Lawyers Representing Victims Of Fatal Outbreak Embark On Court Action To Obtain Information

Legal experts acting for victims of the fatal Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Edinburgh two years ago are being forced to go to court to secure information and documents which they believe will assist them in identifying the likely source of the outbreak.

Despite Irwin Mitchell Scotland having demanded once again that the authorities release
vital information regarding the problems and give information about what actually caused the spread of illness, they now have to raise court action themselves to recover information and documents which they hope will allow light to be shed on the likely cause.

Four people died in the outbreak in the city which began in May 2012, with NHS Lothian stating the problems led to 92 confirmed or suspected cases in total. Victims have suffered from respiratory problems and pains in the joints in their arms and legs and some sufferers became so weak they struggled to walk up the stairs in their own home,

Now, two years after the problems first emerged, lawyers at Irwin Mitchell Scotland fighting to secure justice for victims and the families of those killed in the outbreak say the continued silence from the Scottish Government and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) regarding the outcome of investigations is ‘totally unacceptable’.

The specialist lawyers, whose Birmingham-based colleagues at Irwin Mitchell helped victims of a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Stoke-on-Trent in the same year to gain justice regarding that incident, have continued to urge the authorities in Scotland to make the findings from their investigations public.

Following the outbreak in Edinburgh in May 2012 and the subsequent outbreak in Stoke-on-Trent in July of the same year, Irwin Mitchell called for a public inquiry into the problems and the regulations in relation to number of inspections and the management of legionella bacteria.

Our personal injury solicitors in Scotland specialise in a number of serious injury and illness claims, if you or a loved one have been affected call us on 0808 250 7641 for a free initial consultation.