Larry Rochon used to come home from his job at Scott Paper Company and not think twice about putting his work clothes in the family laundry.  His wife, Adeline, who he'd been married to since 1956, would take those clothes, shake them out and wash them just like she did with all the families clothes.  It was a routine that went on for years, with neither of them knowing or even suspecting that routine would eventually lead to Adeline's eventually contracting mesothelioma. 

Like most people who worked in factories, plants, and facilities where asbestos was routinely used in the manufaturing process, Larry Rochon showed up for work every day, did the job he'd been hired to do, and never thought twice about the possibility that the asbestos fibers floating in the air were deadly.  Nobody in company management warned Rochon or any of his co-workers how the dust that had settled into their work-clothes would pose a threat to his family. 

Yet over time, due to repeated exposure, Adeline became stricken with mesothelioma, a form of lung cancer that is almost always caused by asbestos.  And in 2006  it finally ended her life.  It's been a painful reality the Rochon family has to live with every day of the rest of each of their lives now.

The family is currently going through the legal process because they believe that Larry's employer knew of the possible health risks and failed to take steps to protect their employees and family members from this devestating disease. 

Asbestos exposure during renovations at several Southern California high schools has been suspected for some time.  One group of such schools is in the Fullerton district.  Some parents and school staff complained that there was unnecessary exposure to asbestos during the campus renovations. Asbestos is known to cause diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer.

The Fullerton high school district trustees has scheduled a meeting to initiate action.  The trustees intend to select a company to conduct an independent environmental study of the Troy and La Habra high schools.

Trustees have already selected Lisa Sachs as project manager.  Ms. Sachs is president of Construction Controls Group Inc.  She has investigated asbestos contamination at the North Orange County Community College District, Inglewood Unified School District and Anaheim Union High School District.

Jack K. Clapper

800-440-4262

L. Tersigni Consulting P.C. worked on most of the high-profile asbestos-related bankruptcies of recent years, including the reorganizations of Owens Corning, USG Corp., Armstrong, USG and Combustion Engineering, and the U.S. unit of Swiss engineering giant ABB Ltd.   Until recently Tersigni worked on the ongoing bankruptcies of Federal-Mogul Corp., Asarco Inc., W.R. Grace and G-I Holdings. 

Loreto Tersigni, the sole owner of the firm, died in late May. Federal bankruptcy monitors suspect that Loreto Tersigni padded his firm's bills for years. A U.S. Trustee has asked for an examiner to investigate the invoices of Tersigni's firm.  Tersigni's clients were the official committees representing asbestos claimants in the bankruptcy cases. Documents filed in the W.R. Grace bankruptcy indicate that federal investigators have evidence of improper billings which are a violation of Tersigni's duties to clients.

Tersigni's firm made $5 million from the bankruptcy of Owens Corning, USG Corp. paid the firm $4.6 million, Armstrong paid about $3 million and Tersigni made about $576,000 for its work on the Combustion Engineering case. The latest Tersigni bill in Asarco Inc.'s case is a quarterly invoice of more than $500,000.

Tersigni is a trustee of the $1.43 billion trust set up in Combustion Engineering's bankruptcy. That money is to be paid to people with asbestos-related diseases stemming from the activities of Combustion Engineering.  These asbestos-related diseases include mesothelioma and lung cancer.

Jack K. Clapper

800-440-4262

On December 31, 2003, Congoleum Corporation filed a voluntary petition with the Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey seeking relief under Chapter 11 as a means to resolve claims asserted against it related to the use of asbestos in its products. These claims were made by people who developed asbestos related diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer as a result of using Congoleum’s products.

Congoleum Corporation has not yet filed its Form 10-Q for the current accounting period. Congoleum has said that it delayed filing a 10-Q because of a review by the SEC of its accounting policies with respect to asbestos liabilities, insurance settlements, and related costs. If Congoleum does not submit a plan to the Amex, or submits a plan that is not accepted, it will be subject to delisting proceedings.

 Congoleum Corporation has been a manufacturer of both residential and commercial resilient flooring for many years. Its products were used in remodeling, manufactured housing, new construction and commercial applications. Many of its products contained asbestos. Congoleum is a 55% owned subsidiary of American Biltrite Inc.

Congoleum Corporation’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan will be ruled on later this year.

  Jack K. Clapper 800-440-4262

This week Senator Max Baucus, D. Montana, slammed the EPA for it's failure to properly handle the abatement and cleanup efforts of Libby, Montana.  Libby is the site of an asbestos mine where hundreds of the towns residents became ill or ultimately died as a result of asbestos exposure and the EPA originally planned to declare a public health emergency due to the severity of the situation, but where they ultimately did not do so.

