Posts Tagged ‘ Asbestos Settlement ’

Asbestos News Roundup: 8.16.12 – Electrician Asbestos Risk

August 16th, 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.

Electricians and Asbestos 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 filed by six workers in Tennessee has made media headlines, because the workers were exposed to asbestos when dismantling outdated synchronous condensers, among other things.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Galveston, TX: The family of the late John B. Fielder has filed suit against several companies alleging the defendants are responsible for Fielder’s death from lung cancer two years ago.

The lawsuit asserts that El DuPont Nemours and Co., 4520 Corp., Foster Wheeler Energy Corp. and Zurn Industries LLC contributed to Fielder’s illness and eventual death on July 28, 2010. Fielder was employed by DuPont as a pipe fitter at the company’s facilities in La Porte from 1955 to 1961. The asbestos lawsuit asserts that during that time he was exposed to asbestos dust and fibers which resulted in his cancer.

The lawsuit states DuPont “was aware, or should have been aware, of the dangers associated with exposures to asbestos at the premises where the plaintiffs’ decedent worked.”

“Nevertheless, defendant DuPont failed to warn employees, invitees and contractors of the dangers associated with occupational exposure to asbestos and required employees, contractors and/or invitees such as the decedent to work with or in proximity to asbestos without the necessary precautions to avoid dangerous exposures,” the lawsuit states.

Foster Wheeler, Zurn and 4520 Corp. are faulted for manufacturing, selling, designing, supplying distributing, mining, milling, relabeling, reselling, processing, applying or installing insulation and machinery that was “poisonous and highly harmful.”

Asbestos Law

Seattle, WA: A landmark decision by the Washington State Supreme Court will allow many asbestos victims to pursue legal claims against respirator manufacturers and other equipment manufacturers who may have failed to provide adequate warnings about asbestos exposure.

The plaintiff in the case, Leo Macias, worked as a tool keeper in a shipyard in which asbestos was present. As part of his normal duties he cleaned and maintained respirators used by workers who were exposed to asbestos. Macias alleged that he was exposed as a result and developed mesothelioma. He filed suit against the Shipyard and the manufacturer of the respirators.

The respirator manufacturers moved for summary judgment claiming that the company had no duty to warn its customers about possible asbestos exposure because of standing precedent in two previous asbestos cases. The trial court denied the motion, but an appellate court reversed, sending the case to the Washington State Supreme Court.

In a hotly contested and widely-watched 5-4 decision, the court ruled in favor of Macias, distinguishing existing precedent from the case and rejecting the manufacturer’s motion for summary judgment.

The ruling is a landmark decision in asbestos litigation, according to Macias’ attorneys. The respirator manufacturers had argued that because their products did not contain asbestos, they were not responsible for Macias’ exposure.

However, the court’s majority opinion rejected their arguments, noting that, “The very purpose of the respirators would, of necessity, lead to high concentrations of asbestos (and/or other contaminants) in them, and in order to reuse them as they were intended to be reused, this asbestos had to be removed.”

The court has remanded the case back to the trial court, where it will proceed, with a trial scheduled for early 2013.

Tags: Asbestos, asbestos lawsuit, asbestos legal help, Asbestos Mesothelioma, Asbestos Settlement
Posted in Asbestos Mesothelioma | No Comments »

Asbestos News Roundup: 8.2.12 – Welder, Pipefitter Asbestos Risk

August 3rd, 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.

Welders, Construction Workers and Millwrights Asbestos Risk

Many of the materials used in construction, including welding, pipefitting, and millwright work, contained, or in some cases still contain asbestos. By the mid-20th century asbestos was being used in fire retardant coatings, concrete, bricks, pipes and fireplace cement, heat, fire, and acid resistant gaskets, pipe insulation, ceiling insulation, fireproof drywall, flooring, roofing, lawn furniture, and drywall joint compound.

It wasn’t until the 1980s that the knowledge of the dangers of asbestos exposure and related asbestos disease became more widely known amongst the general public. Consequently, millions of men and women likely worked on or around asbestos without any protection for decades.

