Joiner Died From Mesothelioma Whilst Trying to Keep Others Safe
18/02/2011
The daughter of a Hartlepool joiner who developed mesothelioma whilst working to keep other people safe is hoping that his former colleagues can come forward and support her battle for justice.
Thomas Allison, 88, died in November 2010 of mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. His daughter, Janice Royal, believes that he was exposed to asbestos fibres whilst working as a ship builder more than half a century ago and has approached asbestos illness solicitors at Irwin Mitchell to support her fight for justice.
Mr Allison worked for Furness Shipbuilding at Haverton Hill Shipyard from the early 1950s to the early 1960s. During this time, Mr Allison and his co-workers were responsible for ensuring that the ships were adequately fireproofed with asbestos coatings. The application of these coatings, as well as the cutting of asbestos boards, exposed him to high levels of asbestos dust.
Prior to working at the shipyard, he had previously served in the RAF during World War II, where he was a Leading Aircraftman and where he also worked as a joiner.
Following his death Mr Allison’s daughter, Janice Royal, 62, has turned to Roger Maddocks, partner and industrial illness specialist at Irwin Mitchell, to help piece together the circumstances surrounding her father’s death.
Janice said: “Before my dad’s death I remember him telling me how the American ships which he worked on would have ‘to be fully fireproofed’. This meant they had to be coated in asbestos which would cover him and the other men in its dust.
“I need to know why this was allowed to happen when his employers will have known the risks that they posing to their employees. His former employers should be brought to justice for the unnecessary pain and suffering which they have caused, not only to dad and my family but also to the many other families which have also been affected by their decisions to continue using asbestos.”
Roger Maddocks added: “Mr Allison worked hard throughout the years that he worked and it was through this that essentially cost him his life. In order to ensure that the ships his employers were building were safe Mr Allison and his former co-workers were, unknown to them, actually putting their own lives at risk and many will have paid the ultimate price for the contact to asbestos dust which they were exposed to.
“Mesothelioma is an extremely aggressive form of lung cancer caused by asbestos exposure which causes great suffering to the victim and their families. Companies have a duty of care to protect its employees and once again, as our clients’ cases often highlight, Mr Allison’s former employers simply did not take the appropriate precautions to prevent its staff from inhaling the lethal asbestos dust.
“For Mrs Royal this case is not about the money, she wants to achieve justice in the name of her father who was so cruelly taken away from her and her family because of the job he did over 50 years ago.”
Mr Maddocks of Irwin Mitchell is interested in speaking to any employees who worked for Furness Shipbuilding at Haverton Hill Shipyard in the 1950s and 1960s, regardless of whether they directly knew Mr Allison.
Anyone who has any information should contact Roger Maddocks at Irwin Mitchell on 0191 279 0095.
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