Archive for the ‘Michigan’ Category

On Tuesday June 10 a state Appellate Court reversed a $10 million verdict against the Ford Motor Company, saying the widower who had won the verdict had in fact had no grounds to sue the auto company.

The 14th Court of Appeals issued the ruling after it had asked the Michigan Supreme Court to provide an opinion about whether family members representing Carolyn Miller, who died in 2000, had the right to sue the Ford Motor Company.

Miller’s attorneys said that Carolyn Miller died at age 54 of mesothelioma after she was exposed to asbestos which her father transported home on his work clothes.

Carolyn’s father, John Roland, worked at the Ford Rouge plant in Michigan between 1953 and 1964. His work involved relining and demolishing blast furnaces.

John Roland and Glenn Miller sued the Ford Motor Company in 2001, claiming that Carolyn Miller’s death was wrongfully caused. The case was tried in 2004, and Carolyn’s family was awarded $10 million by a Brazoria County jury.

The case was tried in Brazoria County because some of the original defendants, including the Dow Chemical Company, had operations based there. Most of the defendants in the case settled before it went to trial. Despite the fact that the trial was held in a Texas court, it was tried under Michigan law.

The recent Michigan Supreme Court ruling, written by Justice Leslie Yates, reversed the $10 million verdict, and was a majority opinion. The ruling stated that Carolyn’s husband, Glenn Miller, had no right to sue the Ford Motor Company because Carolyn had never actually set foot on the company’s property to be exposed to asbestos.

Therefore, the ruling said, the company “owed Miller no such duty.”

In addition, the Appellate Court found that Roland, who in the original judgment had received $500,000 in damages for past and future pain and suffering, could not be awarded damages.

The Supreme Court decision said that Roland’s injuries did not warrant a damages award. In the decision, Yates wrote, “The undisputed evidence shows only that Roland might get cancer in the future, and that is not a sufficient basis to support a recovery.”

A spokesperson for the Ford Motor Company said the appellate decision was the right one. “Ms. Miller was never on Ford premises and any risk to her from her father’s work clothes was not known or foreseeable to Ford, and was not something that Ford could prevent since he worked many other places besides Ford premises, said spokesperson Marcey Evans.

Washtenaw County, Michigan - An effort to restore an old Navy ship is being delayed due to money shortages. The high cost of restoration includes money for asbestos abatement, as the substance was heavily used in Navy vessels during much of the twentieth century.

The ship in question is the USS Washtenaw County, which served in the Vietnam War. The ship is currently docked on the Columbia River downstream from Rainier, Oregon. Due to environmental concerns, such as the presence of asbestos on the ship, it can’t be towed to sea and sunk, and due to money shortages, restoration can’t be completed.

The USS Washtenaw County is the only Navy ship which bears that name. The vessel is an LST, a flat-bottomed ship designed to effectively navigate rivers, and land on beaches when troops or equipment need unloading. She earned more than twenty distinctions for her Vietnam War service, including earned 13 battle stars, two Presidential Unit Citations, two Navy Unit Commendations, and four Meritorious Unit Commendations.

Walt James of Portland, Oregon is a member of the company which owns the ship. He says the chances of restoration being completed are slim, to the projected cost of the project, which could be as high as one million dollars. Currently the restoration fund totals just $14,000.

Since the USS Washtenaw County was decommissioned in 1973, she has been bought and resold a number of times. It was finally purchased by the Amphibious Forces Memorial Museum in Vancouver, Wash., in 2005, a partnership comprising Walt James and two associates. They had planned to restore the ship, but the unexpectedly high cost, together with the problems caused by theft and damage to the ship, has prevented the project from moving ahead.

Much of the current trouble is due to the theft of valuable metal from the ship with around $100,000, and damage to the ship’s engine room caused by the thieves. In addition, there is asbestos and other toxins present on the ship, which contributes to the high cost restoration.