Even after spending over $150 million dollars on cleanup efforts, Libby is still far from free of asbestos contamination.  Allegations of political corruption, criminal and civil lawsuits abound - with W.R. Grace, the company that operated the mine until its closure in 1990 facing mounting charges.

The EPA was originally going to declare the state of emergency as far back as 2002, but then retracted that position without much of an explanation at all, according to town residents - some 1,800 of whom have become inflicted with asbestos exposure related disease and ailments. 

The mine was operated for the extraction of vermiculite for use in insulation.  For nearly a decade after it's closure, vermiculite infused with asbestos was strewn throughout Libby, exposed to the open air where asbestos dust was left to scatter into the wind, and ultimately breathed in by town residents, young and old alike. 

According to Stephen Johnson, the EPA's head administrator, the town is undergoing a dozen different studies on the toxicity levels throughout the town. 

As tragic as this is for the residents of Libby, there are presently an estimated 35 million homes across the United States that are insulated with material from the Libby mine.  Congress is working to get the EPA to address that fact, and efforts are also underway to ultimately have asbestos banned altogether - something that comes as a shocking surprise to American citizens when so many people become afflicted with asbestos related diseases such as malignant mesothelioma and lung cancer.

Senagryph Training Facilities, run by husband and wife owners Juan and Julia Herrara were accused by Queens New York District Attorney with giving out answers to students during the exams that were designed to ensure workers were properly trained in dealing with asbestos exposure and the proper removal of asbestos from work sites.  

Undercover detectives participated in the school's training, and during the exams were among students who received answers to exam questions direclty from the school's owners "whenever they needed them".  So essentially, students who would have otherwise failed the New York State certification process were able to skate through the testing process. 

Asbestos removal is a specialized industry and growing bigger all the time due to the fact that exposure to asbestos can lead to deadly consequences and federal regulations require specialized training in it's handling and removal.  People who are exposed can end up with many different asbestos related diseases including lung cancer, asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma. 

In addition to the students being able to freely obtain answers to the certification exams, the District Attorney also alleges that at least 80% of the workers trained at the school and who later went on to work on asbestos abatement for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey  were encouraged to, and consistently provided false information during the certification process including the use of false social security numbers.  The workers were mainly foriegn nationals in the U.S. illegally.

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray's landmark bill to protect Americans from deadly asbestos passed the full Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) with unanimous, bipartisan support.

The 19-0 vote included strong support from EPW Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA). Next, the bill will head to the Senate floor. A date for floor consideration has not been set yet.

"I'm thrilled that the entire committee has sent a clear and loud message of support, giving us strong momentum heading to the Senate floor," Murray said. "To the families who have been waiting for help, to the workers who need to be protected, I'd say we're almost there. We've made great progress in the past few months, but I'm not going to stop until we cross the finish line. I'm especially heartened that my bill has garnered unanimous bipartisan support in the EPW committee. I really want to thank Chairman Boxer for her commitment to moving this bill forward and Senator Isakson for his willingness to work in a bipartisan manner."

Murray's bill would ban asbestos, invest in research and treatment, and launch a public education campaign. 

Murray started working to ban asbestos six years ago.  This March, she re-introduced her legislation as S. 742, the Ban Asbestos in America Act of 2007 (S. 742). On March 1st, Senator Murray held a hearing in her Employment and Workplace Safety Subcommittee on the bill. Then on June 12th, the bill got a hearing before the Environment and Public Works Committee, at which Senator Murray testified. On June 6, Murray discussed the bill's progress at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, where she was joined by doctors, a patient, environmental experts, and advocates.

http://murray.senate.gov/news.cfm?id=280072

In 1990 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a study showing that a typical asbestos patient was male and approximately 70 years old. The study concluded that approximately 50 percent of asbestos patients had direct occupational exposure. Other studies have estimated that 80 percent of patients were men. Recent findings from the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) show that the average age of asbestos disease patients is almost 20 years younger than that of asbestos patients 20 years ago.

After examining case reports from the past 3 years, ADAO determined that the average new patient is 51 years old. Half of new patients are women. ADAO said it collected anecdotal evidence indicating that some patients newly diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer are under the age of 40. Even more disturbing, some had no direct occupational exposure to asbestos. ADAO asserted that the patient profile revealed in the 1990 CDC study “no longer represents the patient of today.” The organization pointed to findings made by the Columbia University Mesothelioma Center in New York City that are similar to ADAO's recent conclusions. “

The average age of our peritoneal mesothelioma patients is 51.7,” said Dr. Robert Taub, Milstein professor of clinical medicine and director of the Columbia University Mesothelioma Center.

