Document QkGG50Kbkg9VYjn8Qjn8EDpm6
SUMMARY DEPOSITION TESTIMONY DAVID A. THURLEY
DAVID THURLEY V. ASBESTOS CORPORATION, LTD., et al State ofNew York Supreme Court Videotape Deposition September 17, 1997
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5 0 .. .could you please state your full name?
A David A. Thurley.
Q And how old are you?
A 59.
Q Is you home located in Clifton Springs, New York?
A Yes.
6 Q What is your wife's name?
A Beverly.
Q How long have you and Mrs. Thurley been married?
A 32 years.
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Before February 1997, were you employed? Yes...Garlock's...Palmyra, New York...Yard maintenance.
7 Q Before February 1997, could you please describe your general physical
condition?
A Good.
Q .. .what change did you notice?
A Shortness ofbreath.
8 Q Did you tell anyone about this shortness ofbreath when you first noticed it?
A Yes.. .My family doctor.. .Mark Ryan.
0 What type oftest did he order?
A Chest x-ray and...
Q ...a CT scan...?
A Yes.
9 Q Did Dr. Ryan refer you to any other doctors? .. .where does Dr. Tyner practice...
Clifton Springs?
A Yes.
Q What kind of physician is Dr. Tyner?
A Lungs. Lungs.
Q .. .Dr. Tyner.. .what doctor did he refer you to.. .What kind of physician is Dr.
Johnstone?
A He's also a lung specialist.
10 Q Did Dr. Johnstone perform any tests on you?
A Lung biopsy...
Q Did there come a time you were informed of the results of this biopsy taken at
Strong Memorial?
A Yes.. .Nothing they could do about it.
11 0 Did they inform you what caused this problem?
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They said it was asbestos-related. .. .where was this biopsy taken from? My lung area. .. .any fluid drained from your lung.. .what was the color...? Off-yellow. .. .how much fluid was drained...? Three liters.
.. .did you have discussions with your doctors about further surgery? Yes.. .Nothing they could do. .. .who have you seen since the biopsy...? Tyner.. .Once a week. So does Dr. Tyner make house calls...? Yes. Who else do you see, Mr. Thurley? Heath care aides.. .Once a week. During most of the day.. .do you spend time on this bed? Most of the day. .. .why are you taking this oxygen? Help me breathe better. Before February 1997.. .how much did you weigh? 290. .. .how much do you weigh now...? About 240... .. .how do your feet feel if you walked 60 feet? Stuffed up a little bit. .. .are you able to walk by yourself from this bed, we'll say, 50 feet...? I can do it by myself, but.. .1 can't get that far. .. .have you needed any assistance being moved around in your own house? Yes.. .couple guys from fire department helped me up off the bathroom floor... About two weeks ago, three weeks.. .Fell down in there. Who called the emergency squad for you...? My wife did.
.. .employed at Garlock.. .How much were you earning per hour at this job...? $10 an hour. And how long had you planned on working for them Mr. Thurley? To what age? 62. Does your wife work.. .currently drive...? No. .. .what high school you attended? Geneva High School... 12th grade. What year did you begin working at Garlock's plant...? 1968. .. .show a document.. .marked Defendant 2.. .tell me what this document is...? It's a map of the Garlock factory.. .in Palmyra. .. .are they the buildings that were in operation back in 1968?
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Yes.
Would you please tell me what's been marked Defendant's 3...?
That's a.. .my jobs.. .At Garlock's.. .Dates I started on different jobs. What was your first job at Garlock's in 1968?
Fibre prep machine operator.. .Took hundred pounds bags of asbestos off a skid,
turn around, put them in a dumpster, open them up, dump the bags out.
What was the color of the asbestos that was in this hundred pound bags, back in
1968?
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Off-white.
.. .the bags themselves have any particular markings on them in 1968?
Lake Asbestos, Jolins-Manville. Couple more, I can't remember.. .1 cut the bags open.. .so they could go through the machine.
What did you cut the bag with?
A knife.
.. .average day.. .how many of these hundred pound bags would you.. .have to dump...?
About a hundred.
What was the air like when you were dumping these bags...? Like snowflakes, snowfall.
Did you breathe in this dust?
Yes.
.. .did you ever wear a mask?
Yes.. .once a week or more. Once a day.
.. .did your employer Garlock ever advise you to wear a mask?
No.
.. .what kind of mask...?
Paper one.
.. .ever see any warnings about asbestos on the bags...?
No.
.. .when you worked as a fibre machine operator.. .what building you worked in
in 1968?
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Building 7.
What was the atmosphere like...?
Dusty.
.. .did Building Number 7 have any pipes?
Yes.. .Steam, water, oil.
What were they connected to?
Machines.
Were these pipes.. .covered with anything?
Pipe gasket.. .half round things, fit on around pipes.
How long was this material?
About three feet.
.. .how much of the steam lines did it cover?
Hundred percent.
Did you see anyone cover the pipes...?
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Outside contractors...we were 15 feet. .. .what was your next job? Sander-washer operator.. .Building 12. How long did you work as a sander-washer operator? To '72.. .Put metal parts in a washer and wash them, run them through, clean them up. Do you know what buildings.. .that these materials.. .were made? Building 11. .. .how close is Building Number 12 and Building Number 7...? Less than a hundred.. .feet. .. .how often would you walk into Building Number 7 as a sander-washer operator? Once.
