1: 1 SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY
2
3 LAW DIVISION: MIDDLESEX COUNTY
4
5 DOCKET NO. L-19329-87
6
7
8
9
10
11 HERB HUYLER and KATHLEEN HUYLER
12
13 (his wife); FRANCIS GOGER and
14
15 VIRGINIA GOGER (his wife);
16
17 ALEXANDER KOZIKOWSKI and
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19 MINNIE KOZIKOWSKI, (his wife);
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21 JEREMIAH J. SEXTON and
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23 MADELINE SEXTON (his wife),
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25
2: 1
2 Plaintiffs DEPOSITION UNDER
3
4 ORAL EXAMINATION
5
6 vs OF
7
8 HERBER HUYLER
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10 A.C. & S., INC., formerly VIDEO TAPE
11
12 Armstrong Contracting and
13
14 Supply Inc.;
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16 AMERICAN INSULATION CORP.;
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18 ARMSTRONG WORLD INDUSTRIES INC.,
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20 formerly known as Armstrong
21
22 Corp. Co.;
23
24 ANCHOR PACKING COMPANY;
25 ATLAS TURNER, INC.,
3: 1
2 formerly known as Atlas
3
4 Asbestos Company;
5
6 A.P. GREEN REFRACTORIES COMPANY,
7
8 individually and as successor
9
10 to A.P. Green Fire Brick Company;
11
12 BABCOCK & WILCOX COMPANY,
13
14 individually and as successor
15
16 to B&W Refractories, Standard
17
18 Refractories Limited and
19
20 Holmes Blunt Limited;
21
22 BEACON PACKING & EQUIPMENT
23
24 COMPANY LTD.;
25
4: 1 CELOTEX CORPORATION,
2
3 individually and as successor
4
5 to Philip Carey Corporation,
6
7 Philip Carey Manufacturing
8
9 Co., Philip Carey Company Inc.,
10
11 XPRU Corporation, Briggs
12
13 Manufacturing Company, Panacon
14
15 Corportion, and Smith And
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17 Kanzler Inc. and Insul Coustic
18
19 Division of the Celotex Corporation;
20
21 COMBUSTION ENGINEERING INC.,
22
23 individually and as successor
24 to M.H. Detrick Co., Walsh
25
5: 1 Refractory Corp., and Refractory
2
3 and Insulation Corporation, now
4
5 known as C. & E. Refractories Inc.;
6
7 DURABLA MANUFACTURING COMPANY;
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9 EAGLE-PICHER INDUSTRIES INC.;
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11 ELIZABETH INDUSTRIAL,
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13 division of Charles F. Guyon;
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15 EMPIRE ACE INSULATION MANUFACTURING
16
17 CORP.,
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19 individually and as successor to
20
21 Empire Asbestos Co. and Ace
22
23 Asbestos Manufacturing Company.;
24
25 FIBREBOARD CORP.,
6: 1
2 individually and as successor
3
4 to Fibreboard Paper Products
5
6 Corp., Pabco Products Inc.,
7
8 and Plant Rubber and Asbestos
9
10 Works, Inc.;
11
12 THE FLINTKOTE COMPANY;
13
14 FLEXITALLIC GASKET COMPANY INC.;
15
16 GARLOCK INC.;
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18 GAF CORPORATION,
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20 individually and as successor
21
22 to The Ruberoid Co. and
23 Vermont Asbestos Corporation;
24
25 H.K. PORTER COMPANY, INC.,
7: 1
2 individually and as successor
3
4 to Southern Asbestos Company,
5
6 Carolina Asbestos Company and
7
8 Thermoid Company;
9
10 JOHN-CRANE HOUDAILLE INC.,
11
12 formerly known as Crane Packing Co.;
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14 KENTUK ENTERPRISES;
15
16 KEENE CORPORATION,
17
18 individually and as successor
19
20 to Ehret Magnesia Manufacturing
21
22 Co., Baldwin Hill Co., Baldwin
23
24 Ehret Hill, Inc., Keene Building
25
8: 1 Products, Co.;
2
3 METALLO GASKET CO.;
4
5 MADSEN AND HOWELL, INC.;
6
7 MELRATH SUPPLY AND GASKET CO., INC.;
8
9 METROPOLITAN REFRACTORIES CO.;
10
11 NICOLET INC.,
12
13 individually and as successor
14
15 to Norristown Magnesia and
16
17 Asbestos Company, and Keasbey
18
19 & Mattison Company;
20
21 NATIONAL GYPSUM CO.,
22 individually and as successor
23
24 to Asbestos Ltd., and Smith
25
9: 1 Asbestos Co.;
2
3 OWENS-CORNING FIBERGLAS CORPORATION;
4
5 OWENS-ILLINOIS INC.;
6
7 PORTER HAYDEN CO.,
8
9 individually and as successor
10
11 to H.W. Porter & Co., and
12
13 Reid Hayden Co.;
14
15 PITTSBURGH CORNING CORP.;
16
17 QUIGLEY CO. INC.;
18
19 RAYMARK INDUSTRIES INC.,
20
21 individually and as successor
22
23 to Raybestos Manhatten, Inc.;
24
25 ROBERT A. KEASBEY CO.;
10: 1
2 ROCK WOOL MANUFACTURING CO.;
3
4 SOUTHERN TEXTILE CORPORATION,
5
6 division of H.K. Porter;
7
8 STATE INSULATION CORP.;
9
10 STANDARD INSULATION INC.,
11
12 formerly Standard Asbestos
13
14 Manufacturing & Insulation Co.;
15
16 THERMALOK INC.;
17
18 TANNETICS, INC.,
19
20 individually and as successor
21 to Melrath Supply and Gasket
22
23 Co., Inc.;
24
25 U.S. GYPSUM COMPANY;
11: 1
2 UNIROYAL INC.;
3
4 UTILITIES INSULATION COMPANY;
5
6 WOOLSULATE CORPORATION;
7
8 WHITTAKER, CLARK AND DANIELS, INC.;
9
10 CAREY CANADA, INC.,
11
12 formerly Carey Canadian Mines Ltd.;
13
14 DAVY McKEE CORPORATION,
15
16 formerly Arthur G. McKee and
17
18 Company;
19
20 CHICAGO BRIDGE & IRON COMPANY;
21
22 SANTA FE BRAUN, INC.,
23
24 individually and as successor
25
12: 1 to C.F. Braun & Company;
2
3 FOSTER WHEELER CORP.;
4
5 THE M.W. KELLOGG COMPANY;
6
7 ROLAND TOMPKINS & SON, INC.;
8
9 THE RALPH M. PARSONS COMPANY;
10
11 EXXON CORPORATION, U.S.A.,
12
13 formerly Standard Oil Corporation
14
15 (for discovery only);
16
17 JOHN DOE 1 through JOHN DOE
18
19 75; (fictitious entities),
20 TRANSCRIPT of the deposition of the witness,
21
22 called for Oral Examination in the above-captioned
23
24 matter, said deposition being taken pursuant to
25
13: 1 Superior Court Rules of Practice and Procedure by and
2
3 before SANDRA A. RAIMO, a Notary Public and Certified
4
5 Shorthand Reporter of the State of New Jersey, at the
6
7 Offices of WILENTZ, GOLDMAN & SPITZER, ESQS., 900 Route
8
9 9, Woodbridge, New Jersey, on Monday, June 8, 1987,
10
11 commencing at approximately 10:30 in the forenoon.
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14: 1
2
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7
8 BRODY & GEISER
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10 CERTIFIED SHORTHAND REPORTERS
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12 698 King Georges Road
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14 Fords, New Jersey 08863
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16 (201) 73808555
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18 JOB # 706086
19 A P P E A R A N C E S:
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21
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23 WILENTZ, GOLDMAN & SPITZER, ESQS.
24
25 BY: ANGELO J. CIFALDI, ESQ.
15: 1
2 Attorneys for Plaintiffs
3
4
5
6 McCARTER & ENGLISH, ESQS.
7
8 BY: MARISSA BANEZ, ESQ.
9
10 Attorneys for Defendants, Armstrong World Industries,
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12 Celotex Corporation, Eagle-Picher Industries Inc.,
13
14 Fibreboard Corp., The Flintkote Company, Flexitallic
15
16 Gasket Company Inc., GAF Corporation, H.K. Porter
17
18 Company, Inc., Keene Corporation, National Gypsum,
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20 Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp., Owens-Illinois Inc.,
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22 Pittsburgh Corning Corp., Quigley Co. Inc., Rock Wool
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24 Manufacturing Co., Southern Textile Corp., U.S. Gypsum
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16: 1 Co., Carey Canada, Inc.
2
3
4
5 H.R. SIMON, ESQ.
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7 BY: JERI L. WARHAFTIG, ESQ.
8
9 Attorneys for Defendant, Santa Fe Braun, Inc.
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11
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13 KIRKPATRICK & LOCKHART, ESQS.
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15 BY: WALTER A. BUNT, JR., ESQ.
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17 Attorneys for Defendant, M.W. Kellogg Company
18 A P P E A R A N C E S: (contd)
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20 KRAFT & HUGHES, ESQS.
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22 BY: DOREEN E. McMANIMON, ESQ.
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24 Attorneys for Defendant, The Ralph Parsons Company
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17: 1
2
3 CLARK, LADNER, FORTENBAUGH & YOUNG, ESQS.
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5 BY: NANCY E. SIM, ESQ.
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7 Attorneys for Defendant, Chicago Bridge & Iron
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9
10
11 ENRIGHT, LENNEY & McGRATH, ESQS.
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13 BY: MICHAEL P. McGRATH, ESQ.
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15 Attorneys for Defendant, State Insulation
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17
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19 HAMPSON & MILLET, ESQS.
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21 BY: MICHAEL GARBER, ESQ.
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23 Attorneys for Defendant, Davey McKee Corporation
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25
18: 1
2 BUDD, LARNER, GROSS, PICILLO, ROSENBAUM, GREENBERG &
3
4 SADE, ESQS.
5
6 BY: LEONARD T. NUARA, ESQ.
7
8 Attorneys for Defendant, Combustion Engineering Inc.
9
10
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12 OZZARD, WHARTON, RIZZOLO & KLEIN, ESQS.
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14 BY: ALAN BART GRANT, ESQ.
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16 Attorneys for Defendant, Porter Hayden Co.
17 A P P E A R A N C E S: (contd)
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19
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21 DONINGTON, LEROE, TOLAND & LUONGO, ESQS.
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23 BY: DAVID KAPLAN, ESQ.
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25 Attorneys for Defendant, Madsen & Howell, Inc.
19: 1
2
3
4 SELLAR, RICHARDSON, STUART & CHISHOLM, ESQS.
5
6 BY: JAMES P. RICHARDSON, ESQ.
7
8 Attorneys for Defendant, John-Crane Houdaille Inc.
9
10
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12 ZUCKER, FACHER & ZUCKER, ESQS.
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14 BY: JOHN R. KNODEL, ESQ.
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16 Attorneys for Defendant, Woolsulate Corporation
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18
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20 MALOOF, LEBOWITZ & BUBB, ESQS.
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22 BY: ROBERT A. SCIROCCO, ESQ.
23
24 Attorneys for Defendant, Durabla Manufacturing Company
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20: 1
2
3 ROBERT M. GRAHAM, ESQ.
4
5 BY: ROBERT M. GRAHAM, ESQ.
6
7 Attorney for Defendant, Charles F. Guyon
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9
10
11 PARKER, McKAY & CRISCUOLO, ESQS.
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13 BY: RICHARD M. BERMAN, ESQ.
14
15 Attorneys for Defendant, Foster Wheeler Corporation
16 A P P E A R A N C E S: (contd)
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18 KONRAY & KEREKES, ESQS.
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20 BY: ROY J. KONRAY, ESQ.
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22 Attorneys for Defendant, Kentuk Enterprises
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24
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21: 1 DONALD J. MAIZYS, ESQ.
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3 BY: DONALD J. MAIZYS, ESQ.
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5 Attorney for Defendant, Exxon Corporation, U.S.A.
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7
8
9 GOLDEN, LINTNER, ROTHSCHILD, SPAGNOLA & DiFAZIO, ESQS.
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11 BY: PETER J. BUTCH, III, ESQ.
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13 Attorneys for Defendant, Metallo Gasket Co.
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15
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17 CHAZEN & CHAZEN, ESQS.
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19 BY: BERNARD CHAZEN, ESQ.
20
21 Attorneys for Defendant, Empire Ace Insulation
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23
24
25 MORGAN, MELHUISH, MONAGHAN, ARVIDSON, ABRUTYN &
22: 1
2 LISOWSKI, ESQS.
3
4 BY: ANDREW CONSTANTINE, II, ESQ.
5
6 Attorneys for Defendant, Raymark Industries, Inc.
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8
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10 GARRUBBO & DORIAN, ESQS.
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12 BY: HOWARD M. DORIAN, ESQ.
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14 Attorneys for Defendant, Garlock Inc.
15 A P P E A R A N C E S: (contd)
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17
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19 WATERS, McPHERSON & McNEILL, ESQS.
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21 BY: JOHN J. KOT, ESQ.
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23 Attorneys for Defendant, The Anchor Packing Company
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25
23: 1
2 CHASAN, LEYNER, TARRANT & DITALIA, ESQS.
3
4 BY: JOHN P. CASCIO, ESQ.
5
6 Attorneys for Defendant, Robert A. Keasbey Co.
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8
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10 McDERMOTT, McGEE & RUPRECHT, ESQS.
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12 BY: LISA A. GANZHORN, ESQ.
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14 Attorneys for Defendant, Davey McKee Corp
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16
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18 SACHS & SACHS, ESQS.
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20 BY: PETER W. SACHS, ESQ.
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22 Attorneys for Defendants, A.P. Green Refractories Co. &
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24 Metropolitan Refractories Co.
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24: 1
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12
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14 I N D E X
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16
17
18 WITNESS NAME PAGE NO.
19
20
21
22 HERBERT HUYLER
23
24
25
25: 1 Direct by Mr. Cifaldi 15
2
3 Cross by Ms. Banez 88
4
5 Cross by Mr. Butch 106
6
7 Cross by Mr. Chazen 107
8
9 Cross by Mr. Konray 109
10
11 Cross by Mr. Nuara 111
12
13 Cross by Mr. Grant 115
14
15 Cross by Mr. McGrath 115
16
17 Cross by Mr. Richardson 120
18
19 Cross by Mr. Kot 131
20
21 Cross by Mr. Berman 132
22
23 Redirect by Mr. Cifaldi 133
24
25
26: 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13 (Off Video).
14
15 MR. McGRATH: We just had a dicsussion
16
17 with the video tape operater and plaintiffs
18
19 counsel. For the record, Im going to object to
20
21 any back and forth, from the witness to
22
23 attorneys, zooming in and out or changing camera
24
25 angles or changing cameras.