Walt James has already put $20,000 of his own money into the fund, and says the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality is now pressuring him to move the ship from its current location on the Columbia River.

However, the Coast Guard is telling him exactly the opposite: that the presence of asbestos, PCBs, and oil on the ship means it can’t be moved. The EPA has also told him that the ship can’t be sunk at sea due to the presence of those toxins.

Detroit, Michigan – The weekend of March 29-30 saw the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization host its fourth annual Asbestos Awareness Day Conference. On Sunday, many victims of asbestos-related diseases, and their families, gathered Marriott in downtown Detroit’s Renaissance Center to attend an ADAO-sponsored remembrance brunch.

The candlelight brunch was sponsored by ADAO and the Karmanos Cancer Institute, a medical research organization located in Detroit.

Some of those who attended did so in honor of loved ones who had already died from an asbestos-related disease. One of those was Latanyta Manuel, whose husband Andrew died from mesothelioma at just 42 years of age. The father of three died within two years of being diagnosed with the cancer.

Other attendees have been diagnosed with deadly asbestos-related diseases. Attendee Paul Zigielbaum, who has peritoneal mesothelioma, says he believes his exposure to asbestos occurred second-hand, and also that contact with everyday products might have contributed.

Paul’s wife Michelle says “Asbestos is still being imported. It’s still being put in products.” That particularly frightening fact was uncovered by the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization in 2007, and the information was released to the public in November.

The ADAO press release claimed that “Planet Toys ‘CSI Fingerprint Examination Kit’, DAP ‘33’ window glazing, DAP “Crack Shot” spackling paste, Gardner Leak Stopper roof patch, and Scotch High Performance Duct Tape” were all found to contain asbestos in independent laboratory tests.

About the results of the ADAO tests, Sean Fitzgerald, President Geologist and Senior Microscopist of the Scientific Analytical Institute, Inc. said in the organization’s press release “The initial question asked in this study was: ‘Do products currently for sale and available to the public in America contain asbestos?’ That question can now assuredly be answered, ‘Yes.’ In light of the substantial findings of this limited product survey, I believe that a more comprehensive program of product testing for asbestos in common household products is of utmost import.”

Many of those who attended the ADAO-sponsored brunch on Sunday March 30 are well aware of the results of the ADAO asbestos tests, and many blame pro-asbestos lobbyists for America’s ongoing resistance to banning the cancer-causing mineral completely.

Dwayne Manuel, the 26-year-old son of Andrew Manuel, said “It’s disturbing to see how companies and politicians try to cover it up. This is a preventable disease.” Latanyta Manuel expressed her desire to spread awareness of asbestos-related diseases, according to her late husband’s wishes, simply saying “People need to know.”

March 14, 2008, Detroit, Michigan – Saturday March 29 is the date of the 4th annual Asbestos Awareness Day Conference, hosted and organized by the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO).

ADAO is a non-profit organization run by volunteers. The organization is dedicated to serving as a voice for the victims and families who have been affected by asbestos diseases by fighting for a complete ban on asbestos products and encouraging research that improves treatment options and prognosis for people with asbestos-related diseases.

The executive director and co-founder of the ADAO, Linda Reinstein, will be joined by world-renowned asbestos disease experts as part of the organization’s efforts to continue educating the public about the hazards associated with asbestos.

Reinstein, of Redondo Beach, California, has experienced the effects of asbestos-related diseases first-hand. Her husband Alan, the former president of ADAO, died from mesothelioma in 2006 after being diagnosed in 2003 at the age of 63. Alan Reinstein was exposed to asbestos more than fifty years prior to his diagnosis with the cancer.

Inhalation, swallowing, or otherwise ingesting asbestos fibers can cause diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma. Asbestosis is a chronic lung condition that develops as a result of long-term exposure to inhalable asbestos. Mesothelioma is a cancer that can develop in the lining of the lungs, heart, or abdominal cavity.

Both diseases are incurable and mesothelioma in particular is a particularly deadly form of cancer, as itis aggressive and highly resistant to treatment.

