The widow of a Stafford man has achieved a legal victory over Stafford Council after her husband died from asbestos related disease.
Mrs Bromley's husband John, 62, died in January 2010 of Mesothelioma, 16 months after he was diagnosed with the disease. He had been employed by Stafford Corporation (now Stafford Borough Council) for 37 years as a building inspector and surveyor.
John was exposed to asbestos in the course of his work for Stafford Corporation in the 1970's. His role was to ensure that asbestos being sprayed onto beams on building sites was the right thickness to provide fire protection. The raw asbestos fibres and fluid mix was always being made up and/or applied near to where John was working.
He began suffering from shortness of breath in October 2009, he later developed a count and suffered continuous pains in his stomach and vomiting. He underwent numerous tests and scans and had months of chemotherapy but passed away in January 2010. An inquest into his death recorded a verdict of industrial disease.
Specialist industrial illness lawyer, Iain Shoolbred, of Irwin Mitchell has helped Mrs Bromley to secure justice for her husband's death and the six figure sum she has received will ensure financial security for her and her family. Mr Shoolbred commented:
“Mr Bromley’s employers were in breach of a number of duties of care to him – even as long ago as the 1950s, there was an awareness of the dangers of asbestos and Stafford Corporation should have done more to protect their employees.
“Although I am pleased that we managed to obtain a settlement for Mr Bromley’s family it is important to remember that no amount of money will bring back John. The compensation will ensure Angela’s future financial security, but she has lost her husband and lifelong companion as a result of him doing no more than going to work and earning a living. After more than 30 years working for the council, he was looking forward to a well earned retirement and spending more time with his family, but as a result of this terrible illness, his life was cruelly cut short.”
Mrs Bromley commented:
After 26 years of marriage, to lose John has been very hard to come to terms with. He suffered a great deal of pain in the last few months of his life and it was so upsetting to see his health deteriorate, knowing there was nothing I could do to help him.
“Before John’s death, we had in the process of refurbishing our dream home that we had intended to live in for the rest of our lives. It devastates me that John will never see our home complete.”