A RETIRED electrician died as a result of being repeatedly placed at the centre of an asbestos "snowstorm" during his working life.
Grandfather-of-two Ian Stanford lost his fight against pneumonia at the age of 76.
An inquest heard he worked at Willington Power Station between 1959 and 1993 and looked after all electrical aspects of the plant, including shutting down boilers and turbines for maintenance.
The once-yearly task involved him removing lagging and asbestos material surrounding the equipment.
A report by pathologist Dr Andrew Hitchcock said the nature of the work led to Mr Stanford's death on February 11, at Royal Derby Hospital.
In a statement, Mr Stanford had said the task left him in an asbestos "snowstorm" that turned the room into a "fog".
He wrote: "During this period there would be a huge amount of asbestos dust floating around.
"The asbestos blocks were then refitted. There would always be lots of asbestos lagging laying around and dispersing around the area."
Derby Coroner's Court heard Mr Stanford, of Coniston Court, Darklands Road, Swadlincote, died from bronchial pneumonia.
Royal Derby Hospital pathologist Dr Hitchcock said the condition was brought on by two diseases – small-cell lung cancer and pulmonary asbestosis. The latter is caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibres.
Asked which disease played the biggest part in bringing about Mr Stanford's death, Dr Hitchcock said: "On balance, the pulmonary asbestosis", adding that it was likely the asbestos-related lung disease had also caused the cancer.
Deputy assistant coroner Paul McCandless ruled Mr Stanford died from an industrial disease, saying his death was pathologically linked to asbestos exposure.
Mr Stanford's widow, Brenda Stanford, was joined at the inquest by their son, Martyn Stanford, and Mr Stanford's former colleague, Tony Brown.
Mrs Stanford described her late husband as a "quiet" man who was devoted to their two sons, Martyn and Adrian, and two grandchildren.
Martyn said his father "would do anything for you" and was "well respected".
Mrs Stanford said the family was seeking compensation following the ruling.
source: thisisderbyshire.co.uk
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