Environmental and asbestos expert Michael R. Harbut, MD, MPH, FCCP, and co-director of the National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers, says there is no safe level of asbestos exposure.

The Asbestos Awareness Day Conference is a joint effort that has been organized via collaboration between the ADAO and the International Asbestos Ban Secretariat, and is the official event that signals the beginning of Asbestos Awareness Week.

The conference will be held at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, Michigan, between 8am and 5.30pm. Education and outreach will be provided for people affected by asbestos exposure and asbestos-related diseases, including research scientists, physicians and healthcare workers in addition to victims of asbestos-related diseases and family members of disease victims.

The cost of attending the conference varies. For physicians and other healthcare professions the cost is $225, while people with asbestos-related diseases, their family members, and students, pay just $75.

A Remembrance Service and Brunch ($25) will also be held on the following Sunday, March 30, starting at 9.30am. A candle-lighting ceremony will be held at 10.30 EDT at which people at the ceremony and all over the world can participate to remember those who have died as a result of asbestos exposure.

Those who wish to attend should be advised that registration is limited. More information can be found at http://www.adao.us/.

DETROIT, Michigan – On Sunday March 29, world renowned experts on mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases will meet for the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization’s 4th Annual Asbestos Awareness Day Conference. The conference, held at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, Michigan, is part of the ADAO’s continuing effort to educate the general public about the dangers of asbestos and encourage research to improve treatment options for victims.

ADAO is a non-profit international organization that is run completely by volunteers. It was begun by family members of those suffering from asbestos-related diseases and the victims themselves, and its mission is to enhance awareness of the dangers of asbestos and stop production and commercial distribution of the deadly carcinogen. Executive director and co-founder, Linda Reinstein lost her husband to mesothelioma in 2006.

The conference is sponsored by a collaborative partnership of ADAO, the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat. It marks the official beginning of Asbestos Awareness Week.

Alan Reinstein, husband of the current executive director, was the former ADAO president. He was diagnosed with asbestos at 63 years of age and died three years later in 2006. He was exposed to asbestos nearly 50 years earlier through occupational exposure and home repairs. His wife calls him “an inspiration to all those impacted by asbestos-related diseases”.
ADAO was instrumental last winter in identifying asbestos in a popular Christmas toy and having it removed from toy shelves across the nation.

Mesothelioma results when a person inhales of swallows asbestos fibers, which permanently penetrate the lung and other tissues. Most asbestos related diseases have long latency periods, ranging from ten to fifty years. Even after the victim realizes that something is wrong, the conditions are often diagnosed. Exposure to asbestos is the only known cause of pleural mesothelioma, a virulent, aggressive cancer that attacks the lining of the lungs. It is also a cause of lung cancer, and doubles the risk of colon cancer.
Asbestos expert Dr. Michael R. Harbut states bluntly that there is no such thing as a safe level of asbestos exposure.
“Each and every fiber causes an increased risk of unnecessary suffering and unnecessary death,” says Harbut.

Dr. Harbut is co-director of the National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers.
Each year, there are 4,000 to 8,000 new cases of mesothelioma diagnosed in the United States, and mesothelioma is the rarest of asbestos-related cancers. Tens of thousands more people will be diagnosed with other cancers caused by asbestos exposure each year. Those cancers include lung cancer, colon cancer, stomach cancer and cancer of the esophagus.

ADAO’s mission is to educate the public about the dangers of asbestos, as well as the importance of early asbestos screening for appropriate health care. While there is no known cure for asbestosis or for mesothelioma, early diagnosis can increase the options for treatment.

Ripley, Michigan – Franklin Township has owned the Quincy Smelter Works for around eight years, and has finally been given the signal on a plan to remove asbestos from the site.

The Environmental Protection Agency has agreed to manage and fund the project, which will remove asbestos and toxic heavy metals from the Quincy Smelter Works located on M-26 in Ripley.

