Resident of asbestos-riddled Libby dies after battling mesothelioma cancer
Residents of Libby, Montana have been struggling with the effects of diseases caused by the presence of an asbestos-tainted vermiculite mine operated by W.R. Grace & Co. One of these residents is Ida Templin, the widow of Jake Templin, who died from mesothelioma cancer earlier this month.
"He went to a town meeting about the asbestos on Dec. 1," she said, "and he died on Dec. 5."
Asbestos is the leading cause of mesothelioma, a cancer capable of killing within months of being diagnosed.
Templin told reporters how hard it was to watch the W.R. Grace & Co. trial last spring.
"We were all too disgusted to watch that trial very closely," she said. "The company was coating it, making it look like no one knew anything. You bet they knew. And everyone in this town knows they knew."
Like other longtime residents of Libby, Templin was shocked by the verdict.
"Of course we were disappointed [when they were found not guilty]," Templin said. "But we weren't surprised...They're going to get their comeuppance when they die of it themselves."
"This doesn't end," Templin said. "This is just who we are now, and so we do the best we can."
"Everybody has troubles and struggles. This one is ours."
Elsewhere in Libby, George Bauer is suffering from an asbestos-related illness while holding down a job in a barber shop.
"This town needed some closure, some vindication and some good news," he said. "A guilty verdict really would have helped the attitude, because it would have meant justice. Health care should have been the focal point from the very beginning, but I guess it's better late than never."
When asked about the ongoing legal issues, Cam Foote, a local pastor who suffers from asbestos-related lung disease, says, "It brings up a lot of old feelings. You think you're past it, but then there's a trial, or a declaration, or some headline and you have to go through it all over again...it's natural to want justice before you can move forward. Now, we have an open wound, a sense of betrayal that hasn't been able to heal."
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