27: 1
2 MR. SACHS: Let me expand on that, if I
3
4 may. What that tends to do is, wittingly or
5
6 unwittingly it places emphasis on certain parts
7
8 of the testimony and de-emphasizes certain parts
9
10 of the testimony. Thats totally inappropriate.
11
12 I have a further objection, too. As
13
14 I look at the picture on the monitor now, there
15
16 is a styrofoam cup in front of the witness that
17
18 should not be there because I cannot tell from
19
20 the video tape whether thats medication or
21
22 whether thats water or what it is and its
23
24 totally inappropriate
25
28: 1 MR. CIFALDI: Mr. Sachs, you are certainly
2
3 free to indicate on the record if hes drinking
4
5 water or taking medication. You are giving
6
7 various statements here, but what is the legal
8
9 basis for your objection that we cannot use two
10
11 cameras?
12 MR. SACHS: It tends to use certain
13
14 portions of the testimony as opposed to others.
15
16 MR. CIFALDI: Your objection is noted.
17
18 MR. CHAZEN: Its agreed, for the purpose
19
20 of the video tape, that one objection by a
21
22 defendant will be adopted by all defendants and
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24 if anybody doesnt want to join in the objection
25
29: 1 they have to make clear they dont want to join
2
3 in the objection.
4
5 H E R B E R T H U Y L E R ,
6
7 126 Mello Lane, Toms River, New Jersey,
8
9 called as a witness, having been first
10
11 duly sworn according to law, testifies as
12
13 follows:
14
15 DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. CIFALDI:
16
17 Q Good morning, Mr. Huyler.
18
19 A Good morning.
20
21 Q As you know were here today for the
22
23 purpose of recording your testimony on video tape. As
24
25 I previously explained to you, this video tape will be
30: 1
2 used at the time of trial, if, for any reason, you are
3
4 unable to testify.
5
6 This morning Im going to ask you various
7
8 questions and Id like you to answer them to the best
9
10 of your ability. If at any time youre unable to
11 answer a question please tell us that.
12
13 Also, if you do not understand a question
14
15 we pose, please tell us that also and well be glad to
16
17 rephrase the question.
18
19 Do you understand those instructions?
20
21 A Yes.
22
23 Q Could you please state your full name for
24
25 the record?
31: 1
2 A Herbert Joseph Huyler.
3
4 Q And how old are you today?
5
6 A 43.
7
8 Q And what is your date of birth?
9
10 A August the 1st, 1943.
11
12 Q Where do you currently reside?
13
14 A At 126 Mello Lane, Toms River.
15
16 Q And approximately how long have you lived
17
18 there?
19
20 A Eight years.
21
22 Q And how long have you lived in New Jersey?
23
24 A All my life.
25
32: 1 Q Are you presently married?
2
3 A Yes.
4
5 Q And what is your wifes name?
6
7 A Kathleen.
8
9 Q And how long have you been married?
10 A 19 years — 20 years.
11
12 Q What was your marriage date?
13
14 A March the 30th, 1968.
15
16 Q Do you have any children?
17
18 A Two.
19
20 Q Could you give us their names and ages,
21
22 please?
23
24 A Denise is 18; David is 16.
25
33: 1 Q Do both children presently live at home?
2
3 A Yes.
4
5 Q Is Denise in school or is she employed?
6
7 A Shes in school and employed.
8
9 Q Where does she go to school?
10
11 A She goes to Toms River North.
12
13 Q And is that a high school?
14
15 A Thats a high school.
16
17 Q Does she have any plans for college?
18
19 A Yes.
20
21 Q Has she been accepted into a college?
22
23 A Not — not presently.
24
25 Q And what about David, is he presently in
34: 1
2 school?
3
4 A Yes.
5
6 Q And what year is he in high school?
7
8 A Hes a sophomore.
9 Q Does he have plans for college?
10
11 A Yes, he does.
12
13 Q Do you provide support for both of your
14
15 children?
16
17 A Yes, full support.
18
19 Q Could you please give the jury the benefit
20
21 of your educational background.
22
23 A I had about a year or a year and a half of
24
25 college, Newark College of Engineering. That was the
35: 1
2 extent of it.
3
4 Q You graduated high school?
5
6 A And I graduated high school.
7
8 Q What high school was that?
9
10 A That was Kearny High School.
11
12 Q And what year did you graduate high
13
14 school?
15
16 A 1961.
17
18 Q As you sit here today, do you have any
19
20 physical complaints?
21
22 A Yes. Im — well, I just got out of the
23
24 hospital Friday, so Im sick to my stomach and Im in a
25
36: 1 lot of pain.
2
3 Q Anything else?
4
5 A No.
6
7 Q What type of pain are you experiencing at
8 this time?
9
10 A Its bone pain. Just the bones hurt, and my
11
12 skin hurts and just everything I brought here today
13
14 hurts.
15
16 Q And you have mentioned that you are having
17
18 stomach problems. What type of problems are they?
19
20 A Im sick to my stomach.
21
22 Q Has that been fairly constant in the past
23
24 few days or has it been intermittent?
25
37: 1 A Well, its fairly constant. Fairly constant for
2
3 the last couple of months.
4
5 Q What is your present weight?
6
7 A 214.
8
9 Q Has that been your average weight for the
10
11 last few years?
12
13 A No, not really. I was told to beef-up and eat a
14
15 lot because of the chemotherapy, would, you know, make
16
17 me lose weight.
18
19 Q And what was your weight at some point
20
21 prior to this time, approximately, a year ago?
22
23 A Oh, I dont really know. Maybe 200. Maybe 200,
24
25 maybe 210.
38: 1
2 Q Are you aware of why you are receiving
3
4 chemotherapy?
5
6 A Yes, I am.
7 Q And what is the reason?
8
9 A I have lung cancer.
10
11 Q When were you first told that you had lung
12
13 cancer?
14
15 A In October.
16
17 Q And what year was that?
18
19 A 1986.
20
21 Q And how did you gain that knowledge?
22
23 A I get physicals at the Veterans and they called
24
25 me up the next day and they told me I had a problem and
39: 1
2 they were going to admit me to a hospital.
3
4 Q And was a hospital suggested?
5
6 A Yeah. They were going to put me in the Veterans
7
8 Hospital and I decided to go through the private
9
10 sector.
11
12 Q And why was that?
13
14 A Well, I thought I would get better care in a
15
16 private sector.
17
18 Q And were you subsequently admitted into a
19
20 hospital?
21
22 A Eventually. Yes.
23
24 Q And what hospital was that?
25
40: 1 A Well, I had to go for tests. I went to Point
2
3 Pleasant Hospital, Brick Hospital and then eventually
4
5 Beth Israel Hospital in New York.
6 Q Was there a doctor that you initially saw
7
8 after you were referred to a hospital in October of
9
10 86?
11
12 A I dont understand that.
13
14 Q Sure. Was there a physician — who was
15
16 the first physician you saw with reference to your lung
17
18 cancer?
19
20 A That would be Dr. Sollomi.
21
22 Q And approximately when did you see
23
24 Dr. Sollomi first?
25
41: 1 A Some time in October. It was, like, right after
2
3 I was notified that I had a problem.
4
5 Q And what did he do when you went to see
6
7 him?
8
9 A He told me and my wife that I had lung cancer
10
11 and that it had spread and he was going to set me up
12
13 for a bronchoscopy to make sure.
14
15 Q When he told you about your condition, how
16
17 did you feel?
18
19 A Devastated.
20
21 Q Did he refer you to another physician?
22
23 A Yes, he did. To a physician — Dr. Sabo, who
24
25 did a biopsy on my neck.
42: 1
2 Q And did he report the results of that
3
4 biopsy?
5 A Yes.
6
7 Q And what were those results?
8
9 A The cancer had spread to my lymph nodes.
10
11 Q And did he give you a prognosis?
12
13 A Yes.
14
15 Q And what was that prognosis?
16
17 A That I had six months to live.
18
19 Q Would you like to take a break or would
20
21 you like to go on?
22
23 A Ill be all right.
24
25 Q Besides the chemotherapy that youve been
43: 1
2 receiving, have you received any other treatment for
3
4 your lung cancer?
5
6 A Yes.
7
8 Q And what was that treatment?
9
10 A I had an operation on my lung and I had five
11
12 weeks of radiation and I had radiation implanted inside
13
14 me.
15
16 Q With reference to this surgery, how many
17
18 times have you had surgery for your lung cancer?
19
20 A Just once.
21
22 Q And could you please tell the jury when
23
24 that occurred?
25
44: 1 A It was in the beginning of February 1987.
2
3 Q And where was that surgery performed?
4 A Beth Israel Hospital in New York.
5
6 Q And you were hospitalized?
7
8 A Yes.
9
10 Q For how many days?
11
12 A Eight days.
13
14 Q And do you have an understanding of what
15
16 this surgery encompassed?
17
18 A Yes, I do.
19
20 Q And what was that?
21
22 A The doctors took off the top of my lung and they
23
24 implanted radiation at that time. I believe theyre
25
45: 1 called seeds. And they just implanted them up to my
2
3 neck and throughout my chest and cleaned out whatever
4
5 tumors that were in my chest.
6
7 Q Were you under anesthesia during the
8
9 operation?
10
11 A Sure.
12
13 Q How did you feel after the operation?
14
15 A I was in surgical intensive care.
16
17 Q For how many days?
18
19 A Im not sure. A few; three or four, five. Im
20
21 not sure.
22
23 Q After the surgery, did you have any
24
25 physical complaints?
46: 1
2 A Do you mean in the hospital itself?
3 Q Yes.
4
5 A Well, I was on morphine. Im sure I had, you
6
7 know, a lot of physical complaints but, you know, they
8
9 just — you know, I was pretty well doped up.
10
11 Q Do you know how many times a day you were
12
13 given morphine?
14
15 A Every couple hours, I believe.
16
17 Q And was that orally or intravenously?
18
19 A No. That was injections.
20
21 Q You also mentioned that youve received
22
23 radiation therapy.
24
25 How many times have you received radiation
47: 1
2 therapy?
3
4 A Well, the once where they implanted it inside my
5
6 chest and I received it every day for five weeks at
7
8 Monmouth Medical Center.
9
10 Q And was that on an outpatient basis? In
11
12 other words, did you go, like, every day to Monmouth
13
14 County?
15
16 A Thats correct.
17
18 Q And could you please describe for the jury
19
20 what was involved with the radiation therapy?
21
22 A Its — you just go and you lay down on a table
23
24 and its like — takes an X-ray of you, I guess. I
25
48: 1 dont really know the technology of it.
2 Q Were you awake during the radiation
3
4 therapy?
5
6 A Sure.
7
8 Q How did you feel during the therapy?
9
10 A Well, I always got the therapy at 9 oclock in
11
12 the morning so I still had a little bit of my lifes
13
14 blood left.
15
16 Q How did you feel after the therapy?
17
18 A Completely washed out. I couldnt — I couldnt
19
20 do anything.
21
22 Q How long did the therapy take on a daily
23
24 basis? How long were you under the radiation?
25
49: 1 A Oh, the radiation was very quick. Its only a
2
3 couple of minutes.
4
5 Q Can you describe for the jury any physical
6
7 complaints that you had after the radiation therapy?
8
9 A Yes. They radiated me in the neck area. I
10
11 dont know the medical terms for it but the radiation
12
13 goes from one side of your body to the other side and
14
15 it just burns everything in its path. And with that,
16
17 it just burned my gag reflex, so for, I guess, close to
18
19 two months I couldnt eat or even breathe without
20
21 wanting to upchuck.
22
23 Q Were you given any intravenous fluids at
24
25 that time?
50: 1 A No.
2
3 Q You still stayed on the solid diet as best
4
5 as possible?
6
7 A Yes. I would force myself to eat even though I
8
9 would have after effects.
10
11 Q Did you have any other physical complaints
12
13 after the radiation therapy?
14
15 A I had absolutely no energy. Just — just no
16
17 energy at all.
18
19 Q In addition to the surgery and the
20
21 radiation therapy you have mentioned that you had
22
23 undergone chemotherapy.
24
25 How many treatments of chemotherapy have
51: 1
2 you had up to this point?
3
4 A I got to use my fingers.
5
6 Q Thats okay.
7
8 A I believe seven or eight.
9
10 Q And do the treatments last the same amount
11
12 of time?
13
14 Have all seven or eight treatments lasted
15
16 and have the same duration?
17
18 A No. Originally they were three days long and
19
20 now theyre a week.
21
22 Q How many were three days long; the first
23
24 two?
25 A About the first two or three, I guess.
52: 1
2 Q And then thereafter the chemotherapy has
3
4 been five days long?
5
6 A Five days, thats right.
7
8 Q Anb where do you receive the chemotherapy?
9
10 A In Beth Israel Hospital in New York.
11
12 Q And you were again treated with
13
14 chemotherapy on an outpatient basis or were you in
15
16 there on three or five days?
17
18 A No. Im hospitalized too and get it
19
20 intravenously.
21
22 Q Could you please describe to the jury what
23
24 the chemotherapy treatment involves, I mean, how is it
25
53: 1 given, what is done?
2
3 A Well, they just — they give me three different
4
5 type of drugs and theyre given intravenously somewhere
6
7 inside my arm, and they just keep using my arms till
8
9 they cant find any more veins, you know, and they
10
11 just — it kind of beats up your veins. But, you know,
12
13 then they go some place else, I guess. And, you know,
14
15 in bed for five days.
16
17 Q Do you know if theyve been having trouble
18
19 recently finding veins in your arm to utilize for the
20
21 I.V. treatment?
22
23 A Yes, they have.
24 Q And have they had to go elsewhere on your
25
54: 1 body?
2
3 A Not so far. Theyre still finding extra veins.
4
5 Q Are you awake during the chemotherapy
6
7 treatment?
8
9 A Not during the original infusion.
10
11 Q And could you describe to the jury what
12
13 you mean by the original infusion?
14
15 A Well, its when they give this Cisplatin. I
16
17 guess its the heaviest dose and they have to knock you
18
19 out for that because theres too many side affects from
20
21 it.
22
23 Q In addition to the Cisplatin you mentioned
24
25 there were two other chemotherapy agents you were being
55: 1
2 given, do you recall their names?
3
4 A I think its Velban and 5-FU. I dont know
5
6 the –
7
8 Q Velban and 5-FU?
9
10 A Yes.
11
12 Q And are you awake during the infusion of
13
14 those two agents?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q Do you have any physical effects during
19
20 the infusion of either Velban or 5-FU?
21
22 A Yes.
23 Q And could you please describe to the jury
24
25 what those physical effects are?
56: 1
2 A Well, you just have no control on your body.
3
4 You know, your body is trying — you know, its a
5
6 poison and your body is just trying to get rid of it
7
8 and just got no control.
9
10 Q Im sorry, I didnt ask you this before.
11
12 How long is the infusion of the Cisplatin, 5 minutes,
13
14 10 minutes, an hour?
