. Clair County. Debra L. Trimble of Illinois filed the asbestos lawsuit alleging that the defendants caused her to develop lung cancer resulting from career exposure to asbestos-containing products.
In her suit, Trimble claims she was employed as a foundry worker for General Motors from 1976 until 1999. During that time, 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.
Trimble further alleges that as a result of her asbestos-related disease, she became disabled and disfigured, incurred medical costs and suffered great physical pain and mental anguish. Consequently, she became prevented from pursuing her normal course of employment and, as a result, lost large sums of money that would have accrued to her, the suit alleges.
Trimble is seeking a judgment of more than $100,000, plus punitive and exemplary damages of more than $100,000 and compensatory damages of more than $50,000. (madison record.com)
Jefferson County, TX: A couple from Texas have filed an asbestos suit naming nine defendant companies. In their suit, the couple claims the defendants caused the man to develop a malignant asbestos-related disease and industrial dust disease. The suit claims he worked around products manufactured by the defendant companies.
In their suit, Mr. and Mrs. Clark allege the defendant companies caused Walter Clark’s diseases because they allowed asbestos-related products to be used on their premises even though they Read the rest of this entry »
Asbestos News Roundup: 5.6.11
May 6th, 2011. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of asbestos hot spots from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Jefferson County, TX: Leroy Brown, from Jefferson County, has filed an asbestos suit naming 23 companies as defendants. In his suit, Brown alleges that during his working life he was regularly in contact with a variety of asbestos-containing products manufactured by these companies, and as a result he has developed a malignant asbestos-related disease. Leroy Brown’s wife, Marjorie Brown, is also a plaintiff.
According to his complaint, Brown maintains he was exposed to the asbestos products during his career as a laborer, helper, iron worker, boilermaker and supervisor at Texaco from October 1969 until his retirement in 2007. He and his wife further allege the defendant companies caused Brown’s disease because they failed to adequately test their products and failed to warn of the dangers of asbestos exposure.
The defending companies named in the complaint are: Able Supply Co., AMF, B&B Engineering and Supply Co., Chevron, Cleaver Brooks, Crown Cork and Seal Co., Deltak, Flint Hills Resources, Flint Hills Resources LLC, Foster Wheeler Energy Corp., Guardline Inc., Huntsman LLC, Huntsman Petrochemical Corp., Koch Industries, Met Life Group, Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co., Motiva Co., Motiva Enterprises, Riley Power, Texaco, Triplex, Weil-McClain Boilers and Zurn Industries. (SETexasrecord.com)
Asbestos Settlements
Buffalo, NY: A retired Buffalo City police officer could receive a settlement of $1.7 million from the city as compensation for his medical condition—he is suffering from a rare type of asbestos-related cancer.
This settlement, if finalized, would not only be the largest personal injury claim against the city in recent years, but could represent the tip of the iceberg in terms of asbestos-related lawsuits and settlements against the city.
“With the age of the buildings in the municipality and the potential exposure to these types Read the rest of this entry »
Asbestos News Roundup: 4.29.11
April 29th, 2011. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of asbestos hot spots from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Charleston, WV: A couple from Clarksburg has filed an asbestos suit naming 56 companies as defendants. They allege that the defendants are responsible for Lendell C. Simmons being exposed to asbestos and his resulting diagnosis of lung cancer.
Mr. Simmons was diagnosed with lung cancer on February 21, according to the lawsuit. Simmons and his wife, Patricia, are alleging negligence, contaminated buildings, breach of expressed/implied warranty, strict liability, intentional tort, conspiracy, misrepresentations and post-sale duty to warn, on the part of the defendants.
The 56 companies named as defendants in the suit are: A.W. Chesterton Company; Allied Glove Corporation; Beazer East, Inc.; Bechtel Corporation; Brand Insulations, Inc.; Catalytic Construction Company; Certainteed Corporation; Crane Co.; Crown Cork & Seal USA, Inc.; Dow Chemical Company; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Corporation; Fairmont Supply Company; ETC Wright Company; Flowserve FSD Corporation; Flowserve US, Inc.; FMC Corporation; Foseco, Inc.; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; George V. Hamilton, Inc.; Goulds Pumps; Grinnell Corporation; Henry Vogt Machine Company; Hercules, Inc.; Howden North America, Inc.; I.U. North America, Inc.; IMO Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; ITT Corporation; J.H. France Refractories Company; Lockheed Martin Corporation; McJunkin Corporation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Oglebay Norton Company; Ohio Valley Insulating Company, Inc.; Owens-Illinois, Inc.; Premiere Refractories, Inc.; Rapid American Corporation; Riley Power, Inc.; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Rust Constructors, Inc.; Rust Engineering & Construction, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA), LLC; Sundyne Corporation; Sutter Roofing & Metal Co. Inc.; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; the Gage Company; UB West Virginia, Inc.; Union Carbide Chemical & Plastics Company; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group international; Viacom, Inc.; and Vimasco Corporation. (WVRecord.com)
Asbestos Hot Spots
Knox County, TN: The Knox County board met this week to try and determine what to do about the courthouse, which contains asbestos in the floor tiles, linoleum, textured parts of the ceiling, the boiler breeching and mud joints.
