How building jobs in 1970s and 80s led to man’s early death
GRAHAM, 65, WAS EXPOSED
A LEICESTER-BORN builder died of an industrial disease after being exposed to asbestos dust while working on building sites in Cornwall more than 45 years ago, an inquest has revealed.
Graham Eagles, 65, who lived in St Austell, Cornwall, died in March and the coroner for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly believes it was the builder’s exposure to asbestos that led to his death.
Mr Eagles is thought to have become exposed to asbestos dust after leaving his home city, during his time as a builder in Redruth and Truro the 1970s and 1980s.
The inquest heard that Mr Eagles died after failing to respond to treatment for mesothelioma, an aggressive type of cancer that develops in the lining of organs such as the lungs. It is thought this developed directly as a result of working on building sites.
Mr Eagles moved to Cornwall from Leicester after starting an apprenticeship as a mason with a building firm in the mid-1970s. After completing his three-year apprenticeship, Mr Eagles stayed with the firm for another seven years.
But during his decade-long stint with the company, he became repeatedly exposed to asbestos dust while he was building homes on housing estates in West Cornwall.
He would be exposed as he closed off the cavity between walls with asbestos boards which were often brittle and cracked. They would also emit a lot of dust when cut.
In the 1980s, Mr Eagles became selfemployed, assisting other tradesmen such as carpenters. This work would involve him cutting asbestos soffits while working on scaffolding, with the dust scattering everywhere.
It was years later when this work would make an impact on Mr Eagles’ health. Complaining of tiredness and breathing problems just before Christmas 2020, he visited his GP who initially believed it was a deterioration of Mr Eagles’ already existing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
But private CT scans revealed issues with the builder’s prostate and lungs. A biopsy later showed the presence of mesothelioma.
Mr Eagles’ health continued to worsen throughout the following year, with immunotherapy and latterly chemotherapy failing to work in treating his mesothelioma. He died of the disease in March this year.
Stephen Covell, the coroner Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said he had no hesitation in finding the exposure to asbestos dust led to Mr Eagles developing mesothelioma - which is also known as the industrial disease.
He added: “Asbestos dust is more or less the only cause of mesothelioma. I have no hesitation therefore to find that it was exposure to asbestos during his employment as a builder in the 70s and 80s which is the probable cause of Graham’s mesothelioma.”