15
16 A No. Thats about a day.
17
18 Q So its a continuous I.V. through the day?
19
20 A Yes.
21
22 Q And what about the 5-FU and the Velban?
23
24 A Thats three, four days.
25
57: 1 Q Four days.
2
3 After the chemotherapy, do you have any
4
5 physical complaints after you receive the chemotherapy?
6
7 A Yes.
8
9 Q And could you relate to the jury what
10
11 those are?
12
13 A Well, Im always sick to my stomach and then I
14
15 get bone pain and skin pain.
16
17 Q Anything else?
18
19 A No. Im just always sick to my stomach and in a
20
21 lot of pain. Thats all.
22 Q About how long does the stomach pain and
23
24 the skin and bone pain take till it subsides after the
25
58: 1 treatment on average, if possible?
2
3 A Well, the last time it took about six days.
4
5 Q Now, you recently had a chemotherapy
6
7 treatment. Is that correct?
8
9 A Thats correct.
10
11 Q And when was that treatment?
12
13 A That was — if I went in last Sunday and I got
14
15 out this Friday.
16
17 Q Are there any other medications youre
18
19 taking at this time besides the chemotherapy agents?
20
21 A Just for pain.
22
23 Q And do you know what the name of the drug
24
25 youre taking for pain is?
59: 1
2 A Percocet.
3
4 Q And how many times a day do you take that?
5
6 A Well, I was taken it every four — two tablets
7
8 every four hours but, you know, like, when I come here
9
10 today I cant take anything because Im driving.
11
12 Q Do you take Percocet at night also?
13
14 A Oh, definitely. Yeah.
15
16 Q Is there any reason that you take it at
17
18 night?
19
20 A So I can go to sleep.
21 Q While taking the Percocet, do you still
22
23 have trouble sleeping at night?
24
25 A No. I guess, its a pretty strong dose and, you
60: 1
2 know, puts me off to sleep.
3
4 Q Mr. Huyler, did you serve in the armed
5
6 forces?
7
8 A Yes, I did.
9
10 Q When was that?
11
12 A From 1962 in May to October 1966.
13
14 Q And what branch of the service were you
15
16 in?
17
18 A Marine Corps.
19
20 Q And where did you serve?
21
22 A In Vietnam.
23
24 Q What was your rank at discharge?
25
61: 1 A Corporal.
2
3 Q And what type of discharge did you
4
5 receive?
6
7 A Honorable conditions.
8
9 Q Did you receive any medals while in
10
11 service in Vietnam?
12
13 A Yes. I received an air medal and –
14
15 Q What was that for?
16
17 A That was for flying strike missions over hostile
18
19 territory.
20 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
21
22 asbestos while serving in the Marines?
23
24 A No, I dont.
25
62: 1 Q Prior to entering the Marines but after
2
3 high school, did you have any part or full-time jobs?
4
5 A Part-time job.
6
7 Q And what was your first part-time job?
8
9 A I worked in a Shop-Rite, butchers helper, I
10
11 guess.
12
13 Q And approximately what year was that?
14
15 A It must have been maybe 58, 59, 60. I dont
16
17 really know.
18
19 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
20
21 asbestos while working at Shop-Rite?
22
23 A No.
24
25 Q Did you have any other employment prior to
63: 1
2 entering the Marines?
3
4 A I worked in Otis Elevator for a short time.
5
6 Q And approximately what year was that?
7
8 A I guess it would have been 61 or 62.
9
10 Q What were your job duties at Otis
11
12 Elevator?
13
14 A I was a blueprint machine operator.
15
16 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
17
18 asbestos?
19 A No.
20
21 Q After leaving the Marines, did you gain
22
23 employment again?
24
25 A Yes, I did.
64: 1
2 Q And what was your next place of
3
4 employment?
5
6 A I worked for Railway Express as a truck driver.
7
8 Q What were your job duties at Railway
9
10 Express?
11
12 A Just drive a truck and deliver packages.
13
14 Q How long were you employed at Railway
15
16 Express?
17
18 A Only a few months.
19
20 Q So some time in 1966?
21
22 A I believe so.
23
24 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
25
65: 1 asbestos while at Railway Express?
2
3 A No.
4
5 Q What was your next employment?
6
7 A Westinghouse Electric Corporation.
8
9 Q How long were you with Westinghouse
10
11 Electric Corporation?
12
13 A Excuse me. Maybe a year and a half.
14
15 Q That brings us into approximately 67 or
16
17 68?
18 A Uh-huh.
19
20 Q What were your job duties?
21
22 A I was a draftsman.
23
24 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
25
66: 1 asbestos?
2
3 A No.
4
5 Q What is your next job?
6
7 A Lockheed Electronics.
8
9 Q How long were you with Lockheed
10
11 Electronics?
12
13 A Only a few months.
14
15 Q What were your job duties with Lockheed
16
17 Electronics?
18
19 A I was a draftsman.
20
21 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
22
23 asbestos?
24
25 A No.
67: 1
2 Q What was your next employment?
3
4 A That would be Exxon.
5
6 Q And what year did you first join Exxon?
7
8 A In 1968.
9
10 Q And are you presently with Exxon?
11
12 A Yes, I am.
13
14 Q During the time period you were at Exxon,
15
16 did you have different job classifications?
17 A Yes, I did.
18
19 Q Would you please tell the jury what those
20
21 classifications were?
22
23 A I started off as a welder, I guess, apprentice
24
25 and then I — after about a year and a half I went to a
68: 1
2 rigger, then, I guess, in 1980 I became a crane
3
4 operator.
5
6 Q So you were a welder apprentice from
7
8 approximately 68 to mid-69? Is that approximately
9
10 correct?
11
12 A Thats correct.
13
14 Q And then a rigger from 1969 to 1980?
15
16 A Thats correct.
17
18 Q And a crane operator from 1981 to present?
19
20 A Yes.
21
22 Q When you were classified as an apprentice
23
24 welder, what were your job duties?
25
69: 1 A Mostly welding pipe and then helping, you know,
2
3 people to take the pipe out and help them put it in
4
5 and –
6
7 Q Anything else as –
8
9 A Yeah. Well, we worked on turn arounds.
10
11 Q Were your job duties any different on turn
12
13 arounds?
14
15 A Yes, they were much different on turn arounds.
16 Q What did you did on turn arounds?
17
18 A On turn arounds we, I guess, repaired things and
19
20 put pieces of pipe in racks, take pieces of pipe out,
21
22 we did insulation. I guess we removed a lot of
23
24 asbestos for sure.
25
70: 1 Q Other than the removal of asbestos, do you
2
3 believe you also installed asbestos?
4
5 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
6
7 A Certainly.
8
9 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
10
11 MS. BANEZ: Leading.
12
13 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
14
15 Q During the time that you were an
16
17 apprenctice welder and working on turn arounds, do you
18
19 recall using or being in the vicinity of others using
20
21 asbestos products?
22
23 MS. BANEZ: Objection. Same. Leading.
24
25 Q You could answer.
71: 1
2 A Yes. Certainly.
3
4 Q You previously testified that you removed
5
6 asbestos insulation and that you installed asbestos
7
8 insulation.
9
10 Can you relate to the jury the generic
11
12 types of asbestos products you removed and installed?
13
14 A Yes. We used pipe block covering, we used
15 regular blocks of insulation in the furnaces, we used
16
17 big sheets — big, white sheets of insulation, we used
18
19 gaskets and fire blankets that were all asbestos, and
20
21 packing, it was also asbestos.
22
23 Q With reference to the pipe covering block
24
25 that you testified to, what was that used on?
72: 1
2 A That was used to cover mostly hot pipes.
3
4 Q And if there was a location on those pipes
5
6 that was not straight was there any other type of
7
8 asbestos product used to insulate that pipe, for
9
10 example, elbows?
11
12 A Yes.
13
14 MS. BANEZ: Objection. Leading.
15
16 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
17
18 Q And what was that product?
19
20 A That was cement.
21
22 Q So during the time period as an apprentice
23
24 welder you also used asbestos cement?
25
73: 1 A Oh, yes.
2
3 Q When you were classified as a rigger from
4
5 1969 to 1980, could you please relate to the jury what
6
7 your job duties were?
8
9 A It would be — my job duties would include a lot
10
11 of climbing and removal of very heavy objects, big
12
13 machinery, exchangers, towers, taking them down and
14 putting them up and the removal and replace pipe and
15
16 pumps. Just anything that weighed over a certain
17
18 amount of pounds in the refinery we just moved.
19
20 Q Do you believe you were exposed to
21
22 asbestos during that time period?
23
24 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
25
74: 1 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
2
3 A Definitely.
4
5 Q And would that be in the same way as you
6
7 testified as an apprentice welder?
8
9 A Yes.
10
11 Q Were there any other job duties at the
12
13 time you were a rigger from 1969 to 80 that you
14
15 performed that were not technically classified as a
16
17 rigging duty?
18
19 A Could you repeat that, please?
20
21 Q Yes. During the time period you were a
22
23 rigger from 1969 to 1980 you related specific job
24
25 duties that a rigger would do. Were there any other
75: 1
2 duties that you were assigned to during that time
3
4 period?
5
6 A Certainly.
7
8 Q And what were they?
9
10 A Insulation.
11
12 Q And was that insulation done on turn
13 arounds as you previously testified?
14
15 A Yes.
16
17 Q And, again, did you do removal on turn
18
19 arounds?
20
21 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
22
23 A Yes, we did.
24
25 Q What did you do on turn arounds other than
76: 1
2 installing asbestos?
3
4 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
5
6 Q Go ahead.
7
8 A Well, if you had to take a piece of pipe out of
9
10 the rack they always wanted it stripped of insulation
11
12 first, so you stripped it and then, you know, you took
13
14 the pipe out and put a new pipe up and then you had to
15
16 re-insulate it.
17
18 Q Do you have any knowledge of what the
19
20 insulation was composed of that you removed?
21
22 A Yes.
23
24 Q And what was that?
25
77: 1 MR. McGRATH: Objection. No foundation.
2
3 A Asbestos.
4
5 MR. CIFALDI: Its noted.
6
7 Q How many years have you worked at Exxon,
8
9 from 1968 forward. Correct?
10
11 A Thats correct.
12 Q And what was utilized through your
13
14 experience at Exxon to insulate high-temperature lines?
15
16 A Asbestos.
17
18 Q During the time period you were a rigger
19
20 and you were either working with or working around
21
22 asbestos insulation, can you recount to the jury the
23
24 types of asbestos products you were exposed to, in
25
78: 1 generic types I mean?
2
3 A Yes.
4
5 Q And what are they?
6
7 A Pipe block, block, gaskets, both sheet gaskets
8
9 and spiral-wound gaskets, packing, fire blankets,
10
11 cements.
12
13 Q Anything else that you can recall at this
14
15 time?
16
17 A Not that I can recall.
18
19 Q And your next job as a crane operator from
20
21 1980 forward, could you explain to the jury what your
22
23 job duties were?
24
25 A As a crane operator?
79: 1
2 Q Yes.
3
4 A Just to make lifts for the riggers.
5
6 Q And do you believe you were exposed to
7
8 asbestos from 1980 forward as a crane operator?
9
10 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
11 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
12
13 A At certain times I was.
14
15 Q And how were you exposed?
16
17 A I was in areas where asbestos was being
18
19 stripped.
20
21 Q You didnt personally handle asbestos
22
23 products, though, from 1980 forward. Is that correct?
24
25 A No.
80: 1
2 Q You previously testified that as a welder
3
4 and a rigger you were either removing or in the
5
6 vicinity of others removing asbestos insulation from
7
8 pipe lines, from other equipment at Exxon.
9
10 Can you please tell the jury what
11
12 locations at the Exxon plant this removal took place?
13
14 A Actually the whole plant.
15
16 Q Could you try to be a bit more specific,
17
18 can you give us specific locations that you recall
19
20 being involved with removal work of asbestos?
21
22 A Sure. I guess paratone, paranox, light ends,
23
24 cat plant, pipe stills. Now theres about five or six
25
81: 1 different pipe stills.
2
3 Q What were the numbers of pipe stills?
4
5 A I can remember one, two and three, and five and
6
7 six.
8
9 The vis braker, polybutalane unit, power
10 former, hydrofiner, ABW, utilities unit, ethylin unit,
11
12 IBW, CBU and keytone.
13
14 Q And stepping back for a moment you
15
16 mentioned the paranox unit.
17
18 What was the atmosphere like during the
19
20 asbestos removal in the paranox unit?
21
22 A Dusty.
23
24 Q And did you inhale that dust?
25
82: 1 A Yes.
2
3 Q You also mentioned the light-end unit.
4
5 What was the atmosphere like during
6
7 asbestos removal in that location?
8
9 A Dusty.
10
11 Q And did you inhale that dust?
12
13 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
14
15 A Yes.
16
17 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
18
19 Q Would it be fair to say that the
20
21 atmosphere in all the other units was similar to that
22
23 in the paranox unit and the light-end unit that you
24
25 previously testified to?
83: 1
2 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
3
4 A Yes.
5
6 MR. CIFALDI: Counsel, if youd like, Ill
7
8 go through each unit?
9 MS. BANEZ: No. The objection was that it
10
11 was leading.
12
13 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
14
15 Q You also previously testified as to
16
17 working with or around various generic types of
18
19 asbestos products.
20
21 Can you recall the brand name or
22
23 manufacturer name of any of the pipe covering that you
24
25 recall working with?
84: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 Q And could you please tell those to the
5
6 jury?
7
8 A This is pipe covering?
9
10 Q Yes, it is.
11
12 A Kaylo, Calsilite, Johns-Manville, Thermasil,
13
14 Pabco. There might be more I cant remember at this
15
16 time.
17
18 Q Thats fine. You mentioned Calsilite pipe
19
20 covering. Did that come in a package?
21
22 A Yes, it did.
23
24 Q And how was that packaged?
25
85: 1 A In boxes.
2
3 Q And did you recall seeing any writing on
4
5 the boxes?
6
7 A Yes.
8 Q And what was that?
9
10 A Well, I recall seeing Calsilite.
11
12 Q And did you see anything else written on
13
14 the package?
15
16 A Just asbestos.
17
18 Q Asbestos was written on the package of
19
20 Calsilite?
21
22 A I believe so.
23
24 Q Did you ever remove or — did you ever
25
86: 1 remove Calsilite pipe covering from the package?
2
3 A Sure.
4
5 Q And what were the conditions like when you
6
7 removed the Calsilite from the package?
8
9 A Well, they werent too bad when you removed it
10
11 from the package.
12
13 Q It wasnt too bad when you removed it from
14
15 the package. Was it bad at some other time?
16
17 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
18
19 MR. KOT: Objection.
20
21 A Yes.
22
23 Q When you — strike that.
24
25 Did you do anything with Calsilite other
87: 1
2 than remove it from a package?
3
4 A Yes. You had to cut it and sometimes you used
5
6 to beat it with a hammer, you know, just to make it
7 fit.
