Asbestos Exposure at Inman Joist & Company Limited

A sufferer of asbestos related cancer is calling for former colleagues from Bradford firm, Inman Joist & Company Limited, to come forward and help with an investigation into reports of asbestos exposure with the firm.

Industrial illness experts at law firm Irwin Mitchell are investigating reports of asbestos exposure with the Bradford based firm of electrical contractors on behalf of Derek Jackson, 66, who was born and grew up in Bradford, but now lives in Doncaster.

Mr Jackson was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a fatal asbestos related lung cancer in December last year. He worked at Inman Joist & Company Limited on Millergate, Bradford between 1959 and 1964 as an apprentice electrician.  During this period it is believed he was exposed to harmful asbestos dust and fibres.

Mr Jackson remembers working in many industrial and commercial premises in the Bradford area, including mills, churches and public buildings.  He had to crawl through service ducts in order to run the electrical cables and often crawled alongside asbestos lagged pipes through dust and debris with no respiratory protection. Mr Jackson also remembers working on the Shipley Baths for about three months where he regularly spent time in the boiler room and recalls the boiler and pipes being lagged with asbestos.

Mr Jackson is now urging former employees to come forward with any information about the working conditions. He said: "I urge anybody to come forward who could provide any recollections of the work that they did at Inman Joist & Company Limited. I recall the names of some people who might be able to help out."

Former colleagues include Fred Cowling, Peter Hunter, John Reynolds and his brother Mick Reynolds, Peter Yeadon, Ian Tomlinson and Royston Waterhouse.

He added: "I now have this fatal condition which greatly affects my quality of life. There is little curative treatment available for mesothelioma and I may now miss out on seeing my children and grandchildren grow up."

Simone Hardy, an industrial illness specialist from law firm Irwin Mitchell, said: "Mr Jackson suffers from mesothelioma, an aggressive form of lung cancer. It can take 20 to 40 years to develop after exposure to asbestos and it is believed that he came into contact with the deadly dust through no fault of his own whilst working at Inman Joist & Company Limited.

"We would like to talk to anyone who worked for the firm in the 1960's, whether they knew Mr Jackson or not, about their recollections of the working conditions.

"Over two thousand people are diagnosed with mesothelioma every year; Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that is almost always caused by asbestos exposure. It does not respond well to treatment, and treatment options are limited. Employers have a duty to take precautions with asbestos. There is no safe type of asbestos, and no safe level of asbestos exposure."

Anyone who is able to help should call Simone Hardy at Irwin Mitchell on 0870 150 1000 or email simone.hardy@irwinmitchell.com.