Former police officer dies from asbestos related cancer

It has been reported that a former anti-terror Police officer who was on the scene of the Brighton bombing in 1984, has died from asbestos related cancer. This has apparently been caused by inhaling asbestos when he sifted through the wreckage at the bomb site 31 years ago.

Former Metropolitan Police detective Jonathan Woods was exposed to the asbestos after arriving at the Grand Hotel on October 12^th 1984, following the deadly IRA explosion. 5 people died and 39 people were injured at the time of the bomb, wen the IRA attempted to kill Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

It is reported that Mr Woods was one of the first to arrive at the scene and was part of a team of officers who looked through the rubble at the site in order to locate missing people. He retired from the Police force in 2002 and moved to France but was then diagnosed with mesothelioma, which is an incurable lung cancer caused by asbestos dust.

Andrew Stinchcombe of Novum Law comments “this is a tragic example which highlights the deadly dangers from asbestos dust, especially when it is disturbed. Asbestos was a popular material in the 20^th Century, used widely for insulation and fire proofing purposes. It is also a reminder that older buildings may still contain asbestos, and this should not be disturbed except by specialist experts”.

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