8
9 Q And what were the conditions when youd
10
11 either cut it or beat it with a hammer?
12
13 A Very dusty.
14
15 Q Did you inhale that dust?
16
17 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
18
19 A Yes.
20
21 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
22
23 Q You also mentioned Kaylo pipe covering.
24
25 Did that also come in a package?
88: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 Q And how was that packaged?
5
6 A In a box.
7
8 Q Do you recall any writing on the box?
9
10 A I guess — this is kind of hard for me, you
11
12 know. Really –
13
14 Q Do the best you can.
15
16 A I really dont know.
17
18 Q How did you know it was Kaylo?
19
20 A Oh, oh, I know it says Kaylo on the box. Thats
21
22 about all I know.
23
24 Q Thats fine. Did you ever take — strike
25
89: 1 that.
2
3 What did you do with the Kaylo product, if
4
5 anything?
6 A The same thing as with the Calsilite.
7
8 Q You would then cut it or hammer it?
9
10 A Yeah.
11
12 Q And what were the conditions like when you
13
14 did those processes?
15
16 A Very dusty.
17
18 Q Did you inhale that dust?
19
20 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
21
22 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
23
24 A Yes.
25
90: 1 Q You also mentioned Pabco pipe covering.
2
3 Did that also come in a package?
4
5 A Yes.
6
7 Q Was it a box?
8
9 A Box.
10
11 Q Was anything written on the box?
12
13 A Pabco.
14
15 Q Anything else that you can recall?
16
17 A Nothing that I can recall.
18
19 Q Do you believe Pabco was an asbestos
20
21 product?
22
23 A Yes, I do.
24
25 Q Whats the basis for that belief?
91: 1
2 A Well, at that period of time in a refinery all
3
4 we used was asbestos.
5 Q Did you utilize Pabco in the same way that
6
7 you utilized Calsilite and Kaylo?
8
9 A Yes.
10
11 Q Would it be fair to say, then, that you
12
13 would hammer and cut the Pabco also?
14
15 A Yes.
16
17 Q You also mentioned Johns-Manville pipe
18
19 covering.
20
21 A Yes.
22
23 Q Did that come packaged?
24
25 A Yes.
92: 1
2 Q Was that in a box?
3
4 A Yes.
5
6 Q Do you recall any writing on the box?
7
8 A Just Johns-Manville.
9
10 Q Do you believe that was an asbestos
11
12 product?
13
14 A Yes, I do.
15
16 Q And whats the basis for that belief?
17
18 A That period of time is the only product that was
19
20 used for insulation.
21
22 Q And how did you utilize Johns-Manville
23
24 pipe covering, if at all?
25
93: 1 A Its the same way as the other pipe coverings.
2
3 You know, you had to cover a piece of pipe with it and
4 you had to make it fit. You either cut it or hammered
5
6 it or kicked it or did something to it.
7
8 Q Finally you mentioned Thermasil pipe
9
10 covering.
11
12 A Uh-huh.
13
14 Q Was that also packaged?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q Was there anything written on the package?
19
20 A Just Thermasil.
21
22 Q Do you believe that product contained
23
24 asbestos?
25
94: 1 A Yes, I do.
2
3 Q Did you use Thermasil in the same way you
4
5 used Calsilite, Kaylo, Pabco and Johns-Manville?
6
7 A Yes.
8
9 Q Would it be fair to say that that product
10
11 also generated dust during that process?
12
13 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
14
15 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
16
17 MS. BANEZ: Leading.
18
19 MR. CIFALDI: Ill go through it then if
20
21 necessary.
22
23 Q How did you utilize Thermasil pipe
24
25 covering?
95: 1
2 A In the same ways that we used the other pipe
3 coverings.
4
5 Q And what would that entail?
6
7 A It would entail cutting it and hammering it or,
8
9 you know, just making it fit whatever way you could
10
11 make it fit.
12
13 Q What was the atmosphere like while you
14
15 were utilizing that product?
16
17 A Well, once you would hammer it or cut it, it
18
19 would cause dust.
20
21 Q And did you inhale that dust?
22
23 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
24
25 A Yes.
96: 1
2 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
3
4 Q You also previously mentioned working with
5
6 or around asbestos cement products during the time
7
8 period you were a welder and a rigger.
9
10 Could you please tell the jury if you know
11
12 the names — the brand names or manufacturer names of
13
14 any of those cements products — asbestos cement
15
16 products?
17
18 A Yeah. It was Powerhouse, Super Powerhouse,
19
20 Stictite, Empire, Johns-Manville. Im sure there was
21
22 probably more but I cant recall.
23
24 Q You believe there was others but you cant
25
97: 1 recall at this time?
2 A Yes, I do.
3
4 Q With reference to the Powerhouse asbestos
5
6 cement, did that come packaged?
7
8 A Yes.
9
10 Q How was that packaged?
11
12 A In bags.
13
14 Q Was anything written on those bags?
15
16 A Asbestos cement.
17
18 Q Anything other than asbestos cement?
19
20 A Well, Powerhouse.
21
22 Q What did the Powerhouse cement look like?
23
24 A It was gray and it was like a powder, like
25
98: 1 flour.
2
3 Q Other than seeing the Powerhouse cement
4
5 bag, did you ever utilize — strike that.
6
7 Other than seeing the Powerhouse cement
8
9 bag, did you have any other dealings with that product?
10
11 A Yes.
12
13 Q And what were they?
14
15 A Well, when you came to the end of a pipe where
16
17 it had an elbow, you used to have to mix this stuff up
18
19 and, you know, go around the elbow with, you know, like
20
21 butter it up, you know, like you put an icing on a
22
23 cake.
24
25 Q Do you recall mixing Powerhouse cement?
99: 1 A Sure.
2
3 Q And could you please describe to the jury
4
5 how you would mix Powerhouse cement and Id assume any
6
7 other cement that you would be utilizing, what would
8
9 the process be?
10
11 A Just pour it into either a wheelbarrow or a
12
13 bucket or depending on how big of a job you got, you
14
15 got them real big troughs that the carpenters had, you
16
17 know, pour it into that, throw some water on it and mix
18
19 it up.
20
21 Q What was the atmosphere like when you
22
23 would be mixing Powerhouse cement?
24
25 A Oh, it was dusty.
100: 1
2 Q Did you inhale that dust?
3
4 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
5
6 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
7
8 A Yes.
9
10 Q You also mentioned Stictite cement. Did
11
12 that come in a package?
13
14 A Yes.
15
16 Q And how was that packaged?
17
18 A In a bag.
19
20 Q Was there any writing on the bag?
21
22 A Stictite, I guess. I dont know.
23
24 Q Are you sure it said Stictite?
25 A Yeah.
101: 1
2 Q Anything other than Stictite on the bag?
3
4 A Im not really — you know, I cant be –
5
6 Q If you are not sure, please tell us that,
7
8 thats fine.
9
10 A I cant be sure.
11
12 Q Do you believe Stictite contained
13
14 asbestos?
15
16 A Definitely. Yeah.
17
18 Q And whats the basis of that belief?
19
20 A It was common knowledge in the yard.
21
22 Q Did you ever utilize Stictite asbestos
23
24 cement?
25
102: 1 A Sure.
2
3 Q And how would you utilize that product?
4
5 A Well, all the — I think they all had different
6
7 uses but were you kind of, like, interchanged them, you
8
9 know, when you ran out of this you used that. And you
10
11 know, basically we used them all for the same things.
12
13 Q But you specifically recall utilizing
14
15 Stictite asbestos cement?
16
17 A Oh, definitely. Yes.
18
19 Q Was that mixed in the same way that
20
21 Powerhouse was mixed?
22
23 A Yes.
24 Q What were the conditions like when mixing
25
103: 1 Stictite asbestos cement?
2
3 A Dusty.
4
5 Q Did you inhale that dust?
6
7 A Yes.
8
9 Q You also mentioned Empire asbestos cement.
10
11 Did that come in a package?
12
13 A Yes.
14
15 Q Was there any writing on that package?
16
17 A Empire.
18
19 Q Anything other than Empire?
20
21 A I cant recall.
22
23 Q Do you have a belief whether Empire was
24
25 asbestos cement?
104: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 Q And whats the basis of that belief?
5
6 A Just common knowledge and at that period of time
7
8 in the yard we didnt use anything except asbestos.
9
10 Q Did you use Empire in the same way that
11
12 you used Powerhouse asbestos cement and Stictite
13
14 asbestos cement?
15
16 A Certainly.
17
18 Q Would it be fair to say that the
19
20 atmospheric conditions were the same?
21
22 A Certainly.
23 Q You also mentioned Johns-Manville cement.
24
25 How did that come packaged?
105: 1
2 A Bags.
3
4 Q Anything written on those bags?
5
6 A Johns-Manville.
7
8 Q Anything other than Johns-Manville?
9
10 A Not that I could recall.
11
12 Q Do you believe Johns-Manville was an
13
14 asbestos cement?
15
16 A Yes, I do.
17
18 Q And is the basis of your belief the same
19
20 as you previously stated?
21
22 A Thats correct.
23
24 Q Do you ever recall utilizing
25
106: 1 Johns-Manville asbestos cement?
2
3 A Sure.
4
5 Q And how did you utilize that product, in
6
7 the same way as previous?
8
9 A Yes.
10
11 Q Would you mix that product?
12
13 A Yes.
14
15 Q Were the atmospheric conditions the same?
16
17 A Yes. Very dusty.
18
19 Q At this time can you recall any other
20
21 asbestos cement products that you used or were exposed
22 to as a welder or a rigger at Exxon?
23
24 A Asbestos products?
25
107: 1 Q Asbestos cements.
2
3 A Oh, cements. Excuse me. None at this time I
4
5 cant.
6
7 Q You also mentioned that you worked with
8
9 asbestos blankets.
10
11 Can you recall the brand name or
12
13 manufacturer name of those blankets?
14
15 A I believe it was Raybestos.
16
17 Q Did those blankets come packaged in any
18
19 way?
20
21 A Yes, they did.
22
23 Q And how did they come packaged?
24
25 A I dont seem to recall.
108: 1
2 Q When you worked as a welder and a rigger
3
4 at Exxon, how did you utilize the Raybestos blankets?
5
6 A We used to have to get them from the carpenters
7
8 or insulators to cover sewers with them and we used to
9
10 have to cut them up and cover a sewer and then pile
11
12 clay on top of the fire blankets to make it a
13
14 spark-free environment and also we used to have to make
15
16 little tents with these blankets also for spark-free
17
18 environments. And then sometimes you just used them
19
20 when you were working in a very extremely hot area to
21 cover a piece of pipe that was standing next to you or
22
23 whatnot, so you wouldnt get burned.
24
25 Q When you would cut the Raybestos
109: 1
2 blankets — strike that.
3
4 Do you believe that — do you know what
5
6 the Raybestos blankets were composed of?
7
8 A Asbestos.
9
10 Q When you would cut the Raybestos blankets,
11
12 what was the atmosphere like?
13
14 A It was, I guess, you cause some dust and
15
16 flakiness.
17
18 Q And would you inhale that dust?
19
20 MR. CONSTANTINE: Objection. Leading.
21
22 A Sure.
23
24 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
25
110: 1 Q You also mentioned packing — asbestos
2
3 packing and gasket products as a welder and a rigger.
4
5 Can you recall the name — brand name or manufacturers
6
7 names of any of the gaskets that you utilized at Exxon?
8
9 A Yes. Garlock and Flexitallic, spiral wound.
10
11 Q With reference to the Garlock gaskets. Do
12
13 you recall if they were packaged?
14
15 A No, they werent never packaged. Well, some of
16
17 them — the real big ones came on a piece of cardboard,
18
19 taped to a piece of cardboard. The smaller ones just
20 came bunched together and tied with little pieces of
21
22 string or something.
23
24 Q Were these pre-formed or sheet gaskets?
25
111: 1 A They were pre-formed and we also used sheet
2
3 gaskets.
4
5 Q When you utilized these sheet gaskets, how
6
7 did you know that they were Garlock?
8
9 A It said Garlock right on it.
10
11 Q And with reference to the pre-formed
12
13 gaskets, how did you know they were Garlock?
14
15 A It was the same material. Says Garlock right on
16
17 it.
18
19 Q And do you believe the pre-formed and
20
21 sheet gaskets contained asbestos?
22
23 A Yes, I do.
24
25 Q And what is the basis for that belief?
112: 1
2 A Its common knowledge.
3
4 Q When you utilized the Garlock asbestos
5
6 sheet gaskets, is there anything you had to do with
7
8 that product before it could be installed?
9
10 A Could you repeat that, please?
11
12 Q Sure. When you had a Garlock sheet, was
13
14 there anything you had to do to that sheet before it
15
16 could be utilized for the purpose it was designed?
17
18 A Yes. You had to cut it and make it fit the
19 application. You would either have to cut it with a
20
21 knife or if you were lucky enough to have a gasket
22
23 cutter you had a gasket cutter, but most of the time
24
25 you used a pencil to mark it out with and then you used
113: 1
2 the knife or sometimes you used even a hammer and just
3
4 beat it over a form (indicating).
5
6 Q What were the conditions like when you
7
8 were beating it over a form with a hammer?
9
10 A Well, it would flake up and, you know, cause, I
11
12 guess, some kind of dust.
13
14 Q Would that dust get into the air?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q Would you inhale that dust?
19
20 MR. DORIAN: Objection.
21
22 A Certainly.
23
24 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
25
114: 1 Q You also noted that you worked with
2
3 Flexitallic spiral-wound gaskets.
4
5 A Yes.
6
7 Q How did you know that they were
8
9 Flexitallic?
10
11 A It says so right on them.
12
13 Q It was written right on the gasket?
14
15 A Yes. Stamped on the metal part.
16
17 Q Could you please describe to the jury what
18 a Flexitallic spiral-wound gasket is?
19
20 A Well, its a ring of metal and then it has a
21
22 slight gutter that goes around the inside of it and
23
24 after that it gets about anywhere from, I guess,
25
115: 1 three-eighths of an inch to an inch of asbestos spiral
2
3 wounding and then it gets another little gutter to hold
4
5 it in place.
6
7 Q Did you install those gaskets?
8
9 A Yes.
10
11 Q Other than installing the gaskets, did you
12
13 have anything else to do with them?
14
15 A Take them out.
16
17 Q Were you able to identify when you were
18
19 removing a Flexitallic gasket?
20
21 A Oh, sure.
22
23 Q And how was that?
24
25 A It was stamped right on them.
116: 1
2 Q And what were the conditions — strike
3
4 that.
5
6 How would you go about removing a
7
8 Flexitallic spiral-wound gasket?
9
10 A Well, youd have to open a pipe joint and youd
11
12 have to get it wedged open far enough to where you
13
14 could get something in there and punch the gasket out.
15
16 Q And what would you punch the gasket out
17 with?
