$208.8 Million Verdict for Second Hand Exposure to Asbestos in Laundry
Many people are aware of the serious danger posed by occupational exposure to asbestos, which is effectively the exclusive cause of mesothelioma cancer. Mesothelioma cancer is caused by exposure to asbestos fibers or dust and primarily strikes persons who worked with asbestos products in an occupational setting. It is a type of lung cancer that takes many years to develop and produce symptoms. What many people do not realize is that asbestos exposure can create a risk of second hand exposure to asbestos for those who have never worked around asbestos.
68 year-old Rhoda Evans, a California woman, was exposed to asbestos as she washed her husband's work clothes from his pipe-cutting job during his 18 years of employment with the Los Angeles water department. This case illustrates how dangerous asbestos exposure can be not just to those with occupational exposure but even to other family members who can suffer second hand asbestos exposure. If you have suffered second hand exposure to asbestos and developed mesothelioma, contact Montlick and Associates, Attorneys at Law, to learn about your rights and how we can help. We have been helping Georgia families get the compensation they deserve for over 39 years.
Bobby Evans, the victim's husband, worked for the Los Angeles water department for 18 years cutting water pipe made of asbestos and cement with a power saw. Evidence was offered during the trial that a power saw produces 300 million asbestos fibers per cubic meter of air, which is three to ten times the limit set by OSHA. CertainTeed, the company that manufactured the pipe, indicated that the pipe was safe in its literature distributed to purchasers of the pipe until belatedly testing the pipe in 1977. When the testing finally made the risk apparent, the company issued a half-hearted warning indicating only that a power saw should not be used to cut the pipe but did not include a cancer warning. Even the instruction not to cut the pipe with a power saw was buried on page 19 of the work practice manual because the company knew that there would be no market for the pipe if water departments knew that it had to be cut with a hand saw.
Rhoda Evans had a standard practice of immediately making her husband take off his work uniform as soon as he got home. She would shake them out and place them in the laundry. This second hand exposure ultimately led to her contracting mesothelioma, which will eventually claim her life. Second hand asbestos exposure victims represent the most sympathetic of plaintiffs in asbestos product liability cases because they really have no way to know that they are at risk and are not in a position to avoid the risk. If you have suffered second hand exposure to asbestos and developed mesothelioma, Montlick and Associates can help you seek the compensation you deserve.
Our experiencedGeorgia Mesothelioma attorneys are available to assist clients throughout all of Georgia and the Southeast, including but not limited to Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Gainesville, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Roswell, Savannah, Smyrna, Valdosta, Warner Robins and all smaller cities and rural areas in the state. No matter where you are located we are just a phone call away, and we will even come to you. Call us 24 hours a day/7 days a week for your Free Consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333). You can also visit us online at www.montlick.com and use our Free Case Evaluation Form or 24 hour Live Online Chat.