Everett, WA, (Mesothelioma News) - Three years ago, dozens of firefighters in Everett, Wash., were exposed to asbestos during training exercises. Now they have petitioned the town looking for $9 million. Such a tactic, say mesothelioma lawyers who have handled asbestos-related cases, is frequently the last step prior to filing a lawsuit.
The firefighters were exposed to asbestos in the summer of 2007. That's when a series of training exercises were conducted in city-owned structures known to harbor the hazardous material. Asbestos was once a popular building material that has been scientifically linked to deadly diseases such as mesothelioma, a cancer of the protective lining covering many internal organs.
The millions that the firefighters and their spouses are seeking would cover the costs of medical monitoring for potential asbestos-related health problems for the rest of their lives. In addition to mesothelioma, such problems could include lung cancer and asbestosis, a scarring of the lungs that can cause severe respiratory problems.
"We were waiting for the city to do the right thing, but it never happened," said Paul Gagnon, president of the firefighters union.
Everett has offered lifetime monitoring to 27 firefighters that the city deemed to have had the most significant exposure to the asbestos during the exercise. But during the training sessions, none of the participating firefighters-who chopped holes in the city-owned buildings-were wearing self-contained breathing gear.
Asbestos fibers are typically released into the air when asbestos in a structure is disturbed. They are particularly dangerous, because they can be easily inhaled and can potentially trigger mesothelioma and other diseases years, even decades, later.
Over the years, mesothelioma lawyers have had great success obtaining often multimillion-dollar jury awards and settlements on behalf of clients who were needlessly or recklessly exposed to asbestos.
But the victories have been bittersweet, because mesothelioma researchers have yet to find a cure or even an effective long-term treatment for the disease, which is among the most aggressive of all cancers. Even today, the prognosis for mesothelioma patients is invariably grim.
A major problem with the city's proposal, say the firefighters, is that it does not offer similar monitoring to another 22 first responders who also trained in the asbestos-laden houses. While the city had countered that their asbestos exposure was not as great-and not enough to warrant monitoring-it is now trying to determine whether any of these firefighters should also receive lifetime monitoring.
Prior to the training exercise there was at least one fire official aware that the buildings contained asbestos, but the training was conducted regardless , seemingly due to miscommunication-a fact that could loom large in any future asbestos lawsuit, say mesothelioma lawyers.
In a December 2007 report, a consultant with the state's Department of Labor and Industries concluded that the asbestos exposure issue was severe enough that the firefighters who had "significant exposures" should be monitored by a physician regularly.
The consultant also concluded that all Everett firefighters had likely, at some point in their careers, been exposed to asbestos fibers, because the fire department has not had a policy to inspect training sites for possible hazardous material. This, too, may have important consequences in any future lawsuit, according to mesothelioma lawyers.
Since the release of the report, the city has taken measures to prevent asbestos exposure, including building inspections for hazards before firefighters take them apart during training. Crews are required to wear protective breathing apparatus during the drills, and to undergo decontamination afterward. Firefighters also have been provided training on avoiding asbestos and other airborne risks.
Gagnon, the union president, said the Everett firefighters would rather reach an accord with the town than go to court.
"We don't want to go the lawsuit route," he said. "We're doing what we have to do to take care of our members."
This news story was brought to you by mesothelioma lawyers Cooney & Conway. For more than half a century, we have been advocates for those injured due to the wrongful actions of others. We have litigated and resolved some of the nation's most significant asbestos lawsuits, bringing justice-and compensation-to victims of
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