The widow of a retired school bus driver, who allegedly died from medical conditions caused by on-the-job asbestos exposure, has been awarded $7.7 million by a federal jury.

The asbestos mesothelioma lawsuit claims that Lewis N. died on September 2012 at the age of 81, allegedly due to an asbestos-related disease. Lewis worked as a bus driver for the Fayetteville-Manlius district in New York from 1957 to 1994, during which time he was regularly exposed to asbestos fibers and asbestos containing materials.

Additionally, according to news reports and the asbestos mesothelioma lawsuit, the Navistar school buses sold to the district utilized parts containing asbestos.

Lewis drove Navistar school buses, which were housed in the district bus garage for storage and maintenance purposes. When workers performed routine maintenance on the buses — including replacing the brakes, gaskets, and clutches which allegedly contained asbestos — the asbestos fibers were released into the air in the garage.

It was in these garages, the asbestos lawsuit claims, that Lewis was exposed to asbestos fibers and caused him to later develop asbestos mesothelioma lung cancer, or cancer of the lung lining. Lewis eventually died because of his asbestos-related lung disease.

Lewis’s widow Mary N. was awarded the $7.7 million in damages for the physical and emotional trauma sustained during Lewis’s illness and his death.

History of Asbestos

The naturally occurring mineral asbestos used to be a popular building material from around the late 1800s until the early 1990s, because asbestos was a cheap and readily available material that was efficient for building homes and business, at least until the discovery of the mineral’s carcinogenic properties.

Since the discovery that asbestos was related to an increased risk of lung cancer, the use of the substance became heavily regulated by the U.S. government and other nations. As early as 1935, asbestos was linked with the eventual development of asbestos mesothelioma lung cancer in individuals who worked with asbestos or asbestos-containing materials, and thus inhaled the carcinogenic particles on a daily basis.

What is Asbestos Mesothelioma?

Asbestos mesothelioma is an rare form of cancer that develops almost exclusively from an individual’s prolonged exposure to asbestos fibers or asbestos-containing materials. When one inhales asbestos fibers, these carcinogenic particles can become trapped in one’s lung lining, causing inflammation, scarring, tumors, and could eventually led to the development of mesothelioma.

Asbestos mesothelioma is responsible for about 4,800 deaths every year in the United States.

Many individuals have been unknowingly exposed to asbestos materials on the job. However, because asbestos mesothelioma has a long latency period, most mesothelioma victims will not show asbestos mesothelioma symptoms until 15-35 years after the initial exposure.

Because of the personal injury allegedly sustained by asbestos mesothelioma victims, many individuals and family of deceased individuals have pursued asbestos mesothelioma lawsuits or joined existing asbestos mesothelioma class action lawsuits, seeking damages from asbestos manufacturers.