 Asbestos 'time bomb' ticking in Japan
In July 2005, corporations in Japan and the Japanese government started releasing a huge amount of information about the connection between asbestos and respiratory problems including the deadly mesothelioma cancer. One after another, companies released stats about the number of asbestos-related to deaths to workers over the years.
For example Kubota Corp., an asbestos manufacturing plant, announced that as many as 79 workers died directly as a result of asbestos inhalation over the last several decades.
This has come largely as a shock to the Japanese public. Although the average American and European have a general idea about the cancer-causing qualities of asbestos, not many people in Japan were aware of the dangers. In fact until relatively recently, asbestos was used in everyday products in Japan such as toasters, deep-fryer baskets, roof tiles, even wall coatings. The government banned two of the most poisonous forms of asbestos – blue and brown – in 1995, and banned white asbestos in 2004 except for certain applications. A full asbestos ban will be in place by 2008. However the damage has been done. These recent reports are scarier still because chronic and terminal diseases like mesothelioma do not appear until 20 to 40 years after exposure; it is a “silent time bomb” and citizens can’t know if they have it until it goes off. That fear will likely turn to anger when the Japanese realize the full impact of asbestos-related diseases. As of July 2005, nearly 400 deaths due to asbestos have been reported by 30 companies in Japan. Not all those deaths were workers; many of the deaths were people who lived near factories that made or used asbestos, or were family members of workers. Some experts say that this is only the tip of the iceberg, and the worst is yet to come. In 2003 there were 878 deaths attributed to mesothelioma in Japan, up from about 500 in 1995. Because of the lack of knowledge about the poisonous nature of asbestos, many deaths may not have even been linked to the carcinogen. With the long incubation time and delayed ban, Japan faces an increase in asbestos-linked deaths for decades to come. The dangers of asbestos are well documented in the U.S., yet many companies have failed to protect their workers or the people living around their plants. If you have been diagnosed with a respiratory disease including mesothelioma due to asbestos poisoning, contact an asbestos lawyer at Jim S. Adler & Associates right now. We will help you seek compensation to cover your medical costs, time lost from work, and the pain and suffering you and your family are feeling. Contact us today for a free case review. DISCLAIMER: Located at 3D/International Tower, 1900 West Loop South, 20th Floor, Houston, Texas 77027, the law firm of Jim S. Adler & Associates is licensed to practice in Texas. Yet the firm also works in conjunction with local and outside counsel to litigate claims, as needed, in other states, including the states of: Alabama | Alaska | Arizona | Arkansas | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Delaware | Florida | Georgia | Hawaii | Idaho | Illinois | Indiana | Iowa | Kansas | Kentucky | Louisiana | Maine | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri | Montana | Nebraska | Nevada | New Hampshire | New Jersey | New Mexico | New York | North Carolina | North Dakota | Ohio | Oklahoma | Oregon | Pennsylvania | Rhode Island | South Carolina | South Dakota | Tennessee | Utah | Vermont | Virginia | Washington | West Virginia | Wisconsin | Wyoming Jim S. Adler & Associates also has offices at City Place Building, 2711 North Haskell Ave., Suite 2100 LB40, Dallas, Texas 75204-2887; Bank of America, 12605 East Freeway, Suite 400, Houston, Texas 77015-5619 (serving Channelview, Texas); and San Pedro Plaza, 7330 San Pedro Ave., Suite 700, San Antonio, Texas 78216-6237. |