Along with direct exposure to asbestos, secondhand asbestos exposure can itself present a huge danger for families of those that work with the dangerous material. In a recent asbestos case, the wife of a company’s former employee suffered secondhand asbestos exposure that led to her cancer diagnosis and eventual death.

Background of the Secondhand Asbestos Exposure Case

An employee of Tennessee Valley Authority, James B., worked for the company for 22 years as a laborer at a nuclear plant in Athens, Ala.

In the course of his job, he would sweep up insulation residue, which allowed harmful asbestos fibers to accumulate on his clothing. James was diagnosed with asbestos lung cancer in the 1990s, and eventually died of a heart attack in 1997.

Years after her husband’s death in 1997, Barbara B. was diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer in 2011. Mesothelioma cancer has a substantial connection with asbestos.

In an attempt to treat her mesothelioma, Barbara underwent chemotherapy treatment, surgery, and removal of fluid from her lungs. Despite this, Barbara died from her cancer in 2013.

According to the asbestos lawsuit, Barbara’s mesothelioma diagnosis has a direct link with secondhand asbestos exposure she suffered from due to her husband’s work.

The plaintiffs allege that when Barbara’s husband would come home from work and she did his laundry, the amount of asbestos dust on his clothes was so substantial that the room was foggy with the dust. Barbara washed her husband’s work clothes twice a week for over twenty years, the asbestos lawsuit notes.

According to the complaint, this consistent secondhand asbestos exposure over the course of two decades led to her own mesothelioma diagnosis and eventual death, and was caused by the lack of protection provided by TVA in their asbestos practices.

For instance, the court determined that TVA failed to provide workers with protective clothing, lockers and showers that would prevent taking asbestos-contaminated clothes home to workers’ families.

A panel of the Eleventh Circuit court found that the company, Tennessee Valley Authority, used negligent asbestos practices that likely led to Barbara B.’s secondhand asbestos exposure, diagnosis, suffering, and death.

The panel came to a unanimous decision regarding this case of secondhand asbestos exposure.

Circuit Judge Ed Carnes wrote that “TVA acted by using asbestos-containing products and it failed to act to prevent take-home asbestos exposure, and that, coupled with its knowledge of the risk of injury from the asbestos being taken home on employees’ clothes, warrants the conclusion that TVA violated its duty to prevent injury to [Barbara] and others like her.”

The court offered a $3.5 million award in Barbara’s favor.

Filing a Secondhand Asbestos Exposure Lawsuit

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with or died from an asbestos related disease such as mesothelioma cancer after suffering from secondhand asbestos exposure, you may be able to file an asbestos lawsuit or seek an asbestos fine.