By John Cooper, FELA Attorney in Virginia

My colleague Rick Shapiro has written a valuable article about the increased lung cancer risk faced by railroad workers who breath in toxic fumes on a daily basis while on the job. Study results published in 2010 show that long-term exposure to diesel fume exhausts from locomotives increased the likelihood of developing lung cancer by 317 percent. To learn more, check out “Info on Lung Cancer in Railroad Workers.”

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About the Editors: The Virginia (Va) and Carolina based railroad/FELA injury attorneys at Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton have a long history of representing railroad workers in FELA and other railroad injury cases. Railroad/FELA personal injury lawyers at our firm have served as chairmen of the Railroad section of the American Association for Justice, the largest national victim’s injury attorney organization. One of our railroad injury/crossing attorneys wrote a major attorney’s encyclopedia section on railroad safety litigation, found in law libraries nationwide. Check out our railroad injury case results to see for yourself. Be sure to get your free reports about railroad injury, disease and wrongful death FELA cases: The Do’s and Don’ts When Injured at a Railroad — Yours FELA Rights and What Railroad Claim Agents Won’t Tell You (But You Must Know). Also, our railroad injury lawyers proudly moderate the Yardlimits Railroad Community Forum and donate to the Fallen Brother Fund.

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By Randy Appleton, FELA Attorney

Internal documents show that the nation’s railroads were aware of the health risks and side effects associated with asbestos dating all the way to the 1950s. Did they do anything to remove asbestos and keep the workplace safe for their railroad workers? No. Despite being aware of the risks of using of asbestos on pipes, engines, and other items for decades, most railroad companies did not start removing asbestos from diesel freight locomotive engines until the 1990s.

In the meantime, rail workers like brakemen, switchmen, conductors, engineers, and car repairmen developed asbestos-related diseases and cancers like mesothelioma.

Why did the nation’s railroads not remove asbestos insulation from their diesel locomotive engines? Simple answer: Because removing the asbestos would have cost a lot of money and the railroads opted to maximize profits instead of keeping their workers safe.

To learn more about railroad mesothelioma cancer, check out this article written by my colleague Rick Shapiro.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is an injury law firm with a long history of representing railroad workers in FELA and other railroad injury cases. Check out our railroad injury case results to see for yourself. Our offices are in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA), and Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Our lawyers hold licenses in VA, NC, SC, WV, KY and DC and have handled hundreds of railroad injury and FELA cases throughout the eastern United States. We would like to send you one of our FREE reports about railroad injury and FELA cases, including Dos and Don’ts When Injured at a Railroad — Yours FELA Rights and What Railroad Claim Agents Won’t Tell You (But You Must Know). We provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at (800) 752-0042 before giving any statement or talking to a railroad claims agent. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube. Furthermore, our lawyers proudly moderate the Yardlimits Railroad Community Forum and donate to the Fallen Brother Fund.

By John Cooper, FELA Lawyer

My colleague Rick Shapiro has a new post on our main website about how railroads such as Norfolk Southern, Conrail, and CSX still won’t own up to the problem of asbestos-induced mesothelioma and other industrial diseases among railroad workers. The stonewalling continues even though the correlation between occupational exposure to asbestos and cancer is supported by a growing body of evidence.

Take a look at this article for more information:

Railroad Worker Asbestos/Mesothelioma: Virginia/Carolina Injury Attorney Explains How Conrail, CSX, Norfolk Southern Ignored Asbestos Health Hazards

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is an injury law firm with a long history of representing hundreds of railroad workers in FELA/ railroad injury cases. Check out our railroad injury case results to see for yourself. Our offices are in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) and Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Our lawyers hold licenses in VA, NC, SC, WV, KY, FL and DC and have handled railroad injury and FELA cases throughout the eastern U.S.  We would like to send you one of our FREE reports about railroad injury and FELA cases, including Do’s and Don’ts When Injured at a Railroad – The Railroad Worker’s FELA Rights and What Railroad Claim Agents Won’t Tell You (But You Must Know). We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042 before giving any statement or talking to a railroad claims agent. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly moderate the Yardlimits Railroad Community Forum and donate to the Fallen Brother Fund.

By Randy E. Appleton, Attorney

When a railroad injury/accident involves release of toxic or hazardous fumes/smoke, a permanent lung/breathing disease or chemical inhalation injury may result. The cause may be a crash, derailment or even a defect or malfunction on an engine, affecting the engineer or conductor, or even a by-stander.  The Locomotive Inspection Act requires that railroads keep engines in good working order and most defects are violations of the federal regulations.  My colleague Richard N. Shapiro wrote an interesting article fully discussing engine explosions and the release of toxic fumes and smoke, as well as the locomotive inspection act requirements that apply to railroad activities.

By Rick Shapiro, Railroad Accident/FELA Lawyer

Our firm recently wrote an article about the terrible diseases associated with prolonged exposure to asbestos. One of the worst diseases is mesothelioma cancer. Sadly, railroad workers who have spent their entire careers with Norfolk Southern (NS), CSX, Conrail, etc. are now struggling with mesothelioma and other terrible diseases. Many of these rail employees were never warned about the risks associated with asbestos and the railroads knew about the dangers of asbestos exposure for decades, but opted for profits over the safety of their workers.

If you’d like to learn more about asbestos-induced cancers and mesothelioma, please check out the article here.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is an injury law firm with a long history of representing hundreds of railroad workers in FELA/ railroad injury cases. Check out our railroad injury case results to see for yourself. Our offices are in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) and Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Our lawyers hold licenses in VA, NC, SC, WV, KY and DC and have handled railroad injury and FELA cases throughout the eastern U.S.  We would like to send you one of our FREE reports about railroad injury and FELA cases, including Do’s and Don’ts When Injured at a Railroad – The Railroad Worker’s FELA Rights and What Railroad Claim Agents Won’t Tell You (But You Must Know). We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042 before giving any statement or talking to a railroad claims agent. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly moderate the Yardlimits Railroad Community Forum and donate to the Fallen Brother Fund.