Posts Tagged ‘ Asbestos Settlement ’
Asbestos News Roundup: 9.20.12 – Pipefitter Asbestos Risk, Canadian Ban
September 20th, 2012. 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.
Pipefitters, Boiler and Furnace Technicians Asbestos Disease Risk
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, insulation blankets (the outside covering or shell), door gaskets, duct insulation, and tape at duct connections of furnaces and boilers can all contain asbestos. Technicians who worked on repairing boilers and furnaces in the past would have been at risk for asbestos exposure.
Asbestos was used between 1930 and 1972 as high-temperature insulation for oil, coal, or wood furnaces, generally found in older homes. Steam and hot water pipes were insulated with asbestos-containing material, particularly at elbows, tees, and valves. Pipes may also be wrapped in an asbestos “blanket”, or asbestos paper (which looks very much like corrugated cardboard). Asbestos-containing insulation has also been used on and inside round and rectangular furnace ducts. Sometimes the duct itself may be made of asbestos-containing materials.
This week, a long-running asbestos lawsuit was settled. The lawsuit, brought by retired pipefitter and contractor Robert Kreimer, who is now approximately 77 years old, involved numerous defendants, who were charged with being responsible for Kreimer’s asbestos mesothelioma.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Charleston, WV: A total of 71 companies have been names as defendants in an asbestos lawsuit filed by a couple from South Shore, KY. James D. Holbrook, who was diagnosed with esophageal cancer on August 23, 2011, claims the defendants are responsible for the diagnosis.
In their lawsuit, Holbrook and his wife, Guyneth Marie Holbrook, allege he was exposed to asbestos during his employment as a laborer and worker from 1956 until 1987.
The defendants are being sued based on 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 lawsuit. Certain defendants are also being sued as premises owners and as James Holbrook’s employers for deliberate intent/intentional tort, according to the lawsuit.
The 71 companies named as defendants in the suit are A.K. Steel Corporation; 3M Company; Ajax Magnathermic Corp.; Amdura Corporation; A.W. Chesterton Company; Beazer East, Inc.; Bechtel Corporation; Brand Insulations, Inc.; Bucyrus International, Inc.; BW IP, Inc.; CBS Corporation; Catalytic Construction Company; Caterpiller, Inc.; Certainteed Corporation; Cleaver-Brooks Company, Inc.; Columbus McKinnon Corporation; Copes-Vulcan, Inc.; Crane Company; Crown, Cork & Seal USA, Inc.; Cyclops Corporation; Detroit Steel, Inc.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Corporation; Flowserve Corporation f/k/a the Duriron Company, Inc.; Flowserve Corporation as Successor-In-Interest to Durametallic Corporation; Foseco, Inc.; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; General Refractories Company; Georgia-Pacific LLC; Geo. V. Hamilton, Inc.; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Grinnell, LLC; Hercules, Inc.; Honeywell International f/k/a Allied Signal, Inc.; Honeywell International, Inc.; IMO Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; Insul Company, Inc.; ITT Corporation; J.H. France Refractories Company; Lockheed Martin Corporation; McJunkin Corporation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; Morgan Engineering, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Oakfabco, Inc.; Oglebay Norton Company; Ohio Valley Insulating Company, Inc.; Owens-Illinois, Inc.; Pneumo Abex, LLC; Premiere Refractories, Inc.; Rapid American Corporation; Riley Power Inc.; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Rust Constructors, Inc.; Rust Engineering & Construction, Inc.; Rust International, Inc.; Schneider Electric; State Electric Supply Company; Swindell Dressler International Corporation; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; Thiem Corp.; UB West Virginia, Inc.; Union Carbide Chemical and Plastics Company, Inc.; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group International; Vimasco Corporation; West Virginia Electric Supply Company; and Yarway Corporation.(wvrecord.com)
Asbestos Settlements
Madison, IL: A settlement has been reached in an asbestos mesothelioma lawsuit brought by Robert Kreimer and his wife, Margie Kreimer, of Cleveland, OH. In their lawsuit, filed in November 2010, the couple sued 66 corporate defendants, and all but two defendants —mechanical seal manufacturer John Crane Co. and metal valve maker Crane Co.—had settled or had been dismissed earlier.