It would not be uncommon for people to work with asbestos-containing products, either installing or removing them, which would send asbestos fibers into the air. The fibers are inhaled, and settle on people’s clothing—and that’s how asbestos disease begins. People who become ill from asbestos are usually exposed to it on a regular basis, hence the hundreds of asbestos lawsuits we are seeing now.

Asbestos Lawsuits

 Charleston, WV: Lillian Reilly, the widow of the late James Reilly, is suing 53 companies she claims are responsible for her husband’s lung cancer and death. Mrs. Reilly claims her husband was exposed to asbestos during his employment as a welder and millwright from 1965 until 1997.

James Reilly was diagnosed with lung cancer on September 2, 2011. He died less than a year later on April 27, 2012 according to the lawsuit.

Mrs. Reilly claims the defendants failed to warn her husband about the dangers of asbestos, and that the defendants also failed to supply him with proper apparel to wear while handling asbestos.

The defendants are being sued based on theories of negligence, contaminated buildings, breach of expressed/implied warranty, strict liability, intentional tort, conspiracy, misrepresentation and post-sale duty to warn, according to the lawsuit.

Lillian Reilly is seeking a jury trial to resolve all issues involved.  The 53 companies named as defendants are A.W. Chesterton Company; Air & Liquid Systems Corporation; Armstrong International, Inc.; Aurora Pump Company; Copes-Vulcan, Inc.; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Electrical, Inc.; Flowserve U.S., Inc. f/k/a Durco International, Inc.; Flowserve U.S., Inc. f/k/a Flowserve FSD Corporation; FMC Corporation; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Grinnell, LLC; Hercules, Inc.; Honeywell, Inc.; Howden 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; Morgan Engineering Systems, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Ohio Valley Insulating Company, Inc.; P&H Mining Equipment, Inc.; Rapid American Corporation; Reading Crane and Engineering Company; Riley Power, Inc.; Rust Constructors, Inc.; Rust Engineering & Construction, Inc.; Rust International, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; State Electric Supply Company; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA), LLC; Sunbeam Corporation; Surface Combustion, Inc.; Swindell Dressier International Corporation; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; The Alliance Machine Company; UB West Virginia, Inc.; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group International; Viacom, Inc.; Viking Pump, Inc.; Vimasco Corporation; West Virginia Electric Supply Company; Yarway Corporation; and Zurn Industries, Inc. (WVRecord)

Charleston, WV: Daphene Y. Steele has filed an asbestos lawsuit against 41 companies she claims are responsible for her husband’s lung cancer and death.

On December 22, 2010, William Y. Steele was diagnosed with lung cancer. He died from the disease on November 21, 2011, according to the lawsuit.

Mrs. Steele claims he was exposed to asbestos during his employment as a laborer and coal miner from 1965 until 1991. She further claims that the defendants failed to warn her husband about the dangers of asbestos, and also failed to supply him with proper apparel to wear while handling asbestos.

The defendants are being sued based on theories of negligence, contaminated buildings, breach of expressed/implied warranty, strict liability, intentional tort, conspiracy, misrepresentation and post-sale duty to warn, according to the asbestos lawsuit.

Daphene Steele is seeking a jury trial to resolve all issues involved. The 41 companies named as defendants are 3M Company; A.W. Chesterton Company; Borg-Warner Corporation; Caterpillar, Inc.; Certainteed Corporation; Cleaver-Brooks Company, Inc.; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Electrical, Inc.; Flowserve FSD Corporation; FMC Corporation; Ford Motor Company; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; Genuine Parts Company; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Grinnell, LLC; Honeywell International; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; ITT Corporation; Joy Technologies, Inc.; Maremont Corporation; McJunkin Corporation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; National Service Industries Venture, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Pneumo Abex Corporation; Protective Treatments, Inc.; Rapid American Corporation; Riley Stoker Corporation; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA), LLC; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; The Goodyear Tire & Rubber, Co.; UB West Virginia, Inc.; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group International; Viacom, Inc.; and Vimasco Corporation.

Charleston, WV: A couple from Kentucky has filed an asbestos lawsuit naming 54 companies they claim are responsible for Randy Carson Fields’ asbestos lung cancer diagnosis.

Mr. Fields was diagnosed with lung cancer, according to the lawsuit, on September 29, 2011. Fields claims he was exposed to asbestos during his employment at various mining and coal companies from 1963 until 1987.

