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Checking for Asbestos in Public Buildings

The United States banned use of asbestos in new construction projects more than three decades ago, but is still present in many older buildings as its heat insulation and fire resistance properties made it an ideal component of flooring, walls, ceilings and pipes.

But although many buildings still contain asbestos, as it wasn’t banned until the 1980s, there is no harm if they are left undisturbed, as asbestos is potentially harmful only when crushed and inhaled.

Two of the serious health issues which arise from inhaling the airborne fibers are lung cancer and mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the chest and abdominal cavity. However, since symptoms don’t usually appear until around 20 to 30 years after the exposure, it can be difficult to know for certain if a person is at risk.

In order to protect people from the dangers, any time someone wants to carry out modifications to a public building they must first submit a work order request to the Department of Public Works. DPW will then check the building for asbestos to determine if a trained professional is required to remove or deal with it. This would include even something as simple as pulling up a carpet or drilling holes as you never know what lies beneath the carpet or inside the wall.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Schools Checked for Asbestos

Following asbestos testing in schools in Orange Country, most of the schools will remain open as they pose no threat to students.

However, three elementary schools in the Huntington Beach school district, Hope View, Oak View and Lake View, will remain closed for up to two months while asbestos is removed from classrooms.

The campuses were closed earlier this month when asbestos was discovered in classrooms during a modernization project. The closures have meant that over 1,600 students have to take buses to classrooms in eight different school districts across Orange County.

Tests showed that most of the schools in Orange County had an insignificant level of asbestos in the air and that the amount fell far below federal standards for a hazard and would not pose a risk to staff or students.

Asbestos is a mineral that was widely used as fireproofing in building projects until the 1970s. Though coming into contact with asbestos which has not been disturbed is not harmful, it can become a hazard when the dust becomes airborne as inhaling asbestos fibers over a long period can cause cancer and other lung diseases.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

What You Should Know About Asbestos Roofing

Asbestos is a building material composed of mineral fibers and prior to 1977 it was often used to increase the fire resistance and insulation properties of roofing products. It was banned in 1977 when it was discovered that exposure to asbestos dust can cause respiratory ailments and cancer.

Asbestos materials used in homes built over thirty years ago are most likely to be found in cement roofing, shingles, insulation and siding that was installed before 1978.  The only way to know if asbestos is present in roofing material is to have a sample sent to a lab for testing and this should be carried out by an asbestos professional

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommends the best way to deal with asbestos products is to leave them alone as the main danger is when the dust is exposed during removal or repair or even taking a sample for testing.  Dangers also exist when materials age and deteriorate and the asbestos dust could be let loose into the air.

If you notice deterioration in your roofing and it was installed before 1978, complete removal may not be necessary.  Repair and sealing will involve covering up the materials to keep the asbestos in place so that the dust is unable to affect the health of anyone in your family and this is a recommended practice. There is no obligation to remove the asbestos, whatever some contractors may claim.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Warn Children of the Dangers of Asbestos

According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), children can often be exposed to asbestos when playing and it is important that they be educated as to the potential dangers involved with asbestos exposure. In addition, although not yet completely proven, scientists believe that children breathe differently than adults; hence they may have an increased chance of breathing in more asbestos than an adult with the same level of exposure.

Children should be educated as to what asbestos is and how the fine fibers can become airborne and inhaled.  They should be told not to go into old and abandoned buildings, nor to play around any furnaces which were built before the 1980s. If you have any asbestos present in any area of the home, such as an outhouse, they should be warned to stay away

In addition they should be warned of the dangers of older pipes which may have asbestos cladding which could leak into the water, and so they should not drink from old public water fountains.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Jeopardy Homes Contain Asbestos

Demolition began on homes in Sheridan Hollow in Albany as part of the Sheridan Hollow Revitalization Project by Habitat for Humanity Capital District and its partner Housing Visions.

However the work was suspended Friday morning after asbestos was found.

The homes involved were a stretch of vacant houses near the intersection of Sheridan and Swan streets and they gained nationwide notoriety when a photo of them appeared on a 2012 “Jeopardy!” episode as a reference to urban blight.

Habitat officials said that the area, now known as “Jeopardy Corner”, will become part of a community designed to create opportunities for affordable homeownership, as well as new retail and commercial investments and other improvements.

The Sheridan Hollow Revitalization Project is in its first phase, which consists of 10 single-family Habitat homes and 10 more homes which are funded by the Touhey Homeownership Foundation.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Appeal in Asbestos Case Fails

There are many issues involved with an asbestos lawsuit that can make it complicated, linked to how the person came into contact with the asbestos as well as a whole range of other issues.