Born in 1935, Robert Kreimer, now approximately 77 years old, alleges he suffers from mesothelioma. From 1956-1986 he worked as a pipefitter for various contractors, including Johnson Controls, Robert Shaw, EJ Nolan, M.W. Kellogg Piping, Bechtel, Combustion Engineering, Babcock & Wilcox and Kaiser Engineering and various industrial and commercial job sites in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.
The lawsuit states that the defendants should have anticipated the plaintiff’s exposure to asbestos fibers. The lawsuit also claims that defendants agreed and “conspired among themselves” and with other asbestos manufacturers, distributors, and trade organizations, to injure the plaintiff.
The suit was settled this week and to date no details of the settlement have been released. (madisonrecord.com)
Asbestos News
Canada will no longer oppose global regulations restricting the use and shipment of asbestos. The news came following the election of a new government to the province of Quebec, which is home to Canada’s asbestos industry. The incoming Parti Québécois said it would cancel the federal loan and ban asbestos production and exports outright. As a result, federal Industry Minister Christian Paradis announced that the federal government will no longer support the asbestos industry.
According to a report by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, “…Paradis said his Conservatives are reversing course and won’t use their veto to stop chrysotile asbestos from being listed as a hazardous substance under the international Rotterdam Convention.
Paradis also said Ottawa will invest up to $50 million to help the country’s last remaining asbestos mining region, in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, to diversify into other areas of activity.”
The Harper government had consistently blocked the chrysotile form of asbestos from being listed under the Rotterdam Convention. The convention requires consensus of its members to list a substance; the convention already covers five other forms of asbestos. (cbc.ca)
Asbestos News Roundup: 9.13.12 – Electrician Asbestos Risk
September 13th, 2012. 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.
Electrician Asbestos Exposure Risk
Electricians and electrical cable installers may not know it, but they are at risk for being exposed to asbestos through repair, demolition or installation work. This lethal, fibrous material was used in felted asbestos insulation or asbestos tape to insulate wiring. So working on old power lines, old wiring or breaker boxes would put electricians at risk for asbestos exposure. Older arc chutes also contain asbestos. It was used in circuit breakers, for example, before the mid-1980′s, when they were made of asbestos-containing plastic molding compound.
Recently, an asbestos lawsuit was filed by the spouse of an electrician in Tennessee. John Elmer Simons died just months after being diagnosed with asbestos mesothelioma—and his spouse has named 76 companies as being responsible.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Charleston, WV: Willie H. Simons, the spouse of the recently deceased John Elmer Simons, of Signal Mountain, TN, has filed an asbestos lawsuit alleging 76 companies caused Mr. Simons’ mesothelioma diagnosis and death.
Mr. Simons was diagnosed with asbestos mesothelioma on April 28, and subsequently died on June 27, according to the lawsuit.
Willie H. Simons alleges John Simons was exposed to asbestos during his employment as an electrician from 1953 until 1992. The defendants are being sued based on 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 lawsuit.
The 76 defendants named in the suit are A.W. Chesterton Company; Air & Liquid Systems Corporation; American Producers Supply WV, LLC; Armstrong International, Inc.; Aurora Pump Company; Bayer Cropscience LP; Bechtel Corporation; BW IP, Inc.; Catalytic Construction Company; Caterpillar, Inc.; Certainteed Corporation; Cleaver-Brooks Company, Inc.; Copes-Vulcan, Inc.; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; E.I. Dupont De Nemours & Co.; Eaton Electrical, Inc.; Flowserve US, Inc. f/k/a Durco International, Inc.; Flowserve US, Inc. f/k/a Flowserve FSD Corporation; Fluor Enterprises, Inc.; Fluor Enterprises, Inc., as successor-in-interest to Fluor Daniel; FMC Corporation; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; Gardner Denver, Inc.; General Electric Company; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Grinnell Corporation; Hercules, Inc.; Howden Buffalo, Inc.; I.U. North America, Inc.; IMO Industries, Inc.; Inductotherm Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; ITT Corporation; Joy Technologies, Inc.; Lockheed Martin Corporation; McJunkin Corporation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Ohio Valley Insulating Company, Inc.; Owens-Illinois, Inc.; P&H Mining Equipment, Inc.; Pettibone/Traverse Left, LLC; Premier Refractories, Inc.; Rapid American Corporation; Reading Crane and Engineering Company; Riley Power Inc.; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Rust Constructors, Inc.; Rust Engineering & Construction, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; Seco/Warwick Corporation; Spirax Sarco, Inc.; State Electric Supply Company; Sterling Fluid Systems, LLC; Sunbeam Corporation; Surface Combustion, Inc.; Swindell Dressler International Company; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; the Alliance Machine Company; the Chapman Valve Manufacturing Company; the Gage Company; the Nash Engineering Company; the William Powell Company; Trane U.S. Inc.; UB West Virginia, Inc.; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group International; Viacom, Inc.; Viking Pump, Inc.; Vimasco Corporation; Warren Pumps; West Virginia Electric Supply; Yarway Corporation; and Zurn Industries, Inc. (wvrecord.com)
San Antonio, TX: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited seven construction companies—three Miami-based contractors and four San Antonio-based subcontractors—with 45 serious and one other-than-serious violation for exposing workers to asbestos hazards at a San Antonio construction work site. Proposed penalties total $148,000.
