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The family of a retired factory worker who died from asbestos disease in May 2012 are launching an appeal to contact his former workmates who were employed at the same West Yorkshire textile mill.
Phillip Beckwith worked in the accounts department for Berry & Fletcher at a site known as the Airedale Shed complex in Silsden, West Yorkshire, between 1964 and 1967.
Philip was exposed to asbestos, which led him to contract mesothelioma, a fatal asbestos cancer of the lining of the lungs. Phillip's three children are currently pursuing a legal case following his death.
Phillip’s daughter instructed industrial disease specialists, Thompsons Solicitors, to investigate the claim. She is appealing for anyone who knew her father during his employment, or worked at the Airedale Shed complex, to contact Thompsons with any information about the working conditions there in the 1960s.
A number of other businesses including CH Fletchers Ltd, John Knox Ltd and Walter Crane Ltd also operated at the Airedale Shed complex. Anyone who worked for those companies who may have information should also contact Thompsons Solicitors.
Oliver Collett, the solicitor from Thompsons representing the family, said: “Anyone who worked on the site of the weaving mills should come forward and share their experiences of the working conditions where we believe asbestos was present. Any information may help the Beckwith family hold their late father's employers to account for his death.”
Anybody who may have any recollection about the conditions at the Airedale Shed site should contact Oliver Collett at Thompsons Solicitors’ Leeds office on 0113 205 6300.