18
19 A A pin or chisel or scraper. You know, anything
20
21 that would make it move. Sometimes they get stuck in
22
23 there.
24
25 Q If they were stuck, would you have to
117: 1
2 utilize another procedure?
3
4 A Well, youd have to, you know, hammer it out
5
6 some way and then go in with a scraper and scrape all
7
8 the asbestos off the flanges.
9
10 Q What were the conditions like when you
11
12 would be scraping the asbestos off the flanges from the
13
14 Flexitallic gaskets?
15
16 A It would be dusty.
17
18 Q Did you inhale that dusk?
19
20 A Sure.
21
22 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
23
24 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
25
118: 1 Q You also mentioned asbestos packing as
2
3 being utilized by you or in your vicinity during the
4
5 time period you were a welder and a rigger.
6
7 Do you know the manufacturer or
8
9 manufacturers of that packing?
10
11 A Yes.
12
13 Q And could you please tell the jury?
14
15 A Anchor and Crane.
16 Q What type of Anchor product — Anchor
17
18 packing product would you utilize? Could you describe
19
20 it?
21
22 A Well, it came on spools and it was just, you
23
24 know, wound on spools or was — it was gray in color
25
119: 1 and, I guess, most of it was square and it would come
2
3 anywhere from real thin stuff to maybe a half an inch
4
5 or maybe even a little bit larger.
6
7 Q Other than being wrapped on a spool, did
8
9 the Anchor packing come packaged in any other way?
10
11 A In boxes.
12
13 Q And was anything written on the box?
14
15 A Anchor packing.
16
17 Q Do you believe that Anchor packing
18
19 contained asbestos?
20
21 MR. KOT: Objection.
22
23 A Yes, I do.
24
25 Q Whats the basis of that belief?
120: 1
2 A Its common knowledge.
3
4 Q Did you ever utilize Anchor packing?
5
6 A Yes, I did.
7
8 Q And how would you utilize the product?
9
10 A Well, we would take the valves apart and that
11
12 would be leaking and use these, like, cork screws and
13
14 pull the old packing out (indicating) and sometimes
15 youd have to even chisel it out and then you put all
16
17 new packing inside there and then put the valves back
18
19 together.
20
21 Q How would you install the Anchor asbestos
22
23 packing into those valves?
24
25 MR. KOT: Objection.
121: 1
2 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
3
4 MR. KOT: The terminology.
5
6 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
7
8 Q Go ahead.
9
10 A Well, we would cut it in pieces. You couldnt
11
12 really just go — keep going around in a circle, you
13
14 had to cut it in pieces and then push it down inside
15
16 these, I guess, whats called the bonnet or valve and
17
18 you rotate the pieces so that, I guess, you wouldnt
19
20 get a leak through there and thats about it.
21
22 Q When you cut the Anchor packing, what were
23
24 the conditions like?
25
122: 1 A Well, they would flake and get the stuff all
2
3 over your hands.
4
5 Q With reference to the — what was the
6
7 other packing that you mentioned, Im sorry?
8
9 A Crane.
10
11 Q Crane packing. How was Crane packing
12
13 packaged, if at all?
14 A The same.
15
16 Q Did it come on spools like Anchor?
17
18 A It came on spools and in boxes.
19
20 Q And was anything written on the box?
21
22 A Crane.
23
24 Q Did you utilize Crane packing?
25
123: 1 A Yes.
2
3 Q Do you have any belief as to what Crane
4
5 packing was composed of?
6
7 A Asbestos.
8
9 Q Would you utilize Crane packing in the
10
11 same way as you used Anchor?
12
13 A Yes. Thats correct.
14
15 Q Would fibers get on your hand the same way
16
17 as it would with Anchor when utilizing Crane packing?
18
19 MR. RICHARDSON: Objection.
20
21 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
22
23 A Yes, they would.
24
25 Q When you utilized Crane packing what
124: 1
2 process would did you use? How would you use the
3
4 product?
5
6 A You would have to do the same thing as with the
7
8 Anchor. You would have to take a valve apart, take the
9
10 old stuff out, cut up the new stuff and, you know, most
11
12 of the time you had to hammer it into place.
13 Q When you were hammering or cutting the
14
15 Crane packing, what were the conditions like?
16
17 A Well, these little –
18
19 MR. RICHARDSON: Objection. Compound
20
21 questions.
22
23 MR. CIFALDI: Strike that.
24
25 Q When you were hammering the Crane packing,
125: 1
2 what were the conditions like?
3
4 A These little flecks would fly up.
5
6 Q When you were cutting Crane packing, what
7
8 would the conditions be like?
9
10 A Just about the same. It would flake.
11
12 Q You also previously testified to the fact
13
14 that you as a Exxon employee and other Exxon employees
15
16 remove and installed asbestos products.
17
18 At Exxon were only Exxon employees
19
20 performing that job?
21
22 A No.
23
24 Q Who else performed that job?
25
126: 1 A Contractors.
2
3 Q As you sit here today, can you recall any
4
5 of the contractors that either did removal or
6
7 installation work of asbestos at Exxon during the time
8
9 period you were a welder or a rigger?
10
11 A Yeah. I guess, A.C.& S., Kentuk, Chicago
12 Bridge, Tompkins, Foster Wheeler, Davey McKee, Keasbey,
13
14 Johansen Brothers.
15
16 Gees, theres, you know, just a lot more
17
18 of them that I cant even remember right now.
19
20 Q With regard to A.C.& S., do you know what
21
22 A.C.& S. stands for, if anything?
23
24 A Not really.
25
127: 1 Q How did you know that A.C.& S. was a
2
3 contractor that either installed or removed asbestos
4
5 products at Exxon?
6
7 A Because I used to work side-by-side with them
8
9 sometimes.
10
11 Q And how would you know they were
12
13 A.C.& S. employees?
14
15 A Well, they wore badges and they had trucks.
16
17 Q To your knowledge, what functions did
18
19 A.C.& S. serve at Exxon? What did they do?
20
21 A To my knowledge, they were only insulators and
22
23 that they removed insulation and put new insulation up.
24
25 Q And you previously — strike that.
128: 1
2 Were you in their vicinity when theyd
3
4 either install or remove asbestos insulation?
5
6 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
7
8 A Yes, I was.
9
10 Q Can you recall any specific location that
11 A.C.& S. performed asbestos insulation and removal?
12
13 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
14
15 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
16
17 MS. BANEZ: Lack of foundation.
18
19 Q Lets go back. What specific functions
20
21 did A.C.& S. perform at Exxon?
22
23 A Removal and installation of insulation.
24
25 Q Do you know any specific locations where
129: 1
2 they removed asbestos insulation?
3
4 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
5
6 MR. CIFALDI: Strike that.
7
8 Q What type of insulation did they remove?
9
10 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
11
12 A Asbestos.
13
14 Q Do you have any specific locations where
15
16 they removed asbestos insulation?
17
18 If you cant recall, thats fine.
19
20 A I cant recall.
21
22 Q You also testified that they installed
23
24 asbestos insulation, to the best of your knowledge –
25
130: 1 A Yes.
2
3 Q Is that correct?
4
5 A Yes.
6
7 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
8
9 Q Do you know what types or generic types of
10 asbestos products they installed?
11
12 A They installed — I saw them install block and
13
14 pipe block.
15
16 Q Anything else?
17
18 A Cement they used. Certainly they had to use
19
20 cement.
21
22 Q Were you in the vicinity when those
23
24 products were being installed?
25
131: 1 A Sometimes.
2
3 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
4
5 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
6
7 MS. BANEZ: Leading.
8
9 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
10
11 MS. BANEZ: Thank you.
12
13 Q What was the atmosphere like while block
14
15 pipe covering cement were being installed by A.C.& S.
16
17 employees?
18
19 MS. BANEZ: Objection. Compound.
20
21 Q Go ahead.
22
23 A It was dusty.
24
25 Q Did you inhale that dust?
132: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
5
6 Q You also mentioned Davey McKee as a
7
8 contractor. To your knowledge, what was their function
9 at Exxon?
10
11 A I think they did mechanical work and insulation,
12
13 removal of insulation.
14
15 Q When you say insulation, what does that
16
17 include?
18
19 A Well, just, you know, taking off insulation and
20
21 putting it back on.
22
23 Q Do you have a belief as to the composition
24
25 of the insulation that Davey McKee installed?
133: 1
2 A Asbestos.
3
4 Q Do you have a belief as to the composition
5
6 of the insulation that Davey McKee removed?
7
8 A Asbestos.
9
10 Q How did you know that Davey McKee
11
12 employees were working in your vicinity at Exxon?
13
14 A They would wear badges or certain color hats or
15
16 whatnot, you know. There was also something, a little
17
18 sign or something.
19
20 Q Did you work with Davey McKee employees or
21
22 in their vicinity?
23
24 A In their vicinity.
25
134: 1 Q What you would you say the closest would
2
3 be that youd be to a Davey McKee employee?
4
5 A Oh, sometimes youd be right next to them.
6
7 Q Do you have a belief as to the types of
8 asbestos products — when I say types, I mean generic
9
10 name, that they installed?
11
12 A Pipe covering and cement.
13
14 Q When they installed the pipe covering and
15
16 cement, what were the atmospheric conditions like?
17
18 A Dusty.
19
20 Q Would you inhale that dust?
21
22 MR. GANZHORN: Objection.
23
24 A Yes.
25
135: 1 MR. CIFALDI: What is the basis for these
2
3 objections if he inhaled the dust?
4
5 MS. BANEZ: Leading.
6
7 MR. GANZHORN: Leading.
8
9 Q You also mentioned Chicago Bridge as a
10
11 contractor.
12
13 What was their function at Exxon during
14
15 the time period you were a welder and a rigger?
16
17 A They handled most of the cat plant turn arounds
18
19 and they did, I guess, all different ends of the work
20
21 that was involved.
22
23 Q And when you say the work that was
24
25 involved, what specifically did Chicago Bridge, as a
136: 1
2 contractor, do at Exxon?
3
4 A Well, they would remove and replace whatever had
5
6 to be replaced and if that meant that it had to be
7 stripped of insulation and reinsulated thats what they
8
9 would do.
10
11 Q Do you have a belief as to the type of
12
13 insulation they applied, the composition?
14
15 MS. SIM: Objection.
16
17 A Asbestos.
18
19 Q Do you have a belief as to the composition
20
21 of the insulation that they removed?
22
23 A Asbestos.
24
25 Q How did you know that Chicago Bridge was
137: 1
2 at Exxon while you were a welder and a rigger?
3
4 A Well, everybody had big signs and everybody wore
5
6 badges.
7
8 Q And did you work in the vicinity of
9
10 Chicago Bridge employees?
11
12 MS. SIM: Objection.
13
14 A Yes.
15
16 Q What was the closest that you would say
17
18 that you were with reference to a Chicago Bridge
19
20 employee?
21
22 A Sometimes right next to him.
23
24 Q And what would they be doing when you
25
138: 1 would be working right next to them?
2
3 A Be doing anything, welding, insulating,
4
5 pipefitting, rigging, boiler making.
6 Q Do you have a recollection as to what type
7
8 of asbestos products Chicago Bridge installed?
9
10 MS. SIM: Objection.
11
12 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
13
14 MS. SIM: Leading.
15
16 MR. CIFALDI: Its his prior testimony,
17
18 counsel.
19
20 Q You could answer.
21
22 A Pipe coverings and these block insulations and
23
24 cements.
25
139: 1 Q What were the atmospheric conditions like
2
3 when they were installing the pipe covering?
4
5 A Dusty.
6
7 Q When they were installing the cement?
8
9 A Dusty.
10
11 Q Did you inhale that dust?
12
13 MS. SIM: Objection.
14
15 A Sure. Sometimes.
16
17 Q You also mentioned Foster Wheeler as a
18
19 contractor at Exxon while you were a welder and a
20
21 rigger.
22
23 Can you recall what Foster Wheeler did at
24
25 Exxon?
140: 1
2 A They did the same thing as, like, Chicago
3
4 Bridge. They would get a big job and, you know, do it
5 from one end to the other end. Sometimes we would be
6
7 coming in from the other end.
8
9 Q What would be your interaction with Foster
10
11 Wheeler employees, if anything?
12
13 A Well, sometimes you would be doing one-half of
14
15 the job and they would be doing another half of the job
16
17 and, you know, sometimes you get pretty close together.
18
19 Q What would you say the closest youve been
20
21 to a Foster Wheeler employee while he was performing
22
23 his job duties at Exxon?
24
25 A Side-by-side.
141: 1
2 Q Again, how did you know that Foster
3
4 Wheeler was a contractor at Exxon?
5
6 A Big signs. Everybody had big signs. Badges.
7
8 Q Do you recall — strike that.
9
10 Do you have a belief as to what type of
11
12 products, what the composition of the products were
13
14 that Foster Wheeler installed?
15
16 MR. BERMAN: Objection.
17
18 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
19
20 MR. BERMAN: No foundation.
21
22 MR. CIFALDI: I believe theres a
23
24 sufficient foundation from prior testimony,
25
142: 1 counsel.
2
3 Q You could answer.
4 A Asbestos products.
5
6 Q And you have a belief as to the
7
8 composition of the products that they removed?
9
10 MR. BERMAN: Objection.
11
12 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
13
14 A Asbestos.
15
16 Q Can you please tell the jury or can you
17
18 recall what type of asbestos products Foster Wheeler
19
20 employees installed?
21
22 MR. BERMAN: Objection.
23
24 A Pipe block, asbestos cement. Of course,
25
143: 1 everybody used gaskets.
2
3 Q What were the atmospheric conditions like
4
5 when you would be in the vicinity of Foster Wheeler
6
7 employees utilizing asbestos cements?
8
9 MR. BERMAN: Objection.
10
11 A It would be dusty.
12
13 Q Did you inhale that dust?
14
15 MR. BERMAN: Objection.
16
17 A Sometimes.
18
19 Q You also mentioned a contractor by the
20
21 name of Roland — strike that– Tompkins?
22
23 A Uh-hum.
24
25 Q How did you know that they did work at
144: 1
2 Exxon?
3 A Gees, its a very familiar name to me.
4
5 Q Do you have any knowledge as to what
6
7 Tompkins did at Exxon?
8
9 A Not completely. No.
10
11 Q You also mentioned Kentuk.
12
13 A Yes.
14
15 Q How did you know that Kentuk was at Exxon?
16
17 A Well, you used to see their trucks and their
18
19 people.
20
21 Q And do you have any knowledge as to what
22
23 Kentuks function at Exxon was?
24
25 A They were strictly to take insulation out and
145: 1
2 put insulation in.
3
4 Q And do you have any knowledge as to what
5
6 insulation they removed, what type?
7
8 A Asbestos.
9
10 MR. KONRAY: Objection. No foundation.
11
12 MR. CIFALDI: Thats noted.
13
14 Q How did you know that they were removing
15
16 asbestos insulation?