The lawsuit alleges the defendants failed to warn Mr. Fields about the dangers of asbestos, and that they failed to supply him with proper apparel to wear while handling asbestos.

The defendants are being sued based on theories of negligence, contaminated buildings, breach of expressed/implied warranty, strict liability, intentional tort, conspiracy, misrepresentation and post-sale duty to warn, according to the lawsuit.

Fields and his wife, Mabel Lou Fields, are seeking a jury trial to resolve all issues involved. The 54 companies named as defendants are 3M Company; A.W. Chesterton Company; Aurora Pump Company; Borg-Warner Corporation; Caterpillar Inc.; Certainteed Corporation; Cleaver-Brooks Company, Inc.; Copes-Vulcan, Inc.; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Electrical, Inc.; Flowserve FSD Corporation; Flowserve U.S., Inc.; FMC Corporation; Ford Motor Company; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; Gardner Denver, Inc.; General Electric Company; Genuine Parts Company; Goulds Pumps; Grinnell, LLC; Honeywell International; IMO Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand; ITT Corporation; Joy Technologies, Inc.; McJunkin Red Man Corporation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; Mine Safety Appliances Company; Nacco Materials Handling Group, Inc.; Nagle Pumps, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; P&H Mining Equipment, Inc.; Pettibone/Traverse Lift, LLC; Pneumo Abex Corporation; Premier Refractories, Inc.; Rapid-American Corporation; Riley Power, Inc.; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; Sears, Roebuck And Co.; State Electric Supply Company; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA), LLC; Tasco Insulations, Inc; The Goodyear Tire & Rubber, Co.; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Conveyor Corporation; Viacom, Inc.; Vimasco Corporation; West Virginia Electric Supply Company; Yale Materials Handling Corporation; Yarway Corporation; and Zurn Industries, LLC. (WVRecord)

Asbestos Settlements

New Castle, DE:  A Delaware jury has awarded a $2.86 million verdict to the family of Michael Galliher, who died from asbestos mesothelioma. The lawsuit was filed against RT Vanderbilt In re Asbestos Litigation Michael Galliher, No. 10C-10-315 (Del. Super. Ct., New Castle City.). The settlement is the largest asbestos verdict against a single defendant in Delaware in over a decade.

Michael Galliher, of Mansfield, Ohio, was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in August 2010. He died months later on February 3, 2011 at the age of 62. While working at Crane Plumbing Fixtures Factory for nearly 40 years, Galliher used a talc powder contaminated with asbestos fibers to dust large molds of sinks, bathtubs and other ceramic fixtures. The asbestos fibers came from a mine in Gouverneur, NY, owned and operated by RT Vanderbilt Company, Inc.

Expert testimony during the trial linked Galliher’s exposure to talc dust containing asbestos fibers. RT Vanderbilt did not list the proper safety warning on the talc powder.

“The magnitude of Mr. Galliher’s exposure is immeasurable,” said the attorney representing Galliher. “Like many Americans, he worked hard his entire life so he could enjoy retirement with his grandchildren. Instead, it caused him to be exposed to asbestos and develop a deadly cancer.”

Six years before his death, Galliher retired to spend more time with his grandchildren, family members said. His three local grandchildren would visit him and his wife almost daily. He taught them how to garden and play baseball. He would also take them on regular trips to a local lake or mushroom hunting. He passed away just two weeks shy of his 33^rd wedding anniversary.

Founded in 1916, RT Vanderbilt is a mining and manufacturing company that sells more than sixty categories of minerals and chemicals used in over 800 products in industries including the rubber, plastic, petroleum, ceramic, cosmetic, and household products industries.

The verdict applies 100 percent liability to the company. (PR Newswire)

Tags: Asbestos, asbestos lawsuit, asbestos legal help, Asbestos Mesothelioma, Asbestos Settlement
Posted in Asbestos Mesothelioma, lawsuits, Settlement | No Comments »

Asbestos News Roundup: 7.26.12 – Bricklayer, Construction Worker Asbestos Risk

July 26th, 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.

