According to Kanawah Circuit Court records in West Virginia, eighteen people are preparing to bring a lawsuit against one-hundred and forty-seven companies involved in the manufacture, distribution or implementation of asbestos products. While the accusations have not been entirely formalized, the plaintiffs maintain that their health has been jeopardized by the negligent practices of the companies in question.
Asbestos has long been known to cause a variety of diseases including mesothelioma, a cancer of the mesothelial tissues which line the body’s lungs, abdomen and heart. While the effects of the mineral have been fairly well understood since the early twentieth century, lobbyists have had some level of success in downplaying the dangers of asbestos and mitigating the bans placed on the material by countries around the world. In the United States, for example, the original asbestos ban passed by the Environmental Protection Agency in the late 1980′s was overturned by a large company, Corrosion Proof Fittings, with a vested interest in the asbestos industry’s continued success.
When asbestos fibers are inhaled or ingested, they are able to pass through many of the body’s tissues due to their peculiar shape and microscopic size. The fibers, however, are eventually arrested in the sticky mesothelial tissues, where they cause a scarring reaction which can develop into malignant tumors.
Mesothelioma is a terminal illness which normally causes death within just six to eighteen months from diagnosis. The disease can take decades or even half a century to develop from the time of original exposure, complicating the diagnosis process and making early detection near impossible.
Information concerning asbestos’s adverse effects was widely available as early as the 1960′s, a fact which often places the blame for asbestos related illnesses on negligent, irresponsible employers. These employers, ranging from asbestos mining operations through brake pad manufacturers, sealant manufacturers and more, often chose to ignore or suppress accurate information regarding asbestos in order to protect their business model and their profits.
The eighteen plaintiffs in West Virginia claim that their previous employers in concert with a wide selection of asbestos manufacturing companies are responsible for withholding critical information concerning the dangers of the substance.