17
18 A Well, thats what was used at the time.
19
20 Q What was your interaction with Kentuk
21
22 employees, if any?
23
24 A None.
25
146: 1 Q Were you ever in the vicinity where Kentuk
2 employees were working?
3
4 A Yes.
5
6 Q And what would the closest point you would
7
8 be to a Kentuk employee?
9
10 A Oh, well, yeah — I guess. Yeah. Sometimes
11
12 youd be right next to them.
13
14 Q And do you have any knowledge what the
15
16 Kentuk employees were doing at the times that you would
17
18 be right next to them?
19
20 A Yes.
21
22 Q And what would that be?
23
24 A That would be either taking insulation off or
25
147: 1 putting insulation on.
2
3 Q As you previously testified you believe
4
5 that was asbestos insulation they were removing. Is
6
7 that correct?
8
9 A Yes.
10
11 Q What were the atmospheric conditions like
12
13 when they were removing the asbestos insulation?
14
15 A Very dusty.
16
17 Q Did you inhale that dust?
18
19 A Sometimes.
20
21 Q You previously testified to various
22
23 asbestos products you either worked with or around.
24
25 Were those products supplied by Exxon?
148: 1 A No.
2
3 Q Were they supplied by someone outside of
4
5 Exxon?
6
7 A Well, yeah. They had suppliers.
8
9 Q Can you recall the names of any of the
10
11 suppliers that Exxon utilized while you were a welder
12
13 and a rigger?
14
15 A Yeah. Madsen & Howell, Empire, Johns-Manville,
16
17 State Insulation.
18
19 Q Is that all you can recall at this time?
20
21 A Thats all I can recall, yeah.
22
23 Q With reference to State Insulation, how
24
25 did you become aware that they delivered to Exxon?
149: 1
2 A Through the trucks.
3
4 Q Did you ever see a truck?
5
6 A Yes.
7
8 Q Was there any identifying mark on the
9
10 truck?
11
12 A Yes.
13
14 Q And what would that be?
15
16 A It said State Insulation on it.
17
18 Q How frequently, to the best of your
19
20 knowledge, on an average, would State Insulation trucks
21
22 deliver to Exxon?
23
24 A Oh, I dont know. Its quite often. We were a
25 big buyer.
150: 1
2 Q Do you have any knowledge as to what
3
4 products were delivered by State Insulation to Exxon?
5
6 A Pipe covering, cements. Maybe some more that I
7
8 really dont remember.
9
10 Q Do you have any — strike that.
11
12 Do you have any knowledge as to what the
13
14 cement products that State Insulation delivered were
15
16 composed of?
17
18 A Asbestos.
19
20 MR. McGRATH: Objection. No foundation.
21
22 MR. CIFALDI: Even though its a late
23
24 objection, its noted.
25
151: 1 Q Whats the basis of your belief that the
2
3 cements shipped by State Insulation contained asbestos?
4
5 A Because at the time thats all we used was
6
7 asbestos. It was common knowledge that it was
8
9 asbestos.
10
11 Q Did you ever unload a State Insulation
12
13 truck?
14
15 A I dont think so.
16
17 Q Were you ever in the vicinity of others
18
19 unloading State Insulation trucks?
20
21 A Sure.
22
23 Q Do you have any knowledge if you ever
24 utilized products, for example, cement from a State
25
152: 1 Insulation truck?
2
3 A Oh, sure.
4
5 Q And how would you know that?
6
7 A Well, because they would, most of the time, drop
8
9 it off at the job site and then you would get it from
10
11 there.
12
13 Q And do you have a belief as to what that
14
15 cement was composed of?
16
17 MR. McGRATH: Objection. No foundation.
18
19 A Asbestos.
20
21 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
22
23 Q You also testified as to recalling Madsen
24
25 & Howell being a supplier to Exxon during the time
153: 1
2 period you were a welder and rigger.
3
4 How did you come to learn that Madsen &
5
6 Howell was a supplier to Exxon?
7
8 A I guess through the writing on their trucks.
9
10 Q So you saw the name Madsen & Howell on the
11
12 truck?
13
14 A Uh-huh.
15
16 Q And do you have any knowledge as to what
17
18 type of products Madsen & Howell delivered to Exxon?
19
20 A Yeah.
21
22 Q And what would they deliver?
23 A They would deliver gaskets and sheet gasket
24
25 material. I guess, like store-house items.
154: 1
2 Q How did you know that Madsen & Howell
3
4 delivered gaskets?
5
6 A Because we used to have to wait for the trucks
7
8 to come in so we could do the job.
9
10 Q And did you ever utilize the gaskets
11
12 delivered by Madsen & Howell?
13
14 A Sure.
15
16 Q And do you have a belief as to what those
17
18 gaskets were composed of?
19
20 A Sure.
21
22 Q And what were those?
23
24 A Asbestos.
25
155: 1 Q You also testified that Empire was a
2
3 supplier to Exxon. Is that correct?
4
5 A Yeah.
6
7 Q Do you know what Empire supplied to Exxon?
8
9 A Cement.
10
11 Q And would that be the Empire cement you
12
13 previously testified to?
14
15 MR. CHAZEN: Objection to the form of
16
17 question as leading.
18
19 A Yes.
20
21 MR. CIFALDI: Strike that.
22 Q What type of cement did Empire deliver?
23
24 A Asbestos cement.
25
156: 1 Q Is that the cement that you previously
2
3 testified was manufactured by Anchor?
4
5 MR. KOT: Objection.
6
7 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
8
9 MR. KOT: The terminology, I think you
10
11 used a different supplier than you intended.
12
13 MR. CIFALDI: Ill rephrase the question.
14
15 Q With reference to the Empire supplying
16
17 products to Exxon, did they supply Empire cement?
18
19 A Yes.
20
21 Q And how did you know Empire cement was
22
23 supplied by Empire?
24
25 A I guess through their trucks.
157: 1
2 MR. CHAZEN: I ask that the answer be
3
4 stricken.
5
6 Q During the time period you worked at Exxon
7
8 as a welder, can you recall any of your co-workers?
9
10 A Oh, sure.
11
12 Q And what Id like you to do is relate to
13
14 the jury those co-workers that you worked with most
15
16 often while a rigger — sorry — while an apprentice
17
18 welder.
19
20 A Tommy Butler, Eddie Kinsella, Joe Chuck, Al
21 DAdamo, Walter Dziedzic, Stanley Dziedzic, Bruno
22
23 Dziedzic, Tommy Bowden, Bobby Bowden, Walley Bowden,
24
25 Davey Boyle, Frankie Marhan, Johnny Thorz.
158: 1
2 Q Are you finished?
3
4 A Yeah. You know, theres just so many that I can
5
6 sit here all day.
7
8 Q Did you continue to work with the
9
10 individuals that youve just mentioned as a rigger?
11
12 A Yes, I did.
13
14 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
15
16 Q Why dont you relate to the jury what
17
18 individuals you worked with while you were a rigger at
19
20 Exxon even though it seems a bit repetitive.
21
22 A Tommy Butler, Eddie Kinsella, Joe Chuck, Georgie
23
24 White, Walter Dziedzic, Stanley Dziedzic, Bruno
25
159: 1 Dziedzic, Tommy Bowden, Bobby Bowden, Walley Bowden, Al
2
3 DAdamo, Davey Boyle. These are just all –
4
5 Q That about covers them?
6
7 A These are all old timers. You dont want new
8
9 people, do you?
10
11 Q Thats sufficient.
12
13 During the time that you were employed at
14
15 Exxon, did anyone ever tell you to wear a mask or
16
17 respirator while working around asbestos?
18
19 A During the time I was employed at Exxon?
20 Q Yeah. Up to the present?
21
22 A Yes.
23
24 Q And when was the first time someone
25
160: 1 informed you of that fact?
2
3 A Around 1980.
4
5 Q And from that time point on when you were
6
7 around asbestos, did you wear that mask?
8
9 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
10
11 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
12
13 MS. BANEZ: Leading.
14
15 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
16
17 A I did.
18
19 Q During the entire time you worked at
20
21 Exxon, did you ever see a warning on any asbestos
22
23 product you used or were exposed to?
24
25 A No.
161: 1
2 Q During the entire time you worked at
3
4 Exxon, did you ever see a warning which informed you
5
6 that asbestos could kill you or cause lung cancer?
7
8 A No.
9
10 Q If you had seen such a warning, what would
11
12 you have done?
13
14 A I would have went back to drafting.
15
16 Q You would have left Exxon then?
17
18 A Yes.
19 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
20
21 MR. CIFALDI: Although its late, its
22
23 noted.
24
25 MS. BANEZ: Thank you.
162: 1
2 Q Have you ever smoked?
3
4 A Yes.
5
6 Q And what did you smoke?
7
8 A Camel cigarettes.
9
10 Q When did you first smoke? The best you
11
12 can recall.
13
14 A Maybe about 15.
15
16 Q When you were 15-years old?
17
18 A Yeah.
19
20 Q And when did you quit smoking?
21
22 A The day I found out I had a problem.
23
24 Q And what problem were you referring to?
25
163: 1 A Which is in October of 86.
2
3 The lung cancer.
4
5 Q Approximately on average during the time
6
7 period you smoked, what was your consumption on a daily
8
9 basis?
10
11 A I guess, for most of the years it was less than
12
13 a pack and in, I guess, about the last five or six
14
15 years it was about two packs.
16
17 Q At this time are there any hobbies or
18 activities that you have not been able to perform as a
19
20 result of your lung cancer?
21
22 A Yes, there is.
23
24 Q And could you please tell the jury what
25
164: 1 those are?
2
3 A Actually all of my hobbies. I cant do
4
5 anything.
6
7 Q Could you try to be a little bit more
8
9 specific?
10
11 A Well, big hobby was working on cars. I did all
12
13 my own work for — ever since I was 15 or 16. And
14
15 working around the house, doing landscaping and outside
16
17 certainly, and I built a lot of things. You know, the
18
19 shed, decks, built concrete patios.
20
21 You know, I just did everything and, you
22
23 know, it became a hobby of mine to do everything after.
24
25 I guess I started because I was too cheap or couldnt
165: 1
2 afford to have to pay for it but then it got to be a
3
4 hobby and, you know, I just used to like the challenge
5
6 of doing different things and now I dont do anything.
7
8 I cant — I cant even mow the lawn.
9
10 Q Other than the hobbies that you had around
11
12 the house and yard work, did you have any other
13
14 hobbies, for example, sports hobbies or –
15
16 A Well, yeah. I used to hunt, I used to fish and
17 bowling and — yeah, thats stuff I dont do any more
18
19 either.
20
21 Q When was the last time you bowled?
22
23 A It would have been, I guess, last year.
24
25 Q And why did you stop bowling?
166: 1
2 A It was the end of the season.
3
4 Q Do you anticipate bowling in the next
5
6 season?
7
8 A No.
9
10 Q And why is that?
11
12 A I dont — I get out of breath.
13
14 Q When was the last time you fished?
15
16 A It would have been last year.
17
18 Q And do you plan on fishing again?
19
20 A Not in the near future. No.
21
22 Q What about hunting, when was the last time
23
24 you had hunted?
25
167: 1 A A few years ago. You know, its always been –
2
3 I stopped and was actually waiting for my son to get
4
5 older so he could go with me and it just looks like
6
7 its a little too late now.
8
9 Q You dont feel youll be up to that in the
10
11 future?
12
13 A No.
14
15 And I used to swim a great deal.
16 Q And was that ocean swimming, pool
17
18 swimming?
19
20 A No, its pool swimming. I used to belong to the
21
22 Y. And –
23
24 Q How — Im sorry. How often would you
25
168: 1 swim?
2
3 A I would swim three times a week.
4
5 Q And are you unable to do that since your
6
7 lung cancer has been diagnosed?
8
9 A Yes, I cant swim any more.
10
11 Q You previously touched on some of the
12
13 things that you did around the home, you mentioned the
14
15 lawn, you mentioned building a deck, a concrete patio.
16
17 Are there any chores or things that you
18
19 would do in the house prior to being diagnosed with
20
21 lung cancer?
22
23 A I do everything, you know, paint and wallpaper
24
25 and strip wood, put up new cabinets, take old windows
169: 1
2 out, put new windows in. Just anything that had to be
3
4 done.
5
6 Q And are you able to do those tasks at this
7
8 time?
9
10 A No.
11
12 Q Prior to being diagnosed with lung cancer,
13
14 approximately how many hours a week would you spend on
15 your home maintenance or the chores that you previously
16
17 mentioned, on average?
18
19 A Well, it was more like a hobby than maintenance,
20
21 you know. It was about 20 hours a week.
22
23 Q Okay. Has your lung cancer affected your
24
25 relationship with your wife or family in any way?
170: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 Q Could you please tell the jury how its
5
6 affected it?
7
8 A Well, I guess, you know, because I cant do
9
10 anything any more, it leaves a larger burden on my wife
11
12 and, you know, sometimes it strains our relationship.
13
14 Q You previously mentioned that you had
15
16 hoped to hunt with your son.
17
18 Are there any other things that you arent
19
20 able to do that you would have done prior to having
21
22 your lung cancer diagnosed?
23
24 MS. BANEZ: Objection.
25
171: 1 MR. CIFALDI: Basis?
2
3 MS. BANEZ: Calls for speculation.
4
5 MR. CIFALDI: Noted.
6
7 MS. BANEZ: Okay.
8
9 A With my son?
10
11 Q That was one example. Are there any other
12
13 things that you can think of at this time?
14 A Well, I cant walk up a flight of stairs without
15
16 getting winded and I have some trouble with sexual
17
18 intercourse.
19
20 Q Has your illness had any affect on your
21
22 mental outlook?
23
24 A Certainly.
25
172: 1 Q Could you please tell the jury what affect
2
3 that has had?
4
5 A Well, it just totally blew my mind. It just
6
7 devastated me.
8
9 Q Mr. Huyler, how do you feel about your
10
11 future?
12
13 A I try to keep a positive attitude but you keep
14
15 wondering how long youre going to make it.
16
17 MR. CIFALDI: Thats all the questions I
18
19 have. We can take a break.
20
21 Q Thank you.
22
23 (Recess).
24
25 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MS. BANEZ:
173: 1
2 Q Good morning, Mr. Huyler.
3
4 A Good morning.
5
6 Q My name is Marissa Banez and I represent
7
8 several of the defendants in this lawsuit.
9
10 Weve met a couple of weeks ago when I had
11
12 taken your deposition. Do you recall that, sir?
13 A Yes, I do.
14
15 Q All right. Have you worked for Exxon from
16
17 1968 until the present. Correct?
18
19 A Thats correct.
20
21 Q Generally, sir, what sorts of operations
22
23 are being done at the Exxon refinery? What sorts of
24
25 things happen there?
174: 1
2 A In as far as what?
3
4 Q Theyre refining petroleum. Is that
5
6 correct?