Bricklayers and Construction Worker Asbestos Risk

Many of the materials used in the construction industry contained, or in some cases still contain asbestos. In fact, by the mid-20th century asbestos was being used in fire retardant coatings, concrete, bricks, pipes and fireplace cement, heat, fire, and acid resistant gaskets, pipe insulation, ceiling insulation, fireproof drywall, flooring, roofing, lawn furniture, and drywall joint compound.

In the 1960-70s the general public was not aware of the dangers of asbestos, and so millions of men and women likely worked on or around construction asbestos without any protection.

It would not be uncommon for people to work with asbestos-containing products, either installing or removing them, which would send asbestos fibers into the air. People who become ill from asbestos are usually exposed to it on a regular basis, hence the hundreds of asbestos construction lawsuits we are seeing now.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Jefferson County, TX: On July 17, Julie Verret, daughter of the late John Verret, who died of lung cancer on July 27, 2011, filed an asbestos lawsuit against her father’s long-time employer, Texaco. The lawsuit claims the oil company negligently exposed Verret to asbestos which led to his cancer diagnosis.

Verret worked at a Texaco facility in Port Arthur as bricklayer and operator from 1968 to 1992, the lawsuit claims. It was during his employment that was allegedly exposed to asbestos dust and fibers. The lawsuit claims Texaco negligently exposed Verret to asbestos and as a result, he contracted asbestos-related lung cancer. The lawsuit includes a medical report stating that Verret was a smoker. Julie Verret is seeking wrongful death damages. (setexasrecord.com)

New Orleans, LA: Donald Thomas has filed an asbestos lawsuit against American Standard and 40 other defendants alleging they are responsible for his exposure to large amounts of asbestos through manufacturing, selling, designing, supplying, distributing, mining, milling, re-labeling, reselling, processing, applying and installing asbestos and asbestos containing materials.

In his lawsuit, Thomas claims his occupational exposure has resulted in his lung cancer and asbestosis. He asserts he did not know of the dangers of asbestos until one year before his diagnosis. The defendants are accused of creating hazardous and deadly conditions in which the plaintiff was exposed to large amounts of asbestos fibers. (louisianarecord.com)

Asbestos Settlements

Sunriver, OR: A lawsuit filed by Sunriver Owners Association (SROA) against the United States has been settled with the government’s payment of almost $500,000 to cover the cost of investigation and remediation of asbestos-containing material discovered in the soil near the association’s former amphitheater and sledding hill.

The July 2010 lawsuit filed by SROA alleged that asbestos contamination existed on six acres of a 22-acre parcel that, in the 1940s, was part of Camp Abbot, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers training camp. According to SROA, beginning in 1944, the United States demolished most of the Camp Abbot buildings; many had floor tiles, siding, insulation and other construction materials that contained asbestos. These materials were abandoned on site when the United States left the property. The community of Sunriver was developed on the former Camp Abbot grounds beginning in 1968.

SROA first discovered the asbestos debris in 2002 and worked with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to investigate the extent of contamination and develop a remedy to prevent any contact with the contaminated soil. In 2010, SROA’s members approved construction of the Sunriver Homeowners Aquatic & Recreation Center (SHARC) on the 22-acre site. The center functions as a cap over the contaminated soil. SHARC opened earlier this summer to great success. Had it not been constructed, SROA would have been required to spend an estimated $3.2 million to remove all of the asbestos-contaminated soil.

Attorneys David Blount and Jennifer Gates at Landye Bennett Blumstein LLP in Portland represented SROA in the lawsuit against the United States. According to Gates, “While it appeared from the beginning that the United States might be the source of the asbestos, with assistance from a military architectural historian, archaeologist and aerial photo expert, we were able to convince the United States that it bore most, if not all responsibility.”

SHARC received an Oregon Brownfields Award earlier this year. The awards recognize individuals and groups who worked together to transform contaminated sites into productive uses.

According to DEQ, a brownfield is “a real property where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by actual or perceived environmental contamination.” Hugh Palcic, SROA’s assistant general manager also won the 2012 Oregon Brownfields Unsung Hero Award for his work guiding the project from investigation to completion.