According to report by KWQC-TV6, 25 random tests for asbestos were done throughout the Read the rest of this entry »
Asbestos News Roundup: 4.22.11
April 22nd, 2011. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of asbestos hot spots from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Charleston, WV: Layman B. Saltz and his wife, Patricia K. Saltz, from Lufkin, Texas, have filed an asbestos suit naming 37 companies as defendants, and alleging that those companies are responsible for Mr. Saltz’s diagnosis of asbestos mesothelioma. He was diagnosed, according to a complaint, on December 29, 2010.
The defendants are being sued upon theories of negligence; contaminated buildings; breach of expressed/implied warranty; strict liability; intentional tort; conspiracy; misrepresentations; and post-sale duty to warn, according to the suit.
The 37 companies named as defendants in the suit are: 3M Company, Inc.; A.O. Smith Corporation; A.W. Chesterton Company; American Radiator & Standard Corporation; Certainteed Corporation; Cleaver Brooks, Inc.; Eaton Electrical, Inc.; Flowserve FSD Corporation; F.B. Wright Company; Ford Motor Company; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; Georgia Pacific Corporation; George V. Hamilton, Inc.; Goulds Pumps; Honeywell International; IMO Industries, Inc.; Devalco Corporation; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll Rand; Joy Technologies, Inc.; Kelly-Moore Paint Company, Inc.; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; Owens-Illinois, Inc.; Pneumo Abex Corporation; Rapid-American Corporation; Riley Power, Inc.; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; Superior Boiler Works, Inc.; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; Union Carbide Chemical & Plastics Company; Uniroyal, Inc.; Viacom, Inc.; Vimasco Corporation; Weil-McLain Company; and Zurn Industries, LLC. (wvrecord.com)
Charleston, WV: William B. DePaoli Jr, from Canonsburg, has filed an asbestos claim alleging that during his employment he was exposed to asbestos which subsequently led to his diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma.
DePaoli Jr. was exposed to asbestos during his employment at various job sites around West Virginia, according to his complaint. The suit alleges that the defendants failed to advise Read the rest of this entry »
Dying for Breath: When Asbestos Safety Gear Isn’t Safe
April 20th, 2011. By LucyC
When you hear the term ‘safety equipment’—defects are likely not the first thing that come to mind. You buy a respirator that has supposedly been tested for use in toxic environments and marketed based on the strength of that, and you could quite understandably think you’re good to go.
Well, maybe not. It seems that old adage—all things are not created equal—also applies to respirators. And this is a particularly serious issue if you use a respirator for work around asbestos, or coal, or other toxic substances.
Because asbestos is so hazardous to human health—it’s known to cause several types of diseases including cancer—the federal government introduced laws mandating the use of respirators for people who work around the mineral. This might include asbestos miners, people who work with asbestos insulation and the manufacture of goods containing asbestos. The idea behind the law is that the respirators would prevent tiny airborne asbestos particles from entering a person’s lungs and possibly causing asbestosis and asbestos mesothelioma, which is usually fatal. So, all in all—respirators are pretty important pieces of ‘safety equipment.’
The problem is that some respirators have been found to have design defects that pretty much make them useless. Worse, the person wearing the respirator will have no way of knowing that the piece of equipment they are trusting with their life is not working properly. They may only find out when, years later, they are diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease.
And this is not an insignificant problem. Some estimates suggest that more than 84,000 lawsuits have been filed against 3M—a company that makes respirators—because the product failed to filter out asbestos particles. About a year ago—in April 2010—LawyersandSettlements.com interviewed Robert Rowland at the law firm Goldenberg Heller Antognoli & Rowland regarding asbestos litigation. They had been involved in defective respirator litigation, which had resulted in over $7.8 million in settlements for Illinois Coal Miners in claims against respirator manufacturers. They had also filed more than 250 asbestos lawsuits since 2008.
So who’s at risk? Asbestos is mainly used as an insulating material—it is a very effective fire retardant material, hence its use to insulate boilers, pipes, and fire doors; it’s used in roofing and many construction materials, and in electrical fittings. So, the types of work environments where you are most likely to encounter asbestos include mines, shipyards, railroads, power plants, and construction sites.
Workers who may be at risk for asbestos exposure include, but are not limited to:
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Boiler and furnace technicians
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Car mechanics (brake shoes)
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Construction workers
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Navy shipyard workers
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Pipe fitters
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Miners
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Railway workers
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Robert Rowland told LawyersandSettlements.com the following:
“Many of our clients are members of labor unions in various types of work such as refineries, power plants and steel mills; they built big department stores, grade schools, highways and bridges—all typical examples of people who have asbestos-related disease. Most of our clients are men over 60 years old. We also have represented women—wives and daughters—whose only connection to asbestos was washing their husband or father’s clothes. We bring a measure of hope to our clients, even those diagnosed with mesothelioma. We are able to take care of their families and relieve that pressure while they are battling the disease.
Who manufactures respirators?
- MSA Respirator
- American Optical Respirator
- Cabot Safety Respirator
- Willson Respirator
- Moldex Respirator
Before you buy a respirator do some checking—find out what you can about the company’s safety record—because being informed could save your life.
If you to know more about asbestos—check out our Asbestos FAQ.
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