A MAN exposed to asbestos when working at Portland dockyard died of an industrial disease, an inquest ruled.
Former carpenter and joiner John William Harrison died on January 15 at the Queen Charlotte care home in Chickerell, aged 79.
An inquest into his death at County Hall in Dorchester was told that Mr Harrison, from Plaisters Lane in Sutton Poyntz, died from bronchial pneumonia and pulmonary fibrosis due to an asbestos-related lung disease.
Former colleague Donald Ross told the inquest how he worked with Mr Harrison in the 1950s and they were regularly exposed to asbestos without wearing protective equipment.
West Dorset Coroner Michael Johnston asked Mr Ross: “All of you who worked in the dockyards were exposed to asbestos is that right?”
He replied: “All joiners and chippies.”
Mr Johnston said: “The evidence ties in with what anyone would have expected to hear at that time.
“Unfortunately Weymouth and Portland was a hotspot for asbestos-related problems. The proper verdict to record is that Mr John William Harrison died of an industrial disease, the technical term for saying he was exposed to asbestos while at work.”
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