7
8 A Thats correct.
9
10 Q And in doing that, are chemicals utilized
11
12 in the processes involved?
13
14 A Yes, there are chemicals used.
15
16 Q Okay. And, in fact, you worked around
17
18 those chemicals. Is that correct?
19
20 MR. CIFALDI: Im going to object to the
21
22 broad nature of the question. I dont really
23
24 know what you mean by around. If you could be
25
175: 1 a bit more specific.
2
3 Q You worked in the vicinity where those
4
5 chemicals were being used. Is that correct?
6
7 A I guess.
8
9 Q Well, were there any places in the
10
11 facility where you used — strike that — where you
12 worked where they did not use chemicals of any type?
13
14 A No.
15
16 Q Okay. Isnt it correct, sir, that you
17
18 worked at a place that where a constant odor from
19
20 petroleum products were broken down and made?
21
22 A I dont understand that question.
23
24 Q Is there a constant odor being emitted
25
176: 1 from the plant, sir?
2
3 A Yes.
4
5 Q And as far as you know you inhaled that.
6
7 Is that correct?
8
9 A I guess.
10
11 Q You worked with hydrogen sulfate. Is that
12
13 correct?
14
15 A Hydrogen sulfate or hydrogen sulfite?
16
17 Q Hydrogen sulfite?
18
19 A I worked around or near it.
20
21 Q All right. And you had been told that that
22
23 product could cause death. Is that correct?
24
25 A Thats correct.
177: 1
2 Q Isnt it true, Mr. Huyler, that some time
3
4 in the late 1970s you received a booklet telling you
5
6 what kinds of products and by-products were used at the
7
8 plant. Is that correct?
9
10 A Thats correct.
11 Q And, in fact, in that booklet you were
12
13 advised that most of those products would cause cancer.
14
15 Isnt that correct?
16
17 A Thats correct.
18
19 Q And you worked around those products.
20
21 Correct?
22
23 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. I dont know
24
25 what those products means, counsel.
178: 1
2 Q Those products that were listed in the
3
4 booklet.
5
6 MR. CIFALDI: Go ahead.
7
8 A I think you got the wrong idea here. The
9
10 products were inside pipes.
11
12 Q In any event, sir, those products were
13
14 used at the plant and you worked at the plant. Is that
15
16 correct?
17
18 A Thats correct.
19
20 Q Now, you served in Vietnam. Is that
21
22 correct?
23
24 A Thats correct.
25
179: 1 Q And as a matter of fact, you were exposed
2
3 to Agent Orange while you served in Vietnam. Isnt
4
5 that correct, sir?
6
7 MR. CIFALDI: Objection as to relevancy.
8
9 Can I have a continuing objection as
10 to Agent Orange?
11
12 MS. BANEZ: No. You may object.
13
14 MR. CIFALDI: Ill object.
15
16 You can answer it.
17
18 A Yes, I was exposed to it.
19
20 Q Earlier, sir, you talked about the fact
21
22 that you smoked cigarettes. Isnt that correct?
23
24 A Thats correct.
25
180: 1 Q And during the course of your smoking
2
3 history you had seen warning labels on packages of
4
5 cigarettes. Isnt that correct?
6
7 MR. CIFALDI: Objection to relevancy.
8
9 MS. BANEZ: Noted.
10
11 A Thats correct.
12
13 Q And despite your knowledge of those
14
15 warning labels you continued to smoke. Isnt that
16
17 correct?
18
19 MR. CIFALDI: Same objection.
20
21 Can I have a continuing objection on
22
23 this, as to warnings, cigarette warnings?
24
25 MS. BANEZ: Yes.
181: 1
2 MR. CIFALDI: Thank you.
3
4 A By the time warnings came out –
5
6 Q Is that correct?
7
8 MR. CIFALDI: Just answer the question.
9 Q Just answer the question, sir.
10
11 A Repeat the question, please?
12
13 Q Despite the knowledge of those warnings
14
15 you continued to smoke. Isnt that correct?
16
17 A I was addicted.
18
19 Q Is that correct?
20
21 But you did continue to smoke?
22
23 A Yes.
24
25 Q And, in fact, you increased the amount
182: 1
2 that you had smoked up to two packs a day from less
3
4 than or approximately less than half — sorry –
5
6 approximately a pack a day. Isnt that correct?
7
8 MR. CIFALDI: Im going to object to the
9
10 form of the question. I dont think its clear,
11
12 counsel.
13
14 Could you please rephrase it?
15
16 Q You testified earlier that five or six
17
18 years ago you started smoking up to two packs a day.
19
20 Isnt that correct?
21
22 A Yes.
23
24 Q And that was despite of your knowledge of
25
183: 1 those warning labels on the packages. Isnt that
2
3 correct?
4
5 A Yes.
6
7 Q Didnt you also smoke pipes?
8 A For a short time.
9
10 Q How many bowlfuls of the pipes did you
11
12 smoke when you did smoke?
13
14 MR. CIFALDI: You mean of the tobacco?
15
16 Q The pipe.
17
18 A Probably not very many. It takes you a long
19
20 time to learn how to smoke a pipe.
21
22 Q Now, you testified earlier that you
23
24 stopped smoking the day you found out you were sick.
25
184: 1 A Thats correct.
2
3 Q Isnt it a fact, sir, that you knew that
4
5 smoking can cause cancer?
6
7 A No, I didnt know that.
8
9 Q Why did you quit smoking then?
10
11 A Because I was told I had a lung problem.
12
13 Q You were told you had lung cancer and that
14
15 you should stop smoking. Isnt that correct.
16
17 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. Thats a
18
19 mischaracterization of his testimony.
20
21 A No, thats not correct.
22
23 Q Why, then, did you stop smoking, sir, if
24
25 you dont have a relation in your mind between smoking
185: 1
2 and lung cancer?
3
4 A I was told I had a lung problem and I decided to
5
6 quit smoking.
7 Q You are telling us, sir, that you never
8
9 knew that smoking can cause cancer?
10
11 A I didnt say that.
12
13 Q Do you, in fact, know that smoking can
14
15 cause lung cancer?
16
17 A No. Im not a doctor.
18
19 Q Do you have a belief as to whether or not
20
21 smoking can cause lung cancer?
22
23 A I have no belief either way.
24
25 Q Have you ever heard that smoking can cause
186: 1
2 lung cancer?
3
4 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. Hearsay.
5
6 If you had, thats fine. Just tell
7
8 her that.
9
10 A Nobody has ever told me that. No.
11
12 Q Have you ever read that smoking can cause
13
14 lung cancer?
15
16 MR. CIFALDI: Same objection as to
17
18 hearsay.
19
20 A I havent read any proof on it. No.
21
22 Q Im not asking you whether or not you have
23
24 read any proof. Im just asking you whether or not
25
187: 1 youve read any statements being made that smoking can
2
3 cause lung cancer?
4
5 A Im not sure.
6 Q Do you understand, sir, that you are under
7
8 oath today?
9
10 A Uh-huh.
11
12 Q That you have an obligation to tell the
13
14 truth to the court and the jury?
15
16 A Sure.
17
18 Q And you are, in fact, telling the truth
19
20 now?
21
22 A Sure.
23
24 Q Youve never heard that lung cancer can be
25
188: 1 caused by smoking?
2
3 A From who?
4
5 Q By anyone.
6
7 MR. CIFALDI: Shes not any asking
8
9 specifically through any source.
10
11 A Ive read that it may cause cancer.
12
13 Q And when was the first time you had read
14
15 that, sir?
16
17 A Im not sure.
18
19 Q Certainly before October of 86. Isnt
20
21 that correct?
22
23 A Oh, surely.
24
25 Q As a matter of fact, youve seen warning
189: 1
2 labels on those cigarette packages of Camels that you
3
4 smoked which states that smoking may cause cancer.
5 Isnt that correct?
6
7 MR. CIFALDI: Objection as to relevancy.
8
9 A I never really looked for warning labels on the
10
11 cigarettes.
12
13 Q All right.
14
15 A Just looked for the cigarettes.
16
17 Q I never asked you whether or not you
18
19 looked for the warnings.
20
21 MR. CIFALDI: Just answer her question.
22
23 Q In fact, those warnings stated that
24
25 smoking may cause lung cancer. Isnt that correct?
190: 1
2 A Its really difficult. I never really read
3
4 them. You know, I never really bothered with them.
5
6 Q You did see the word warning on your
7
8 cigarette packages, though, didnt you. Correct?
9
10 A Certainly.
11
12 Q And you did understand that smoking is
13
14 hazardous to human health. Isnt that correct?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q And you continued to smoke. Correct?
19
20 A Yes.
21
22 Q Sir, as a child, isnt it true that youve
23
24 had several bouts with severe pneumonia?
25
191: 1 A Yes.
2
3 Q Isnt it also true, sir, that youve had
4 bouts with bronchitis or tracheo bronchitis in your
5
6 later years, as an adult?
7
8 A Yes.
9
10 Q As a matter of fact, your medical history
11
12 indicates that youve had bronchitis most of your life.
13
14 Isnt that correct?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q Now, sir, turning your attention to your
19
20 work at Exxon.
21
22 Earlier you testified about a
23
24 manufacturers name, the name would be Johns-Manville.
25
192: 1 Do you recall that?
2
3 A Yes.
4
5 Q Isnt it true, sir, that the
6
7 Johns-Manville name was very prevalent at the plant
8
9 during the time that you worked there. Isnt that
10
11 true?
12
13 MR. CIFALDI: Im going to object to the
14
15 use of the term prevalent. I dont think its
16
17 sufficiently define.
18
19 Q Answer the question, please.
20
21 A Well, Johns-Manville name was on certain
22
23 products.
24
25 Q Do you recall the testimony you had given
193: 1
2 on May 18, 1987 in the deposition weve spoken about
3 earlier?
4
5 A I recall that day.
6
7 Q Do you recall giving testimony at that
8
9 time?
10
11 A Yes.
12
13 Q And do you recall giving your oath at that
14
15 time to tell the truth to the best of your knowledge
16
17 and recollection?
18
19 A Yes.
20
21 Q And, in fact, did you tell the truth at
22
23 that time, sir?
24
25 A Certainly.
194: 1
2 Q All right. In your transcript from that
3
4 deposition on page 102, lines 14 until 25, Id like to
5
6 read it to you.
7
8 MR. CIFALDI: Could I show him a copy so
9
10 he can read along, counsel?
11
12 MS. BANEZ: Certainly.
13
14 Q Line 14:
15
16 QUESTION: How about Johns-Manville?
17
18 ANSWER: I remember seeing the name.
19
20 QUESTION: Do you recall working with
21
22 it during this time period?
23
24 ANSWER: Johns-Manville?
25
195: 1 QUESTION: Yes.
2 ANSWER: Oh, yeah. Im not really too
3
4 sure of what it was exactly.
5
6 QUESTION: But you recall seeing the name
7
8 all over their yard?
9
10 ANSWER: Oh, yeah, it was all over. It
11
12 was, like, as good as Exxon. It was the second
13
14 name in the yard.
15
16 Do you recall testifying to that,
17
18 sir?
19
20 MR. CIFALDI: I just object that thats
21
22 taken out of context, counsel. Theres other
23
24 prior testimony that indicates that this is only
25
196: 1 for a specific time period, but you could answer
2
3 the question.
4
5 Q Do you recall testifying to that, sir?
6
7 A Well, I dont recall, no, but, I guess, I did.
8
9 Q Well, is this testimony true, after I have
10
11 read it to you and after youve read along with me?
12
13 A Yeah.
14
15 Q Does that refresh your recollection as to
16
17 whether or not that, in fact, is true?
18
19 A Yes, it does.
20
21 Q Now, turning your attention to page 266 of
22
23 the same transcript, lines 8 to 10:
24
25 QUESTION: Were there a lot of
197: 1 Johns-Manville cements over the years that you
2
3 recall?
4
5 ANSWER: There were a lot of
6
7 Johns-Manville products.
8
9 Do you recall testifying to that?
10
11 A I guess.
12
13 Q Okay. Well, sir, now that Ive read the
14
15 testimony to you, does that refresh your recollection
16
17 as to whether or not there were a lot of Johns-Manville
18
19 products at the plant?
20
21 A Well, there are a lot of Johns-Manville products
22
23 at the plant.
24
25 Q And your testimony at that time was true
198: 1
2 as well. Isnt that correct?
3
4 A Thats correct.
5
6 Q Now, turning to page 96 of your deposition
7
8 transcript, lines 16 to 19.
9
10 MR. GRANT: Sorry, counsel, what line
11
12 was that?
13
14 MS. BANEZ: 16 to 19.
15
16 MR. GRANT: Page 96?
17
18 MS. BANEZ: Yes.
19
20 Q How about Johns-Manville, is the
21
22 question. The answer is, There was also
23
24 Johns-Manville.
25 QUESTION: Did you use that personally?
199: 1
2 ANSWER: Yes.
3
4 A No, I dont –
5
6 Q Question –
7
8 MR. CIFALDI: Just listen.
9
10 Q — A lot?
11
12 There was some objections being made. And
13
14 on page 97 line 2:
15
16 ANSWER: A lot.
17
18 Do you recall testifying as to that?
19
20 A I guess I did.
21
22 Q And is that testimony accurate?
23
24 A Thats accurate.
25
200: 1 Q And its true as well. Isnt it?
2
3 A Thats correct.
4
5 Q Okay. Earlier today you testified to
6
7 Johns-Manville as being a supplier of products to the
8
9 plant as well?
10
11 A Yes.
12
13 Q Do you recall that?
14
15 A Yes.
16
17 Q And do you recall them being a supplier to
18
19 Exxon as early as the time when you were a welder
20
21 apprentice?
22
23 A I believe so.
24 Q And did you ever see them — strike that.
25
201: 1 Did you ever see any products being
2
3 unloaded from the Johns-Manville vehicles that came
4
5 into the plant to supply the plant with products?
6
7 A I cant be sure.
8
9 Did I ever see them being unloaded?
10
11 Q Yes.
12
13 A Im sure I did. You know, its a long time ago.
14
15 Q Do you have any belief as to what types of
16
17 products were in the Johns-Manville vehicles that were
18
19 being delivered to the plant?
20
21 A Pipe covering and cements.
22
23 Q And would those products be Johns-Manville
24
25 products, if you know?
202: 1
2 A I guess the cements were.
3
4 Q How about the pipe covering and the
5
6 blocks?
7
8 A Im not sure.
9
10 Q How often did you see the Johns-Manville
11
12 trucks come in the plant or vehicles?
13
14 A I cant say for sure.
15
16 Q In fact, Johns-Manville was at the plant
17
18 until about you became a crane operator. Is that
19
20 correct?
21
22 A I really cant say for sure.
23 Q Do you recall the last time you had seen
24
25 Johns-Manville come into the plant to deliver a
203: 1
2 material?
3
4 A No.
5
6 Q In any event, sir, they came often enough
7
8 so that you remembered them being at the plant. Isnt
9
10 that correct?