Jack K. Clapper 800-440-4262

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) is an organization dedicated to serving as the voice of asbestos victims. ADAO, on International Workers Memorial Day, honored and remembered the thousands of workers who have died due to asbestos-caused diseases including mesothelioma. Asbestos is the number one carcinogen in workers and causes 54% of all deaths from occupational cancer.

"Given that we are in the 21st century and the hazards of asbestos have been known since the 19th Century, and further revealed in the 20th, it is outrageous that the Congressional tunnel workers were subjected to asbestos exposures over a protracted period of time. Given their exposures and the absence of adequate protection, they have an elevated risk of lung cancer, mesothelioma, and all the other diseases related to asbestos, on top of the asbestosis that has been diagnosed among members of this group" said Arthur L. Frank MD, PhD and Co-Scientific Director of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization.

"As we pay tribute to former workers on this day of remembrance, we need to take action to protect current workers who are still being abused." "Asbestos has touched the lives of millions of people, each with names and families, like Nellie Kershaw, the 33 year old factory worker, who was the first case of asbestosis published in medical literature in 1927," said Dr. Richard A. Lemen, Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS (ret.), and Co-Scientific Director of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization.

"Today we think of the thousands of people, like Nellie Kershaw, who have lost their lives to the highly preventable diseases caused by asbestos."

Jack K. Clapper 800-440-4262

West Palm Beach, FL (AHN) - The United Nation's (U.N.) Health Agency annually calls for the prevention of cancer through a day devoted for the world to provide safety and health to all workplaces.

There are many preventable deaths in the workplace that are caused by workers being exposed to carcinogens leading to cancer.

The U.N. calls on all employers to remove any such dangerous substances from the workplace and all job sites.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) there are at least 200,000 people who end up dying from work-related cancers.

The WHO stresses that "the risks for occupational cancer are preventable."

The most common types of work-related cancers are lung cancer followed by mesothelioma and bladder cancer. These occupational cancers must be and can be eradicated.

The WHO states that there are approximately 125 million people in the world today who are still being exposed to asbestos at their jobs. There are at least 90,000 workers who are still dying from asbestos-related diseases.

In addition, exposures to benzene, particularly used by workers in the chemical and diamond industries result in thousands of deaths from the resulting leukemia, another form of cancer.

According Maria Neira, WHO's Director of Public Health and Environment, "The tragedy of occupational cancer resulting from asbestos, benzene and other carcinogens is that it takes so long for science to be translated into protective action."

"Known and preventable exposures are clearly responsible for hundreds of thousands of excess cancer cases each year. In the interests of protecting our health, we must adopt an approach rooted in primary prevention -- that is to make workplaces free from carcinogenic risks," Dr. Neira added.

Surprisingly, most of the cancer-related deaths from occupational hazards are still occurring in the developed world.

The WHO predicts that if the current unregulated use of carcinogens in the workplace continues in these developing countries, the increases in deaths from cancers from these jobs will significantly increase in the following decades.

"To achieve this [that is, "the control of carcinogens in the workplace", the] WHO supports countries in developing comprehensive national cancer prevention and control plans, which are essential to prevent millions of cancer deaths each year," stated the WHO's Medical Officer for cancer control.

Health and safety standards in the workplace must be met to avoid these preventable deaths from continuing to occur.

Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/Mesothelioma/lawyers/prweb774704.htm

Workers are building a new Pacific Street bridge in Oceanside, California.  The work is progressing on schedule.  Preparing the adjoining street requires asbestos removal, however.  Asbestos-cement pipe had been used to protect the electrical lines under the pavement. 

SDG&E sent out a letter in early August to explain to residents that work was going to begin on the new bridge and that the existing electrical lines under Harbor Drive were going to be removed so the street can be raised enough to link with the new bridge.

San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) is exercising extreme caution in removing the underground wire casings which are made out of concrete and asbestos. Asbestos is known to cause serious diseases, including mesothelioma and lung cancer.  Suppressing the asbestos dust during the removal is essential to protect the health of both the bridge workers and people in nearby businesses.

Jack K. Clapper

800-440-4262

Earlier this week two of Elk City Oklahoma's city workers were convicted  on charges of negligent endangerment for their role in allowing state inmates to be exposed to asbestos back in 2003.  The two had been indicted on much more serious felony charges in December 2006.  The case involved renovations at Elk City's railroad depot where asbestos had been used for insulation.