“Asbestos is an extremely hazardous material that can potentially cause lifelong, irreversible health conditions,” said John Hermanson, OSHA’s regional administrator in Dallas. “It is imperative that OSHA’s safety and health standards be followed to avoid accidents, injuries and illnesses.”
In response to a referral by the Texas Department of State Health Services, OSHA’s San Antonio Area Office initiated a safety and health inspection in March at the Reserves at Pecan Valley apartment complex located on East Southcross Boulevard. Inspectors found that workers were remodeling apartments without the use of proper clothing and respiratory equipment that would protect them from exposure to asbestos.
Specifically, the violations include failing to abate asbestos hazards and ensure that employees work in regulated areas, perform air monitoring for asbestos exposure, use the required engineering controls to prevent exposure, require the use of proper respiratory and personal protective equipment, train workers on the hazards of working with asbestos and ensure that an asbestos assessment is performed by a qualified person. A serious violation occurs when there is a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
The Miami-based contractors have been cited for a total of 14 violations: Newport Property Ventures LLC has been issued citations carrying $36,100 in fines for eight serious and one other than serious violation; Newport Property Construction LLC has been fined $12,600 for two serious violations and Jamesboys Inc. has been issued citations carrying $18,900 in fines for three serious violations.
The San Antonio subcontractors have been cited for a total of 32 violations: Alex Vega doing business as Alco Painting & Remodeling has been issued citations carrying $28,200 in fines for 11 serious violations; Luis Lozada has been issued citations with $20,400 in fines for eight serious violations; Frank Gonzalez has been issued citations with $9,600 in fines for four serious violations; and Clemente Covarrubias, doing business as Knock It Out, has been issued citations with $22,200 in fines for nine serious violations. (WorkersCompensation.com)
Asbestos News Roundup: 9.6.12 – Community Asbestos, Asbestos Respirators
September 6th, 2012. 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.
Asbestos Exposure in the Community
You don’t have to work with asbestos containing products to suffer its effects. It is also possible to suffer asbestos exposure by living in a community or area located near an asbestos mine or a company that manufactures asbestos or products containing asbestos. Many older buildings may also contain asbestos insulation, including schools.
Perhaps the most famous victims of community contamination in North America are the residents of Libby, Montana, an asbestos-mining town. Vermiculite, which naturally contains asbestos, was mined there between 1923 and 1991. Workers and families of workers who lived in the town sued W.R. Grace, the last company to own the mine. At one point the company reportedly faced 110,000 lawsuits for sickening hundreds of people and contributing to the deaths of 225—allegedly with full knowledge.
Other examples of community exposure include the World Trade Center site after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and areas prone to damage from natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina. But it doesn’t take a disaster for asbestos exposure to occur locally in your community—our Asbestos Hot Spot Map shows locations across the US in which asbestos has been an issue and, in many instances, asbestos abatement has been needed.
Most recently, hundreds of former residents of an asbestos-mining town in British Columbia Canada are deeply concerned about their asbestos exposure. According to the CBC, an estimated 50,000 people were employed over the lifetime of the Cassiar mine, which closed in 1992. They lived with their families in the now-abandoned town, about 220 kilometers south of the B.C.-Yukon border. The employees who worked in the mine were not issued with face masks, despite asking for them.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Olympia, WA: A lawsuit brought against respirator makers by a now-deceased shipyard worker, Leo Macias, will go forward, says the Washington Supreme Court.