Franklin Township had acquired the site in 1999, after the then-owner Quincy Development Corp was unable to fulfill its financial obligations regarding the site.

Following the acquisition the township had planned to lease the site to the Keweenaw National Historical Park. The historical organization is interested in the Quincy Smelter Works because the site represents an important part of Franklin Township’s copper mining history.

However, Franklin Township Supervisor Glenn Ekdahl said that after an inspection of the site in 2002, the EPA had determined that the issue of asbestos and heavy metals that were present on the east side of the site would have to be resolved before any on-site development could be carried out.

The site is contaminated not only with asbestos, but also with heavy metals such as arsenic, which were used in the mining and smelting processes carried out at the Smelter Works. Both asbestos and heavy metals present on the site must be removed before any further redevelopment can take place.

According to the EPA and Glenn Ekdahl, there are further issued that must be addressed during the remediation project. It is expected that the dilapidated state of some of the buildings on-site will present a challenge. Many of the buildings will require stabilization before asbestos can be removed.

Another issue is that of erosion: the EPA, in conjunction with Michigan Technological University, is developing a plan that will help protect the property from erosion from nearby Mont Ripley.

Yet another issue must be taken into account: because the Quincy Smelter Works is destined to be a historic site, care must be taken to preserve historic buildings. Park landscape architect Steve DeLong will oversee asbestos removal to ensure that historically relevant aspects of the site are preserved.

Work on the Quincy Smelter Works remediation project is slated to begin in the spring, and is expected to cost several hundred thousand dollars. The EPA had previously estimated the cost as around $400,000, in 2004, but expects that figure will have increased.

Residents of Ripley and Franklin Township are excited by the clean-up plans, which will make the Quincy Smelter Works a potentially economically viable site and help preserve some important local history.

BURR OAK, Michigan – Sparks flew at a meeting of the Burr Oak Village Council in late January when it was learned that the cost of asbestos removal, originally approved for $2,300 per building for three buildings, had ballooned to $45,000.
According to the councilors at the meeting, the town had requested an estimate on three of the four building from which asbestos was to be removed. The estimates were $2,300 each to remove all asbestos. At the last minute, the council decided to also have asbestos removed from the town’s community center. Because it was a last minute decision, there was no estimate.
The meeting was held to discuss building demolitions on Third Street, but the talk was derailed to discussion of the cost of asbestos removal when it was learned that it cost $45,000 to remove asbestos from the community center before demolition instead of the $2,300 budgeted for the purpose.
State and federal law require that all asbestos containing materials be removed from structures before demolition because of the danger of asbestos fibers being released into the air. Asbestos is a deadly fiber that was often mixed and bound into other materials because of its fire resistant and insulating properties. When the materials are broken or destroyed as they are when a building is demolished, asbestos fibers can be released into the air to be inhaled or ingested by those in the area. Inhaled asbestos fibers cause fatal diseases like mesothelioma, a rare cancer, sometimes decades after the exposure.
Apparently, the asbestos problem in the demolished community center was bigger than anyone expected. Since the town had already received estimates for three similar buildings of $2,300 per building, the council budgeted $2,300 for asbestos removal at the community center. When the bill came in, however, it was for considerably higher – a whopping $45,000.
The village had budgeted a total of $200,000 for the demolition of the buildings on Third Street. The unexpected expense pushes the current cost of the demolition project to $162,700 with further work still needing to be done.
Other business handled at the meeting included accepting a cost-cutting proposal that reduced the hours of a village clerk from full-time with benefits to part-time work. Her annual salary with benefits costs the village less than $35,000. The village will save $19,078 – less than half of what it cost to remove the asbestos from the community center before it was demolished.
The irony was not mentioned by the village councilors in suggesting other uses for the $19,000 saved by cutting the clerk’s salary. Instead, one council member suggested that it could represent a rebate on sewer bills for every village resident, or one part time police officer to patrol during the nights.