Both Guy Hylton Jr. - Elk City's City Manager, and Arthur Little, foreman on the construction crew at the renovation site, could have faced up to 15 years in prison each, had they been convicted of the charges in the original indictment.  As it was, using prison inmates to do the renovation, without providing them the proper training or safety equipment to properly handle or dispose of asbestos was a serious issue.  The renovation work was stopped in 2003 when the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality conducted an on-site inspection and found the asbestos laden insulation. 

Sentencing is expected next week. 

Thursday, July 26, 2007

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] — U.S. Senator Dick Durbin sent a letter late last night to state and local officials requesting a meeting to discuss recent concerns raised about asbestos at the Illinois Beach State Park.  Illinois Beach State Park consists of 6.5 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline in the City of Zion in Lake County.  Asbestos-containing materials, such as house siding, water and sewer pipe, floor tile, and roofing material, have been washing up onto the beach since 1997.   While signs are posted on the beach alerting beachgoers to the presence of asbestos; it has since been determined safe for human use.      

            A story from yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times reports concerns regarding the severity of asbestos levels at the beach.  Human exposure to asbestos has been known to cause serious lung problems and cancer.   According to the article, tests by the Centers for Disease Control completed in August 2006 found that the most-toxic form of asbestos – amphibole asbestos – were located on the beach. Because of these findings, officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency expressed concerns regarding the safety of the beach for human use in an April 24, 2007 letter to a federal health official in Chicago.

In today’s letter Durbin said: “Millions of visitors enjoy the shores of Lake Michigan, and specifically the beaches at Illinois Beach State Park, every year.  I want a clear understanding about any potential threats of asbestos there.”

Senator Durbin has led a bipartisan group of Illinois lawmakers in assuring that Lake Michigan and its shores are safe as a recreation site and source of drinking water for millions. On July 16, immediately after being informed of a permit that will allow BP’s Whiting refinery in Indiana to discharge more pollution into Lake Michigan, Senator Durbin sent a letter to Benjamin Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to express his strong opposition.  Durbin and Emanuel sent a second letter to the EPA Administrator, Stephen L. Johnson expressing strong concern over the issuance of the permit and requesting for a hold to be placed on the permit until certain assurances have been met.  Yesterday, Durbin and members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation met with the President of BP America to request that the company find alternatives to the dumping.

            Similar letters were sent to Douglas Scott, Director of the Illinois EPA; Sam Flood, Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources; Brad Bradley, Project Manager at the US Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5; Mark Johnson, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry; Tim King, Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, Chicago Park District; Paul Kakuris, the President of the Dunes Preservation Society; Lane Harrison, Mayor of Zion; Representative Melissa Bean (D-IL); and Representative Mark Kirk (R-IL).

Text of the letter appears below:

July 25, 2007

 
The Honorable Douglas P. Scott
Director
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA)
1021 North Grand Avenue East
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, IL  62794-9276

Dear Director Scott:


            I would like to convene a meeting to discuss the presence of asbestos at the Illinois Beach State Park and request your participation.  Your perspectives on the challenges and the role of your agency in responding would be an important contribution to the discussion.

Millions of visitors enjoy the shores of Lake Michigan, and specifically the beaches at Illinois Beach State Park, every year.  I want a clear understanding about any potential threats of asbestos there. 

I would like to schedule a meeting with interested parties in the next week or so.  Please contact my staff to discuss availability or if you have any questions about the nature of the proposed discussions.

I look forward to discussing this important issue with you.

Sincerely,

Following a deadly steam pipe explosion in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday asbestos was found at the scene. Investigators of the explosion concluded asbestos albeit found in solid chunks at the scene was not in the air. Ongoing tests are being conducted however the Office of Emergency Management revealed in a statement that long-term health problems were "unlikely."

Even Mayor Michael Bloomberg was apprehensive about health scare. He admitted that the possibility of asbestos contamination was his main health worry following the huge blast Wednesday evening.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Foster Wheeler Ltd. Wednesday said its first-quarter net income rose 20% to $138.1 million, or 95 cents a share, from $114.8 million, or 80 cents a share, a year earlier, helped by a $14.2 million asbestos-related gain. Excluding amortization and interest expense, earnings were 85 cents a share. The Hamilton, Bermuda, engineering and construction company said operating revenue increased 56% to $1.8 billion from $1.15 billion a year ago. On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of 73 cents a share on revenue of $1.48 billion. Analyst estimates typically exclude items.

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