Macias, who worked at Todd Shipyards, developed cancer as a result of cleaning respirators worn by other workers when they dealt with asbestos and other dangerous materials. In the lawsuit, Marcias claims the manufacturers never issued warnings that cleaning the respirators could be dangerous.
The state Court of Appeals threw out his lawsuit reasoning that it was the asbestos not the respirators that caused Marcias’ cancer, and consequently he couldn’t sue the respirator makers, Saberhagen Holdings, Inc. The Supreme Court reversed that in a 5-4 decision. Chief Justice Barbara Madsen wrote that when used as intended, the respirators posed a danger to anyone who cleaned them, and thus, Macias should have been warned. (Seattletimes.com)
Pasadena, CA: Residents of Harris County are suing Betesda Iglesia Hispana International and Ruben Perez, of Pasadena over allegations they were misled into buying asbestos-contaminated property in Pasadena.
Raul Rodriguez and Jose Juan Gonzalez filed the lawsuit, Harris County District Court Case No. 2012-44020, citing fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud and breach of contract.
In their lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim that on March 23, 2011 the defendants tricked them into buying asbestos-contaminated property, located at 600 Walter St. in Pasadena. In addition to hiding the asbestos, the defendants also failed to disclose that they were leasing the property and collecting rent, even after the sale was final, according to the lawsuit. The plaintiffs are seeking attorney’s fees, court costs and damages. (Ultimateclearlake.com)
Asbestos News Roundup: 8.30.12 – Asbestos Drilling Mud
August 30th, 2012. 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.
Asbestos Drilling Mud puts Oil Industry Workers at High Risk for Asbestos Disease
Drilling mud is widely used in the oil industry, both onshore and offshore, to help cool the drill bit and flush debris from the well hole during drilling. Many oilfield workers may have been exposed to toxic asbestos products without knowing its harmful, and often lethal, effects.
Drilling mud composition contained asbestos, which led to mud engineers being exposed to asbestos drilling mud, and the potential to develop asbestos-related disease such as asbestos mesothelioma. The two drilling mud brands that were mainly used were Flosal and Visbestos: both products were packaged in 50 lb. bags and were used for sweeping the hole as a viscosifier.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Pasadena, CA: Raul Rodriguez and Jose Juan Gonzalez have filed an asbestos lawsuit alleging they were misled into buying asbestos-contaminated property in Pasadena.
Filed in District Court against Betesda Iglesia Hispana International and Ruben Perez, of Pasadena, the lawsuit alleges fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud and breach of contract.
In their lawsuit, Rodriguez and Gonzalez say on March 23, 2011, the defendants tricked them into buying asbestos-contaminated property, located at 600 Walter St. in Pasadena. In addition to hiding the asbestos, the lawsuit claims the defendants also failed to disclose that they were leasing the property and collecting rent, even after the sale was final. The plaintiffs are seeking attorney’s fees, court costs and damages. (ultimateclearlake.com)
Asbestos Settlements
Los Angeles, CA: A California man who contracted the lung disease mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos at work has won an important ruling that prevents Lorillard Tobacco Company from further delaying a civil damages trial by attempting to get the case transferred to federal court.
Doctors for Dimitris O. Couscouris have told him that he may have only months to live, but the Simi Valley resident and his wife have continued to pursue their claims against Lorillard and other defendants as part of a lawsuit originally filed in December of last year. The lawsuit alleges the companies exposed Mr. Couscouris to asbestos, which led to his developing asbestos mesothelioma.
In May 2012, Lorillard attempted to have the case removed to federal court, claiming that Mr. Couscouris could not have been exposed to products manufactured by the defendants that were based in California. However, U.S. District Court Judge George H. King denied Lorillard’s motion and remanded the case to state court. The company then attempted to remove the case to federal court a second time, but Judge King denied the second attempt on Aug. 1, 2012.