.. .did you ever have to sweep Building Number 12? Yes.. .Dusty, I know that. Did you breathe in that dust? Yes. .. .what your next job was? Metal parts finisher.
.. .same Building Number 12...how many years did you work as a metal parts finisher? For three years.. .Put metal parts in a machine that.. .tumbles the scars off of them.
.. .did you ever see any bags containing asbestos in Building Number 12...? Yes.. .They were being transferred from 26 to 7. Was Building Number 26.. .known as anything? Warehouse. ...for what? Asbestos
How often would these bags of asbestos have to be carried from Building Number 26 to Building Number 7...? At least once a day. .. .how many bags would.. .be carried...? Maybe 150 a day. .. .do you remember if the asbestos that were in these bags would stay intact as they were being carried...? Some of them had leaks in them and some didn't. And what coworkers would you see in Building Number 12 in 1974? Sam West.. .he had some job, but I can't remember... .. .how often do you remember seeing Mr. West...? At least once a day. Does Garlock have a cafeteria? Yes.. .Building Number 8. How often would you see Mr. West in Building Number 7...? Once a day, I guess.
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.. .what was taking place in Building Number 7?
Just making asbestos seals.
What was the atmosphere like in Building Number 7...? Dusty, dirty.
.. .did you breathe in that dust?
Yes.
After metal parts finisher...what was that job?
Stock clerk.. .About a year.
.. .while you worked as a stock clerk in Building Number 16.. .did you walk through any buildings?
Went through 12, 7, 3, 8.
.. .what was taking place in Building Number 7?
They was using raw asbestos.. .Make products that they sold.
...did you ever work as a tubing machine operator? Yes.
.. .what building you worked in as a tubing machine operator?
Building 25.
.. .what Building 15 was utilized for?
They manufactured.. .asbestos fibers for the factory for the departments.
What materials did you see in Building Number 15...? Asbestos. Some kind of clay. Oil.. .Dusty.
.. .after you were a tubing machine operator.. .tell me what your next job was...?
Went back to janitor.. .Building 24.
.. .another job after you worked as a janitor?
That was maintenance.
.. .what year did you begin working in yard maintenance...?
'76....to...'96.
.. .yard maintenance, were you stationed in any particular building...?
No.
... 1975-1980.. .What buildings, if any, at Garlock did you work in during that time period?
15 around.. .most ofthe buildings around that place. In and out.
.. .did your job require you to do as yard maintenance in Building Number 15
from 1975 to 1980?
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Take out the wash, trash bags.. .Take out the garbage.
.. .do you know if Garlock had any boilers at the plant?
Yes.
.. .Building Number 1.. .How many boilers were located in the boiler house?
Three.
.. .ever work in the boiler house?
Yes.
.. .could you tell us what you did in the boiler house that's located in Building
Number 1?
.. .took the ashes out from the silo.. .dump them on the road. Dump them on the dump truck.. .Once a day.
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Did you see any warning labels on any of the asbestos bags...? No. .. .ever see any warnings on bags of asbestos at Garlock...? Yes...Late `80s. .. .in the late `80s, did you change your work behavior in any way? Probably, yes.. .Tried to avoid that area. .. .when did you first learn that asbestos may be harmful to your health? Late `80s.. .Word ofmouth. .. .if you knew that asbestos was dangerous to your health back in the 1960's... would you have worked with this material? No. What does DT stand for? David Thurley. .. .why did you put your initials in various buildings...? Because it's the buildings I've been in. .. .has your physical and mental condition affected you at all mentally? Yes....Don't feel good. .. .tell us.. .how it feels to be confined to this room? Don't feel good. Before February 1997, how was your marriage? Good. .. .does anyone else take care of you? Yes.. .My wife.. .Supports me and helps me get ready.. .does all the cooking, cleaning. .. .is that the area where the incision for the biopsy was made? Yes.
EXAMINATION BY MR. LECLAIR .. .you began working in the yard maintenance department in March of 1976; is that correct? Yes. .. .you did not work on a daily basis removing ash from Building 1...? Yes.
EXAMINATION BY MR. LAKRITZ .. .you handled bags of raw asbestos supplied by a variety ofcompanies... working as a fibre preparation machine operator? Yes. .. .decision to use a particular company's raw asbestos was dictated by some type of formula or instructions provided by Garlock? Yes. Isn't it also true that you dumped bags of blue raw asbestos into hoppers...? Yes. Isn't it true that a ventilation or a dust collection system was in place.. .in Building Number 7? Yes. .. .ventilation or dust collection system was operational at all times in Building
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Number 3...? Yes. .. .breathing masks were made available.. .at Garlock? Yes. If there was a health problem...did you assume or believe that Garlock would have told you about it? Yes. Did you believe that Garlock was providing you with a safe place to work while you were an employee? Yes.
EXAMINATION BY MS. O'CONNOR .. .you recalled only seeing bags ofJohns-Manville and Lake Asbestos asbestos, while you were working as a fibre preparation machine operator. Yes. .. .any specific recollection of seeing bags that had the word National Gypsum on them...? I can't remember seeing that special name... .. .specific recollection.. .of seeing the name National Mines on any bags...? No.
RE-EXAMINATION BY MR. COMERFORD .. .percentage ofthe blue fiber that you remember seeing and using at Garlock. Do you remember what that percentage was? Five percent.