“We are pleased this dispute has been resolved fairly and that the United States accepted responsibility,” said SROA General Manager Bill Peck. “Our homeowners were able to recoup almost all of the costs of dealing with the asbestos contamination. Sunriver developed a beautiful new recreation facility, the environmental hazards of the site were remediated, and the cleanup cost was reduced by more than $2.5 million.” (businesswire.com)

Asbestos Law

Washington, DC: Hubert J. Bell, a project manager who was overseeing removal of asbestos from a former Chrysler factory in Detroit, has been charged by The U.S. attorney’s office with a felony for failing to remove the material safely.

Bell, worked at One Accord Environmental Services Inc. in Detroit, was charged in a criminal complaint with failing to properly remove asbestos, a hazardous material, from a shuttered plant in late 2010 that was part of the Chrysler’s American Motors Corp. subsidiary at 14250 Plymouth Road.

According to an affidavit filed by Environmental Protection Agency Special Agent Michael Pemberton, Bell directed employees to push potentially contaminated water down drains and didn’t use proper procedures to remove asbestos. A cooperating witness told the EPA that asbestos wasn’t being removed properly.

In early 2010, the property and three other properties in Michigan and New York were sold for $2.3 million. The price was a fraction of what Chrysler once sought for the Detroit property that produced helicopters in World War II and turned out millions of appliances. The properties were sold to Mount Clemens-based Manchester Plymouth LLC. (detnews.com)

Tags: Asbestos, asbestos lawsuit, asbestos legal help, Asbestos Mesothelioma, Asbestos Settlement
Posted in Asbestos Mesothelioma, lawsuits, Settlement | No Comments »

Asbestos News Roundup: 7.19.12 – Retired Railroad Worker Asbestos Risk

July 19th, 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.

Retired Railwaymen Sick with Asbestos Disease

Many retired railway men are finding that the years they spent working in railway yards and on trains has caused them to become ill with asbestos-related illnesses. And their illnesses could have been prevented if they had been made aware of the dangers and provided with proper protective gear.

Asbestos was used to insulate steam and diesel locomotives, boxcars, cabooses and pipes. It was also used in brakes and floor tiles of passenger cars. When workers were tasked with removing the asbestos, and were not wearing protective clothing, the airborne asbestos fibers became lodged in their clothes and worse, in their lungs. As this practice went on over time—years in many cases—the accumulation of the asbestos fibers in their lungs led to fatal asbestos mesothelioma. Such is the case of the four former BNSF railway workers who are now suing the company.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Lincoln, NE: BNSF Railway is being sued by four former employees and their relatives over allegations of potentially fatal asbestos exposure. The men, who all worked as carmen for BNSF, allege they developed asbestos-related lung disease as a result of exposure through their work.

One of the carmen, Bernard Richter of Lincoln, died in November 2010 of colon cancer caused by exposure to asbestos on the job, according to the lawsuit, which was filed on behalf of his widow, Virginia Richter.

The three other former BNSF carmen are represented in a separate lawsuit. They are Philip Custard of Omaha, who began working for BNSF in 1950; Donal Hansen of Lincoln, who started with the railway 1952, and Steve Hegener, also of Lincoln, who worked for BNSF from 1969.

Their suit alleges the plaintiffs suffered from lung disease caused by exposure to asbestos, “which cannot be effectively cured by conservative medical procedures or medications.”

All of the retirees on passenger and freight cars in the Lincoln shops and in Omaha, their lawyer said. (journalstar.com)

Charleston, WV: On July 7, 2010, Franklin Delno Hensley was diagnosed with asbestos-related lung cancer and subsequently died on May 13, 2011. Tammy Horn, a family member, is suing 64 companies she claims are responsible for her Mr. Hensley’s lung cancer and death.

Ms. Horn claims that while Mr.Hensley was employed as a plumber, carpenter and laborer, from 1956 to 2002, he was exposed to asbestos.

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.