Lorillard then appealed Judge King’s ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and filed a motion to stay all the proceedings in state court during the appeal. On Aug. 21, 2012, Judge King denied Lorillard’s motion to stay, finding that “Lorillard has failed to establish that it is entitled to a stay of all state court proceedings,” and that “Lorillard is not likely to succeed on the merits of its appeal.” (PRNewswire.com)
Bellingham, WA: Schools in Bellingham must be tested for asbestos – the state Department of Labor Standards (DLS) declared this week. The DLS claims the school district has not followed its regulations.
Under the Asbestos-Containing Materials in School requirements, enacted in 1986, schools have to develop an asbestos-management plan and designate a person trained to handle it. That person must test for asbestos every three years following the plan’s implementation.
Maintenance Director Roger Oakley, who was hired this summer, said he could not find evidence that the district had ever created a plan or appointed someone to look for asbestos: he estimated that it has not tested for asbestos in nearly 20 years. (milforddailynews.com)
Asbestos News Roundup: 8.23.12 – DIY Renovation Asbestos Risk
August 23rd, 2012. 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.
Do-It-Yourself Home Renovation Asbestos Risk
Many people decide to renovate their homes, not knowing fully, the dangers that may lurk within the walls, ceilings or floors of their homes. Those dangers can include asbestos in older homes. For example, asbestos siding was commonly used in construction years ago, making older homes a danger zone for asbestos mesothelioma. Like flooring, siding material was covered by asbestos to make it more durable and fire retardant. When these materials are disturbed—ripped off or torn out for example, they release asbestos fibers into the air, which people in immediate proximity then breathe in.
Equally important, when considering renovations, is hiring a reputable contractor who has the appropriate qualifications and licensing to remove asbestos. It is possible to be duped, as the case below brought by the state of New Jersey, shows.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Woodbridge, NJ: William T. Muzzio Jr., a 50-year old contractor living in Woodbridge, has been charged by a state grand jury with dozens of counts of unlicensed asbestos abatement in connection with asbestos work that his unlicensed business performed at numerous homes and schools, including nine schools in Woodbridge Township.
Woodbridge is facing 36 counts of removing or encapsulating asbestos without a license and two counts of forging documents saying he was licensed to remove the hazardous material, among other charges, according to the NJ Attorney General’s office.
New Jersey state agencies began investigating Muzzio and his business, Citadel Environmental Consultants, in March after a daycare facility in Union Township, NJ hired Muzzio to remove pipe insulation containing asbestos from its basement boiler room and it was discovered that Muzzio wasn’t licensed to perform the work.
The Department of Labor and Division of Criminal Justice conducted inspections in March at the daycare facility and allegedly discovered dust and debris containing asbestos in the boiler room and an adjacent crawl space.
Muzzio had allegedly performed unlicensed asbestos encapsulation at nine public schools in Woodbridge between April, 2011 and June, 2011. Rather than remove the asbestos, Muzzio was hired to seal the insulation that contained asbestos to prevent it from being broken up and released into the air. In four of the schools, he allegedly removed asbestos floor tiles.
The schools in Woodbridge in which Muzzio allegedly removed or treated asbestos are:
• Woodbridge High School, Woodbridge
• Colonia High School, Colonia
• John F. Kennedy High School, Iselin
• Kennedy Park School, Iselin
• Matthew Jago Elementary School, Sewaren
• Oak Ridge Heights School, Colonia
• Woodbridge Middle School, Woodbridge
• Ross Street School, Woodbridge
• Fords Middle School, Fords
(woodbridgepatch.com)
Asbestos Law
Saratoga Springs, NY: Springs Housing Authority is facing fines brought by New York state for failing to perform an asbestos survey on a property that it had demolished and contained the potentially hazardous material.
The state Labor Department slapped the SSHA with a $1,000 civil penalty for tearing down a home at 36 Allen Drive that it managed for the Saratoga Springs Affordable Housing Group, according to records obtained this week through a Freedom of Information request. The state also cited the SSHA for using an unlicensed and non-certified contractor to handle the material that contained the asbestos, records state.
The building was demolished in 2009 for new housing units, according to the documents. The state received a complaint about the project on Feb. 26, 2010, and inspected the site days later. Results from lab tests on materials from the site indicated the home’s linoleum flooring “was at least 35 percent asbestos,” according to the state Labor Department. (timesunion.com)
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