Midnight Oil

[Powderworks] Continuing fallout

GrnVillageGirl@aol.com GrnVillageGirl@aol.com
Thu, 23 Jan 2003 02:38:49 EST


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This story came out of England...but I imagine that the wives of the miners 
in Australia may well have suffered similar fates. It reminded me that the 
topic(s) addressed in "Blue Sky Mine", lo those many years ago, continue to 
affect people in horrible ways today.

Laundry kills wife of asbestos worker
By Paul Stokes
(Filed: 23/01/2003) 

A woman's death was caused by 40 years of washing the asbestos-impregnated 
overalls of her husband who is himself dying, an inquest was told.

Dorothy Mundy, 66, breathed in fibres when laundering her husband Derek's 
jeans and overalls which led to a terminal cancer.

Stanley Hooper, the coroner, told an inquest in Doncaster, South Yorks, that 
it was unusual to get the disease in this way.

"Asbestos was thought to be a most useful and beneficial mineral but is now 
recognised as a material which has caused a considerable number of deaths.

"I have no option but to bring in a special verdict that she died from 
mesothelioma as a consequence of being exposed to asbestos."

The coroner was unable to record a verdict of death by a recognised 
industrial disease because Mrs Mundy did not technically work with asbestos.

Mr Mundy, 65, a retired joiner, from Wheatley, Doncaster, said that at first 
doctors were baffled when they found asbestos in his wife's lungs, before 
making the connection with his work clothing.

He said: "We hadn't the faintest idea she could catch a killer disease simply 
from washing some clothing. We had known for years that I had got it but 
Dorothy only started with a troublesome cough.

"We didn't realise that my years working in hospitals, schools and buildings 
all over the area was killing us both."

<A HREF="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$E42LRDWU3KKXVQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2003/01/23/nasbes23.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/01/23/ixhome.html">
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$E42LRDWU3KKXVQFIQMGSFFOAV

CBQWIV0?xml=/news/2003/01/23/nasbes23.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/01/23/ixhome.html</A>





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<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><BODY BGCOLOR="#ffffff"><FONT  style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">This story came out of England...but I imagine that the wives of the miners in Australia may well have suffered similar fates. It reminded me that the topic(s) addressed in "Blue Sky Mine", lo those many years ago, continue to affect people in horrible ways today.<BR>
<BR>
<B>Laundry kills wife of asbestos worker</B><BR>
By Paul Stokes<BR>
<I>(Filed: 23/01/2003) </I><BR>
<BR>
A woman's death was caused by 40 years of washing the asbestos-impregnated overalls of her husband who is himself dying, an inquest was told.<BR>
<BR>
Dorothy Mundy, 66, breathed in fibres when laundering her husband Derek's jeans and overalls which led to a terminal cancer.<BR>
<BR>
Stanley Hooper, the coroner, told an inquest in Doncaster, South Yorks, that it was unusual to get the disease in this way.<BR>
<BR>
"Asbestos was thought to be a most useful and beneficial mineral but is now recognised as a material which has caused a considerable number of deaths.<BR>
<BR>
"I have no option but to bring in a special verdict that she died from mesothelioma as a consequence of being exposed to asbestos."<BR>
<BR>
The coroner was unable to record a verdict of death by a recognised industrial disease because Mrs Mundy did not technically work with asbestos.<BR>
<BR>
Mr Mundy, 65, a retired joiner, from Wheatley, Doncaster, said that at first doctors were baffled when they found asbestos in his wife's lungs, before making the connection with his work clothing.<BR>
<BR>
He said: "We hadn't the faintest idea she could catch a killer disease simply from washing some clothing. We had known for years that I had got it but Dorothy only started with a troublesome cough.<BR>
<BR>
"We didn't realise that my years working in hospitals, schools and buildings all over the area was killing us both."<BR>
<BR>
<A HREF="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$E42LRDWU3KKXVQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2003/01/23/nasbes23.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/01/23/ixhome.html">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$E42LRDWU3KKXVQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2003/01/23/nasbes23.xml&amp;sSheet=/news/2003/01/23/ixhome.html</A><BR>
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