Horn is seeking a jury trial to resolve all issues involved. The companies named as defendants are 3M Company; A.O. Smith Corporation; A.W. Chesterton Company; Ajax Magnethermic Corporation; Armstrong International, Inc.; Aurora Pump Company; Borg-Warner Corporation; CBS Corporation; Certainteed Corporation; Chromium Corporation; Cleaver Brooks, Inc.; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Corporation; Flowserve Corporation; Flowserve f/k/a The Duriron Company Inc.; FMC Corporation; Foseco, Inc.; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; Genuine Parts Company; Georgia Pacific Corporation; Gordon Gasket & Packing Co.; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Grinnell, LLC; Hercules, Inc.; Honeywell International; Howden North America, Inc.; IMO Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; Insul Company, Inc.; ITT Corporation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; Mobil Corporation; Nagle Pumps, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Oglebay Norton Company; Pneumo Abex Corporation; Premiere Refractories, Inc.; Rapid American Corporation; Riley Power Inc.; Robin Industries, Inc.; Rockwell Automation, Inc.; Schneider Electric; Spirax Sarco, Inc.; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA), LLC; Superior Container, Inc.; Swindell Dressier International Corporation; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; Trane U.S. Inc.; Union Carbide Chemical & Plastics Company; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group International; Vimasco Corporation; Weil-McLain Company; Yarway Corporation; YRC, Inc.; and Zurn Industries, Inc. (wvrecord.com)

Charleston, WV: Lawrence Edward Miller, who was diagnosed with lung cancer on July 20, 2011, has filed an asbestos lawsuit with his wife, naming 42 companies they claim are responsible for his lung cancer diagnosis.

Miller and his wife, Clara Faye Miller, allege the defendants exposed him to asbestos during his employment as a laborer and shipper from 1947 until 1993.

The defendants are being sued based on theories of negligence, contaminated buildings, breach of expressed/implied warrant, strict liability, intentional tort, conspiracy, misrepresentations and post-sale duty to warn, according to the lawsuit.

The companies named as defendants in the suit are A.K. Steel Corporation; A.W. Chesterton Company; CBS Corporation; Cleaver-Brooks Company, Inc.; Columbus McKinnon Corporation; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Corporation; Elliott Company; Flowserve Corporation; Flowserve f/k/a The Duriron Company, Inc.; FMC Corporation; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Grinnell, LLC; Hercules, Inc.; Honeywell International; Howden North America, Inc.; IMO Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; Insul Company, Inc.; ITT Corporation; McJunkin Red Man Corporation; Morgan Engineering, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Oglebay Norton Company; Ohio Valley Insulating Company, Inc.; Premier Refractories, Inc.; Riley Power, Inc.; Rockwell Automations, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; State Electric Supply Company; Sterling Fluid Systems (US) LLC; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; The F.D. Lawrence Electric Company; UB West Virginia, Inc.; Uniroyal, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Group International; Vimasco Corporation; and West Virginia Electric Supply A Houston attorney is representing three more former employees of BNSF Railway and the widow of a fourth in lawsuits alleging they suffered damages — and in one case, death — from exposure to asbestos because of the railroad’s negligence in and around its Lincoln operations. (wvrecord)

Asbestos Settlements

New Orleans, LA: A former shipbuilder who had brought a mesothelioma lawsuit against Westinghouse Electric Corp. and Mundet Cork Co. has been awarded $12 million for his illness.

According to Law360, Frederick Schulte worked as a ship-fitter and iron-fitter for McDermott In. Shipyard where he regularly dealt with old piping, valves, and gaskets on quarter boats used in World War II. Court documents would later confirm that the piping he handled contained asbestos and was manufactured by Mundet Cork.

Schulte went on to also work at Avondale Shipyards where he was exposed to partitions, furniture, walls, and bulkheads on Coast Guard cutters as radar technician.

In October, 2011 Schulte was diagnosed with mesothelioma. His mesothelioma lawsuit that followed he claimed that the airborne asbestos he inhaled while regularly handling asbestos at his former jobs was the reason for his mesothelioma diagnosis.

In addition to Crown Cork & Seal and Westinghouse, Crane Co., Reilly Benton, International Paper Co., and Crosby Valve, McDermott, and Avondale were also named in the mesothelioma lawsuit for withholding information about the dangers of asbestos.

It only took 10 months following Schulte’s mesothelioma diagnosis for him to receive his lawsuit ruling and $12 million award. (cisionwire.com)

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Exposure, asbestos lawsuit, Asbestos Mesothelioma, Asbestos Settlement
Posted in Asbestos Mesothelioma, lawsuits, Settlement | No Comments »

Asbestos News Roundup: 7.12.12 – Roofer Asbestos Risk

July 12th, 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.

