Document NEg6X0YQ6xwa21Le9y196V9VV
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1 MR. SHELLENBERGER: Thank you, Your Honor. 1 build Hamilton Junior High School.
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2 Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, Mr.
2 You will hear countless buildings that Mr.
3 Ignatowski has just explained to you what happened to 3 Vandergucht was in and countless numbers of places
4 these men. That is the "what" of this case.
4 that he helped build.
5 He also explained to you the "how." The
5 Now, you may ask yourself, how does a
6 "how" is how the asbestos caused the disease. He
6 plasterer, a man who is working in buildings, get
7 explained that to you also.
7 exposed to asbestos?
8 My job is to talk to you a little bit about
8 Ladies and gentlemen, this is how. This is
9 who the men are, how, another how, how they got
9 nonasbestos-containing pipecovering, but I brought it
10 exposed, what defendants are responsible, and most 10 in here to demonstrate to you the kind of products
11 importantly, which I am sure you are all wondering
11 that Mr. Vandergucht was exposed to. This is what
12 right now, why they are responsible, why they are
12 they call a half-round, a half-round.
13 responsible.
13 What happened, ladies and gentlemen, is that
14 As you all heard, Mr. Vandergucht was a
14 they would take these particular pieces of
15 plasterer, and you saw a picture of him. He was a
15 pipecovering, half-rounds and they would put them on
16 plasterer, and he started working in this area in
16 pipes.
17 1949.
17 Just to give you an example, here is a
18
That is a picture of Mr. Vandergucht, and he
18 photograph of a boiler room, a typical boiler room at
19 worked into the 1970s as a plasterer.
19 a local building, and you have all of these pipes and
20 Now, when he came over from Belgium after he 20 what they want to do is they want to insulate those
21 finished the Merchant Marines, he had a trade and we 21 pipes.
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1 all know what a trade is and back in the '50s and
1
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You see a man back here with his tools
2 '60s, all of the different men would join different
2 hanging and you have all of these pipes, steam lines,
3 unions and they would develop a trade and Mr.
3 hot water lines, pipes that run from boilers and what
4 Vandergucht's trade was that of a plasterer.
4 you have to do is you have to insulate those pipes and
5 Plasterer was very important back then
5 the people who did that were asbestos workers. That
6 because, as we all know, they didn't really have
6 was the name of the union. They were called the
7 drywall. Therefore, all of the walls going up were
7 Asbestos Workers Union.
8 mostly made of plaster.
8 What they would do is they would take that
9
You will hear evidence that Mr. Vandergucht
9 half-round and they would place it around the pipes
10 was a very good plasterer. He was very good at his
10 and they would move up and down the line and, of
11 trade.
11 course, you would get to the end of a pipe here, not
12
In fact, he was so good that he worked for
12 everything is straight, and what would you have to
13 the same company here in Baltimore for 25 years, John 13 do?
14 Hampshire Company.
14 You would have to cut it. You would have to
15 During those 25 years, ladies and gentlemen. 15 cut it and saw it and you would cut that pipecovering.
16 during the '50s and '60s and '70s, there, of course,
16 you would come around that elbow and put something on
17 was a pretty good amount of building going on and Mr. 17 called mud and then they would move on down along the
18 Vandergucht, you will hear, was in just about every
18 pipe some more.
19 building in this city and the surrounding area.
19 That is basically what the asbestos workers
20
He helped build Northern High School. He
20 did. They used pipecovering.
21 helped build GBMC. He helped build Sinai. He helped 21
They also used another product called
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