A recent asbestos mesothelioma lawsuit ruling by a California appeals court has upheld an original jury verdict of $2,072,164 for a plaintiff claiming to have been exposed to asbestos while working with automotive brake parts manufactured by the defendant Pneumo Abex LLC (Abex).

Brake components and especially the brake linings have historically been linked to asbestos exposure as asbestos was used to make them given its ability to dissipate heat.

The original jury verdict was appealed by Abex saying that they were prejudiced during the original trial but the appeal court stood by the original ruling stating that there was substantial evidence showing that James. A Lovelace had been exposed to brake dust from the process of sanding and grinding brakes made by Abex and alleged to have contained asbestos.

James A. Lovelace died from pleural mesothelioma shortly after the original jury award was announced, and his son Michael succeeded his father in the appeal lawsuit.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Treasure Island has Asbestos

Sandy Agee moved herself and her children out of an asbestos-filled home in Bayview Hunters Point onto Treasure Island, but discovered she had l jumped from the frying pan into the fire.

Sandy and two of her children are exhibiting worrisome physical symptoms they developed only after moving to the island, which include thyroid problems and stomach pains.

Through her research into records since the Navy commandeered the island in 1941, Kathryn Lundgren, friend and neighbor, found incontrovertible proof that, after the Navy erected these buildings in the 1960s-1970s, it violated its own asbestos abatement laws.

A 1997 Navy document that Kathryn found, states that units cannot be available for occupancy, or even entered, until the area has been cleaned and all asbestos removed. Kathryn is adamant that the Navy acted criminally when it allowed 2,000 plus residents and maintenance staff to enter, work and live in these asbestos-filled buildings.

Sandy is saying that the whole island now needs to be relocated.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Asbestos Payout Confirmed

A Federal Court of Appeal in New York has ruled that Travelers Cos. must pay out more than $500 million to victims of diseases caused by asbestos under a settlement proposal which was first approved by a judge way back in 2004.

New York based Travelers was ordered to pay the amount under settlements which arose from the bankruptcy of Johns Manville Corporation, which was formerly the largest supplier of asbestos and asbestos-containing products in the country

Travelers had been the main insurer of the Johns Manville, which filed for bankruptcy in the 1980s, at the same time as they were facing claims related to asbestos exposure.

The proposed payout has been going back and forth in various courts, and in 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a ruling allowing suits against Travelers by those who had been harmed as a result of asbestos exposure, and revived the $500 settlement.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.

Asbestos conference to take place in San Francisco

Perrin Conferences have announced that 11 judges, from the East, Central, and West regions of the United States, will attend its annual Asbestos Litigation Conference, scheduled for September 8-10, 2014, in San Francisco. Last year, the event drew more than 500 professionals to discuss all perspectives of asbestos litigation.

Nationally, the costs and damages associated with asbestos litigation have been estimated in the hundreds of billions of dollars over the past several decades, with far-reaching implications affecting all sectors of the economy. Every year, the court system, attorneys, clients, insurance companies, risk managers, and a whole range of affected businesses and other parties, grapple with the need to adjudicate or settle hundreds of thousands of asbestos related cases.

By bringing all parties affected together in a constructive dialogue, the conference offers mutually beneficial insight and information sharing on current and emerging trends in an atmosphere of learning and networking.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

 

Treatment Option for Mesothelioma Sufferers

Those who are diagnosed with mesothelioma likely have a series of difficult decisions before them. Because the illness has no known cure, doctors often pursue an aggressive treatment regimen which may include chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery.

As can be seen in the following video, a person’s treatment options for their mesothelioma will depend on a variety of factors including:

  • The stage of the cancer
  • Whether or not the cancer has spread
  • The person’s age
  • The person’s lifestyle (activity level)

Mesothelioma has been shown to be caused exclusively by exposure to asbestos, a naturally occurring substance which was used for decades in industrial and manufacturing applications. Those suffering from the illness should seek a qualified oncologist immediately for assistance in treating the disease.

Also, as many people who develop mesothelioma were exposed to asbestos in ways which violate the law, such as when employees are not given proper protective gear before handling the substance. Many mesothelioma sufferers are rightfully entitled to monetary compensation to help cover the costs of fighting the disease, and the pain and suffering it causes.

If you or someone you know has suffered the results of asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.