Roofers at risk for Asbestos Disease

Recently, a restoration project of a heritage site in Kentucky revealed asbestos roofing tiles under the wooden shingles the roofers were contracted to remove. As a consequence, the project has been put on hold until money can be raised to appropriately remediate the asbestos from the site.

The asbestos was found in asphalt roof shingles, which are a common roofing product. Many men who have worked with these tiles over the past decades may not be aware that the dust and debris generated by these tiles, and floating in the air around them as they work to remove the tiles, contain asbestos fibers. Those fibers can become lodged in their lungs, on their clothes–exposing their loved ones to the same carcinogens, and in the air in the neighborhood–exposing the public. But it’s the roofers who will suffer the worst fate, particularly if they have been working around these types of tiles over a prolonged period of time.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Charleston, WV: A relative of Ralph Gary Brown, who was diagnosed with asbestos-related lung cancer on July 14, 2011, and subsequently died on August 6, 2011, is suing 45 companies he claims are responsible for Mr. Brown’s illness and death.

Barry S. Brown claims Ralph Brown was exposed to asbestos while he was employed as a millwright at Armco Steel from 1964 until 2005.

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 companies named as defendants in the suit are A.K. Steel Corporation; A.W. Chesterton Company; Amdura Corporation; Bucyrus International, Inc.; Caterpillar Inc.; Clark Equipment Company; Cleaver-Brooks Company, Inc.; Columbus McKinnon Corporation; Crane Co.; Dravo Corporation; Eaton Corporation; Elliott Company; Flowserve f/k/a the Duriron Company Inc.; Flowserve Corporation; FMC Corporation; Foseco, Inc.; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; General Electric Company; Goulds Pumps, Inc.; Hercules, Inc.; IMO Industries, Inc.; Industrial Holdings Corporation; Ingersoll-Rand Company; Insul Company, Inc.; ITT Corporation; McJunkin Red Man Corporation; Morgan Engineering, Inc.; NACCO Materials Handling Group, Inc.; Nagle Pumps, Inc.; Nitro Industrial Coverings, Inc.; Oglebay Norton Company; Pettibone/Traverse Lift, LLC; Premier Refractories, Inc.; Riley Power Inc.; Rockwell Automations, Inc.; Schneider Electric USA, Inc.; State Electric Supply Company; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA) LLC; Tasco Insulations, Inc.; The F.D. Lawrence Electric Company; U.B. West Virginia, Inc.; United Engineers & Constructors and Washington Croup International; Vimasco Corporation; West Virginia State Electric Supply; and Yale Materials Handling Corporation. (wvrecord.com)

Asbestos Settlements

Boston, MA: Allegations over violations of Massachusetts air pollution and asbestos regulations have been resolved, according to an announcement by the state’s Attorney General Martha Coakley. The consent judgment was handed down on Friday against Suffolk Construction Company Inc. and Emerson College. Under the terms of the judgment, Suffolk and Emerson will each pay $250,000 in civil penalties to the state.

The lawsuit was filed by Coakley, together with the consent judgment on Friday, alleging that Suffolk and Emerson violated the state’s air pollution prevention statute and asbestos regulations during the 2007-2008 renovation of Emerson’s Colonial Building, according to LegalNewsline.

The 13-story Colonial Building in Boston was bought by Emerson in 2006. It was used for leased offices and student rehearsal space until 2007, when Emerson hired Suffolk to renovate the building and convert it into a student dormitory.

Concern was raised because the demolition allegedly had not utilized proper asbestos containment measures and the contaminated demolition materials removed from the building may consequently have exposed the public to asbestos fibers. Although the potentially contaminated demolition materials should have been sent to a licensed asbestos landfill, approximately 80 percent of the contaminated material may have been sent to recycling facilities. exposing workers in the process.

The terms of the judgment require Emerson to prepare and put into effect a maintenance and operations plan for the building, so as to avoid future releases of asbestos if the building is renovated or repaired.(legalnewsline.com)

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Exposure, asbestos lawsuit, Asbestos Mesothelioma, Asbestos Settlement
Posted in Asbestos Mesothelioma | No Comments »