Document Dd0Mw3jJjGbkbMJp75YvNbe3N

STANDARD ACCID323T INSDlbiNCS COMPANY Detroit, Mich. October 13, 1931 Dr. L. H. ".1 nans Ashland, Kentucky Dear Sir: Re: vs Ashland Ref. Go For your information I am attaching hereto a copy of i 3tatea-.;n't made to me. I have the signed original in ray file. I likewise attach a memorandum containing a few questions and some observations. Dr. Salmon, Dr. hoods, Dr. Cooper and yourself have already examined this man and you report nothing wrong with him, physically, nevertheless, he complains bitterly of various disabling ailments ana upon the trial of the case I have no doubt at all but tnnt he will produce medical evidence to show that he is totally cisabled . from something or other and Uiat whatever disables him is due to inhalation of ethyl vapor. I am furnishing a copy of his sf.tenant, too r.onomnd-.n ana this letter to the Ashland Refining Company to m referred to hr. Irvin for a checkup upon all the matters mentioned in Conley's statement. ..hen these things have been gone over 1 intend to go up to the plant and take written statements from all concerned wnich -will form the basis of testi mony upon hearing the case. I am asking your co-operation in following out the medical features of the case. In some way we should secure the co-operation and assistance of the Kthyl Gas Corporation. I am informed that Dr. Root. A. Kehoe, Physiology Department of^the University of Cincinnati has done considerable investigation of/fitEyi lead poisoning and nas possibly published some articles. I would like very much to secure those, also the records of the examinations made of by the Kthyl Gas Corporation would be very valuable. Very truly your s, (Signed) H. Van A-ntwerp, Jr COPY My name is my present address is Kenton, Ky. R.F.D. yl, al?oii.^2^!n!e^back of-.Covington. Independence, Ky, is located two miles away from where I live, I am staying with my father who rents a farm there and I lisve been there about one month, I am 25 years old, married and have a wife and tyro children and we all have been at my father' s' for the time mentioned. Previous: to going to the farm, we lived at Paddle Creek, Catlettsburg, Ky. for about eight months ana before,that time we-lived in a house belonging to Mart Runyon near the Ashland Refining Company plant. I began to work for the Ashland Refining Company on or about September 17th, 1928. My work was blending gasoline and treating it with Ethyl lead. I worked at the same job practically all the time that I was -with the Ashland Refining Company. H. l . Lite was my foreman and I received .45^ an hour and -worked enough hours to aver age $140.00 a month. My work was all at night. I wormed there until the latter part of August, 1951 when I was discharged by Fred Irwin, Supt. He did not give me any reason why he discharged me -with the exception of what he told me yesterday morning, September 27th, that the reason he discharged me wap on account of my health and that he had realized my health was failing me for the last year. I first noticed something was wrong with my health about a-. year ago, at which time I thought something was wrong with ray lungs. My breath came hard and l consulted Dr. J. T. Cottrell at Catlettsburg, Ky. iia said 1 had very weak lungs and told ii. L. Litz to not work me any more on night turn, that my lungs were not strong enough to stand night work. I was off about two weeks and went back to work and worked about two weeks, off another spell, about throe weeks, went back to work and got about half time last winter and in place of Mr. H. L. Litz placing me on day turn, he kept me on night turn. The first year I was there 1 do not think I lost over three days out of twelve months. The vsecond year 1 never lost any time at all, but in the last year about half time. Firing the spells that I mentioned above, I was treated by Dr. Cottrell as my lungs were giving me trouble during that time. Since I was discharged in August I have done nothing. The report I have from the doctors is on the left lung is a 3 inch space that is dead, the lower part of my right lung is going dead. They claim the only thing that they can find would be from inhaling vapors off of gasoline containing Ethyl, lead. My kidneys are giving me trouble which would be caused from Ethyl lead. Dr. Cottrell examined me about Sept. 16th and made an X-ray which he has at his office, tie also has a picture which was made in'uuntington. The X-ray showed that both lungs were infected very much. The picture showed that the left lung was dead and the right lung was dying, that is the lower part of the right lung and a space of three inches in the left lung. I sent my spit to Louisville and had it analyzed, it came KE 0017012 N20938.01 bask with no T. 3. In my right lung at times l cannot get ray breath end my left lung has not. bothered me anything at all. it night I have to Bleep with about throe pillows under my head and there is a pain just like a knife cutting in my right lung. I cough just an ordinary o mgh. ' I can eat a let for dinner but at breakfset and supper I can hardly eat a thing. uur treating plant is a building about 10X12 just with a cover over it, no wells or ceiling. The washhouse building is right beside the treating plant, the sewer leading from the washhouse is connected with trie sewer leading from the treating plant. It would be very easy for the vapors off of Ethyl lead to drift into the washhouse. I reported to the company Ethyl lead vapors were in the washhouse. hr. Hugh Jerks laughed at me. 1 took ilr. Clay tJallihan, ?'r. ::;-nry rluebnun and hr. hi Ringfield to.the washhouse. 1 told them to no in and'see if they could smell any peculiar odors. They walked'in and walked back out and said that they would not take a bath in th wo at all. The washhoxise is brick with a concrete top and has two uinuous in it. It is about 6X3 square and has six lockers in it where we keep out Ethyl treating clothes. The washhouse is used only for Ethyl treaters at the time they are treating Ethyl gasoline, dr. Biusbaun and them stated there wan a peculiar odor and they eoaln not distinguish v/iiat it v;as. About a 'week later two inspection men from the Ethyl corpor ation. visited the plant,' they also condemned the 'washhouse of Ethyl vapors being it-and we went ahead and used the washhouse just tne same as if there wasn't anything the matter. The reason we have six lockers, we have to keep clean clothespin a separate locker, our dirty clothes in one and our own individual clothing in another. At the time I was there for the first six months I -was on that job me and Walter Brakefield, me and him were buddies on night turn for about six. months. IIo Ethyl is treated in the day, practically all of it treated at night. After that period of tine in practically the last year i was the only one that treated Ethyl gasoline except when we could not get it treated at night and Ilr. dugh ``enks would, treat it on day turn.. We pump gasoline and Ethyl lead into the tank at the same time, pumping about 1,000 barrels an hour of gasoline and 25 cu. cc of lead every three-forths of an hour. We have to gage that tank to keep from getting too much gasoline in it. A treat just required 997 barrels of gasoline, over that amount of gasoline wculd make the treat come out wrong. In gaging this' tank-we have to raise the gage hatch about 14 in. in diameter. When we raise the gage hatch the pressure of vapors would be so strong it would blow' a hat off your head. V;e would be sure to in hale some vapors. In the treating plant we used canister masks at the time we were handling Ethyl lead. As soon as we got the lead out of the drum we would not use the canister any longer, be would not use it in gaging tanks. I.iy theory is that in haling the Ethyl vapors which es caped into the washhouse in which there was no ventilation and in which we had io take a bath day after day, also in-haling the vapors from day to day and tins to time produced tiie trouble which. I now have with, my lungs and aloo night work.. luring the time that I was working at the treating plant, I newer spilled any ethyl liquid. My idea is that just breathing air in which there was "thyl vapor day after day while at my work is what caused ray trouble. HE 001701.4 ;3