The British chemical giant Imperial Chemical Industries is facing legal action after the family of a worker who died from terminal lung cancer claimed he was exposed to asbestos over a 34-year period.
Christopher Lees, 79, who was an in-house healthy safety inspector at the company’s research plants, was unaware he was exposed to what he believes was the ‘hidden killer’ dust within the walls of his workplace.
It was only in February this year that Mr Lees, from Cuddington, Northwich, Cheshire, was diagnosed with mesothelioma – an aggressive and terminal lung cancer caused by breathing in asbestos dust and fibres.
He passed away just three months later on May 17 after being admitted to a hospice and leaves behind his wife Gillian, who herself has a lung condition and severe arthritis, two daughters and four grandchildren.
Christopher Lees, 79, from Cheshire, who worked as an in-house health safety inspector for ICI, was diagnosed with mesothelioma – an aggressive and terminal lung cancer- in February
In a statement made shortly before his death, which was read out at an inquest in Warrington, Cheshire, Mr Lees blamed his imminent death on his asbestos exposure whilst working at ICI between 1958 and 1992.
His family have now instructed lawyers to sue ICI and appeal for ex-workmates of Mr Lees to come forward if they too have the illness or know of others who have fallen may have it.
Outside the Warrington hearing Mr Lees’ daughter Nicola Johnson said: ‘In just six months Dad went from helping me with the school run and being mum’s full-time carer to not being here at all.
‘He just deteriorated so fast and was in a huge amount of pain constantly at the end.
‘I remember taking him to get the results of his biopsy. We sat there holding hands, both expecting bad news as we didn’t think we’d be lucky enough to get away with it and devastatingly, we were right.
‘He was really upset and so scared in the car on the journey home. He told me what his wishes were and how we were going to cope with it.
‘We were told he could have chemotherapy to extend his life and for the next two weeks he’d pick himself up and push himself to go out for walks to keep himself fit to be ready to face what was coming next. Then Covid hit and all bets were off.’
The inquest was told Mr Lees worked for several years in a laboratory in the Research and Development Department at ICI’s Winnington Plant.
From 1968 to 1975 he worked as part of a team on the development of Monnex, a chemical firefighting agent, and was required to wear an asbestos fire safety suit to start fierce blazes and then test the agent’s capabilities.
In his statement, Mr Lees said: ‘This building effectively became our home for seven years and that is where I believe I had a long and sustained contact with asbestos.
Mr Lees (pictured right in 1978 getting a 20-year service award) worked at ICI between 1958 and 1992
‘Whilst everything in the building had been removed with the exception of pipework, the dust from the removal process was everywhere.
‘Many of our fires were set indoors so we could accurately monitor the testing and a large extractor fan would be switched on to remove any smoke after the fires ere extinguished.
‘My job was set and extinguish the fires and as the fires were intense we were provided with asbestos suits which had two layers of asbestos inside as insulation and it sat directly on my clothing. I wore this every day whilst doing this work.
‘The asbestos suits were designed to protect us from the intense heart of these ferocious fires but as I pulled the suit on and off each day, I would disturb the lining and potentially disturbing asbestos fibres in it. We would be wearing these suits to move 45 gallon drums of fuel.
‘As this happened twice a day for seven years this would have resulted in me being exposed to a significant amount of asbestos fibre.’
Mr Lees moved to ICI’s Castner Kellner site in Runcorn in 1975 where he was appointed an assistant safety advisor.
He carried out site tours and worked with union representatives to improve working conditions and reduce the risk of accidents and injuries.
During these site tours he was in the vicinity of maintenance processes, pipework and equipment.
In 1989, Mr Lees returned to work at the Winnington and Lostock sites where he continued as a Safety Advisor undertaking site tours and overseeing safety procedures.
Mr Lees added: ‘During my period of my employment at Castner Kelner I am almost certain I would have sustained further exposure to asbestos dust as it was a fairly old site which contained miles and miles of pipework which more than likely had asbestos insulation.
The former ICI employee worked for several years in a laboratory in the Research and Development Department at ICI’s Winnington Plant
‘We spent hours walking through parts of the plant and inspecting equipment and it was not unusual to brush against this insulation which would have caused dust to come onto my clothing.
‘Whilst the safety advisors worked to check out that safe procedures were in place to ensure that work was carried out to specific standards, it was impossible to rule out more incidents of exposure.
‘It was only when knowledge of asbestos increased in this mid 80s than guidance was issued and we sought to provide respiratory equipment when asbestos was being removed.
‘I cannot say these procedures were always followed to the letter by the charge hands and the fitters – it is human nature to look for short cuts to finish the job as quickly as possible without further exposure.
‘I believe that the majority of my exposure to asbestos has come about as a result of my work whilst wearing a fire suit provided to me by ICI but it is possible I was also unwittingly exposed to asbestos by contractors and fitters working in areas where I was passing through. I would not have been aware it was happening at the time.’
Coroner Peter Sigee recorded a verdict of death by industrial disease.
After the hearing Mr Lees lawyers at Manchester-based Birchall Blackburn Law confirmed it was helping his family make an industrial disease compensation claim and appealed for ‘memories and recollections’ from former ICI employees.
Victoria Roberts, an industrial disease specialist solicitor at Birchall Blackburn Law, says: ‘Mesothelioma is a cruel lung cancer that takes decades to develop after exposure to asbestos dust and fibres.
‘It can be difficult to find evidence about where exactly the exposure took place, which is why we need the help of former ICI employees who worked in Northwich and Runcorn.
‘We would be interested to hear from anyone who worked in the research and development department at Winnington and might be able to assist with a description of the fire suits used, as well as anyone who worked at Castner Kellner and can provide information about the maintenance procedure and the use and presence of asbestos on site.’
The Department of Work and Pensions says 53,000 people will eventually die from mesothelioma between 2013 and 2037 in the UK. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), more than 2,500 people a year die from mesothelioma.