11
12 A That would be correct.
13
14 Q Now, sir, last time we had spoken during
15
16 your deposition I had asked you about your hobbies at
17
18 that time. Do you recall that?
19
20 A Yes.
21
22 Q And after reading through your transcript,
23
24 sir, I realize that you did not mention hunting for us
25
204: 1 at that time. Is there a reason why not?
2
3 A Well, it probably just slipped my mind.
4
5 Q Is there anything else that slipped your
6
7 mind at that time that you would like to tell us about
8
9 now with respect to your hobbies?
10
11 MR. CIFALDI: Objection to the
12
13 argumentative nature of the question. Go ahead.
14
15 You could answer.
16
17 A Well, with respect to your question –
18
19 Q Thats a yes or no.
20
21 A I have a great deal on my mind.
22 Q Sir, is there anything else now that you
23
24 would like to tell us about in terms of your hobbies?
25
205: 1 A Other hobbies?
2
3 Q That you didnt tell us at that time?
4
5 A Other hobbies that I didnt tell you? Not that
6
7 I could think of.
8
9 Q Now, when was the last time you had gone
10
11 for your chemotherapy, sir?
12
13 A Last week.
14
15 Q Isnt it true, sir, that you had been told
16
17 by Dr. Beattie that you had a very good chance for a
18
19 cure?
20
21 A Yes.
22
23 Q Youve been seeing a psychiatrist for
24
25 awhile. Isnt that correct?
206: 1
2 A Psychologist.
3
4 Q Psychologist, I apologize.
5
6 Whats his name?
7
8 A Joel Gilbert.
9
10 Q Now, youve been seeing him since
11
12 approximately the summer of 1986. Isnt that correct?
13
14 A Thats correct.
15
16 Q Thats because of marital problems. Isnt
17
18 that correct?
19
20 A Thats originally why I went to see him.
21 Q At that time he was for marital problems.
22
23 Isnt that correct?
24
25 A Yes.
207: 1
2 Q As a matter of fact, you and your wife
3
4 were separated because of marital problems for awhile
5
6 at that time. Isnt that correct?
7
8 A For a day.
9
10 Q Wasnt it for a few days?
11
12 A Maybe a few days. I dont really know.
13
14 Q What sort of marital problems were you
15
16 having?
17
18 A Just couldnt see eye-to-eye.
19
20 Q To the extent that its affected your
21
22 marriage and that to the extent that you separated from
23
24 her. Isnt that correct?
25
208: 1 A Uh-hum.
2
3 Q Isnt it also correct, sir, that youd had
4
5 those problems prior to your seeing the psychologist in
6
7 the summer of 1986?
8
9 A Yes, it would be correct.
10
11 Q Sir, I believe at this time I have no
12
13 further questions of you. Thank you.
14
15 MR. CIFALDI: Thank you, counselor.
16
17 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. BUTCH:
18
19 Q Mr. Huyler, my name is Peter Butch and the
20 law firm that I work for represents one of the
21
22 defendants in this matter.
23
24 Earlier you described working with and
25
209: 1 being exposed to Flexitallic and spiral-wound metal
2
3 asbestos gaskets.
4
5 Were you exposed to any other metal
6
7 asbestos gaskets?
8
9 A Im not really sure. Im not really. I think
10
11 Flexitallic was the maker of all of them.
12
13 Q Okay.
14
15 A Even the — like we had inkganell (phonetic)
16
17 gaskets and special gaskets for special metals. I
18
19 think they made them, made them all.
20
21 Q Did you see any metal asbestos gaskets
22
23 that were not spiral wound?
24
25 A No, no. I dont believe so.
210: 1
2 Q Okay. Thank you. Thats all the
3
4 questions I have.
5
6 MR. CIFALDI: That you, counselor.
7
8 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. CHAZEN:
9
10 Q My name is Bernard Chazen. I represent
11
12 one of the defendants.
13
14 You have no personal knowledge of the
15
16 products that were actually purchased by Exxon?
17
18 A No, I dont.
19 Q So your statements as to products that
20
21 they purchased were based solely upon what you saw on
22
23 the plant property when you did work. Is that correct?
24
25 A I dont think I understand that.
211: 1
2 Q You were not involved in the purchasing
3
4 department or in the purchasing of any of the products
5
6 that were used at the plant?
7
8 A No. Not at all.
9
10 Q Okay. Now, were you able or are you able
11
12 to set any of the products that you testified you used
13
14 over the time you worked there in a particular time
15
16 frame?
17
18 MR. CIFALDI: Other than what hes
19
20 testified to previously?
21
22 MR. CHAZEN: Well, hes testified in
23
24 general, but he hasnt given us time frames. He
25
212: 1 hasnt said there was more of something at one
2
3 time and less than another.
4
5 MR. CIFALDI: Oh, I understand.
6
7 MR. CHAZEN: And so forth.
8
9 MR. CIFALDI: He wants to know if you can
10
11 quantify the use of the products.
12
13 Q Or put them in time frames.
14
15 A I dont really think so.
16
17 Q Now, jumping to the questions about your
18 bronchitis and your pneumonia.
19
20 At any time when you went to doctors for
21
22 treatment for your bronchitis or your pneumonia or your
23
24 sputum, did any of these doctors ever tell you you
25
213: 1 should stop smoking?
2
3 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. Hearsay. You
4
5 can answer.
6
7 A No, I dont believe they did.
8
9 Q So that no time notwithstanding the fact
10
11 that you had these complaints that related to your
12
13 breathing and your lungs, at no time did you ever have
14
15 any discussion with any physician about whether or not
16
17 you should stop smoking?
18
19 A No, I dont believe so.
20
21 Q I have no further questions.
22
23 MR. CIFALDI: Thank you, counsel.
24
25 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. KONRAY:
214: 1
2 Q Mr. Huyler, my name is Roy Konray.
3
4 Im an attorney. I represent Kentuk.
5
6 Did you ever have occasion to see Kentuk
7
8 post any warning signs indicating that there is an
9
10 asbestos hazard in the vicinity where they were
11
12 working?
13
14 A Yes.
15
16 Q How did you first come to believe that
17 exposure to asbestos might be hazardous to your health?
18
19 A They started giving us safety talks and tool-box
20
21 safety seminars. I dont really know at what period of
22
23 time, you know. I think it was in the early 80s.
24
25 Q Okay. When you say they I assume youre
215: 1
2 referring to the management at Exxon?
3
4 A Our company. Yes.
5
6 Q And youre not sure of the exact year when
7
8 they first started telling you that there might be an
9
10 asbestos hazard. Is that correct?
11
12 A No. Im not even sure if they told us it was
13
14 really a hazard, you know, at that time. You know,
15
16 just no good for you.
17
18 Q Well, did there come a time when you came
19
20 to believe that exposure to asbestos was hazardous?
21
22 A Yeah.
23
24 Q And that was based on what information
25
216: 1 that was given to you?
2
3 A Thats when they started seeing the signs that
4
5 says asbestos hazard.
6
7 Q Would that be like the type of signs that
8
9 Kentuk put up?
10
11 A Yes.
12
13 Q After you came to believe that exposure to
14
15 asbestos might be harmful to you, were there any
16 additional occasions when you inhaled asbestos?
17
18 A No.
19
20 Q No further questions. Thank you.
21
22 MR. CIFALDI: Thank you.
23
24 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. NUARA:
25
217: 1 Q Mr. Huyler, my name is Leanord Nuara and I
2
3 represent another one of the defendants here today.
4
5 You stated earlier that you had used
6
7 cement insulation.
8
9 In particular, could you describe what the
10
11 package looked like that you used?
12
13 A They were just bags of cement.
14
15 Q In particular, you used the name Stictite
16
17 earlier?
18
19 A Thats correct.
20
21 Q Do you remember what color the bag was
22
23 that it came in?
24
25 A No.
218: 1
2 Q Do you remember if there was a label on
3
4 that bag?
5
6 A Im sure there was.
7
8 Q Did you ever read the label?
9
10 A Just the words Stictite.
11
12 Q Is that the only word that appeared on the
13
14 label?
15 A To my knowledge, you know, as far as I can
16
17 remember.
18
19 Q Do you ever remember taking the time to
20
21 actually look at the label or you never took notice of
22
23 it at all?
24
25 MR. CIFALDI: Im going to object.
219: 1
2 Asked and answered. Go ahead.
3
4 A What was the question again?
5
6 Q Did you ever take the time to actually
7
8 read or look at the label?
9
10 A Not really.
11
12 Q So, then, how are you sure it had the name
13
14 Stictite on it?
15
16 A Well, when you pick up a bag — they tell you to
17
18 go get a bag of something, thats what you go get.
19
20 Q Well, did they say go get a bag of cement
21
22 or what did they say?
23
24 A Well, they said go get a bag of Stictite.
25
220: 1 Q When you say it was a bag, could you
2
3 describe, was it a small bag, a large bag, some kind of
4
5 description of the bag?
6
7 A I think they were about 50 pounds.
8
9 Q Did the bags come in different colors or
10
11 were they all the same?
12
13 A I dont remember. This is a lot of years ago.
14 Q When you say a lot of years. You said you
15
16 started with Exxon in 1968. Correct?
17
18 A Thats correct.
19
20 Q Would you started using the cement you
21
22 stated earlier, I believe, and correct me if Im wrong,
23
24 you started using the cement when you were acting as a
25
221: 1 rigger. Correct?
2
3 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. Counsel, his
4
5 prior testimony was he started as an apprentice
6
7 welder.
8
9 Q Did you use this cement when you were
10
11 acting as a welder?
12
13 A Yes.
14
15 Q Okay. Do you remember specifically using
16
17 Stictite when you were a welder or are you just basing
18
19 your knowledge of the name Stictite from the years of
20
21 use of it?
22
23 A No. I remember using it.
24
25 Q Back in 1968?
222: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 Q You stated that you didnt remember really
5
6 the color of the bag.
7
8 Do you remember that there was a different
9
10 color for the label?
11
12 A No, I cant tell you.
13 Q When you started as an apprentice welder,
14
15 initially when you started, did you commence doing
16
17 installation and removal of the asbestos or was it just
18
19 removal?
20
21 A Well, when your job as a welder got done you
22
23 were forced to help other trades and thats where you
24
25 would be removing insulation and help insulate also.
223: 1
2 Q In your use of the cement insulation, do
3
4 you remember using any one product more than any other?
5
6 Let me qualify that. Earlier you stated
7
8 that there were various cements and you used them
9
10 interchangeably. Is that true?
11
12 A Yeah. We did, yes. I dont think the regular
13
14 insulators did. No. They had, I think, special
15
16 purposes for each one. But we just, you know, grabbed
17
18 whatever.
19
20 Q Do you remember what the special purpose,
21
22 if there was one, assigned to Stictite?
23
24 A No. I have no idea.
25
224: 1 Q Do you remember the labels on any of the
2
3 other bags that you used?
4
5 MR. CIFALDI: Other than what hes
6
7 previously testified to?
8
9 MR. NUARA: Yes.
10
11 MR. CIFALDI: Anything additional.
12 A No.
13
14 Q So you really have no recollection of any
15
16 labels for any of the cement bags that you used?
17
18 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. Counsel, he did
19
20 give prior testimony as to that fact.
21
22 Q All right. I have nothing further.
23
24 MR. CIFALDI: Thank you, counselor.
25
225: 1 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. GRANT:
2
3 Q Good afternoon, Mr. Huyler. My name is
4
5 Alan Grant.
6
7 A Good afternoon.
8
9 Q Can you estimate for me the percentage of
10
11 time you spent working outdoors while you were a rigger
12
13 at the Exxon facility in Bayway?
14
15 A 98 percent of the time.
16
17 Q How much of your time as a rigger did you
18
19 spend working indoors?
20
21 A Well, that would be two percent.
22
23 Q Thank you very much.
24
25 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. McGRATH:
226: 1
2 Q Mr. Huyler, my name is McGrath. I have a
3
4 few questions for you.
5
6 You were never involved in the ordering of
7
8 materials for use at Exxon, were you?
9
10 A No, I wasnt.
11 Q And you never worked in the store rooms or
12
13 supply rooms, did you?
14
15 A No.
16
17 Q Now, there came a time when Exxon switched
18
19 to purchasing nonasbestos products, did they not?
20
21 A Thats correct.
22
23 Q You dont know what year they switched to
24
25 purchasing nonasbestos products, do you?
227: 1
2 A No. Maybe in the mid-70s. I dont know. Late
3
4 70s.
5
6 Q Thats a guess on your part, isnt it?
7
8 A Pardon?
9
10 Q Thats a guess on your part?
11
12 Q You dont know for a fact?
13
14 A Im lost there.
15
16 Q You dont know for a fact the year they
17
18 switched to purchasing nonasbestos insulation?
19
20 A No.
21
22 Q Isnt it a fact, that at one point
23
24 manufacturers of pipe covering changed the formula to
25
228: 1 make it without asbestos in it?
2
3 A I guess.
4
5 Q And you dont know what year the
6
7 manufacturers changed the formula so that it didnt
8
9 have asbestos in it?
10 A No.
11
12 Q Did you ever see any packages of
13
14 insulation that were labeled asbestos free?
15
16 A I dont believe so.
17
18 Q Now, did you ever see any fiberglass
19
20 insulation while you worked at Exxon?
21
22 A Yes.
23
24 Q The fiberglass insulation does not contain
25
229: 1 asbestos, does it?
2
3 A No.
4
5 Q And you told us that you saw some packages
6
7 of insulation that were marked as containing asbestos.
8
9 Is that right?
10
11 A Thats correct.
12
13 Q Did you see some packages of insulation
14
15 that werent marked either way, whether they did or did
16
17 not contain asbestos?
18
19 A Im not sure.
20
21 Q Each time you handled the packages of
22
23 insulation, did you look at all at the writing on the
24
25 packages each time?
230: 1
2 A No, never looked at all the writing.
3
4 Q Now, the materials that you saw come off
5
6 the State Insulation truck, you dont know whether or
7
8 not they contained asbestos, do you?
9 A Sure.
10
11 Q Did you see anything on those packages
12
13 that said they contained asbestos or that they didnt
14
15 contain asbestos?
16
17 A Cement, asbestos cement?
18
19 Q Said that on the package?
20
21 A Yes.
22
23 Q Are you certain of that or is that a guess
24
25 on your part?
231: 1
2 A No. Im certain of that.
3
4 Q Mr. Huyler, Im going to ask you to refer
5
6 to your deposition that we referred to earlier at page
7
8 257.
9
10 MR. CIFALDI: What line, counsel?
11
12 Q Starting at line 13 — strike that.
13
14 Go back to page 256 at line eight. You
15
16 were questioned, Were you ever present when anybody
17
18 else unloaded a State Insulation truck? The answer
19
20 was, Yes.
21
22 On page 257 at line 13:
23
24 QUESTION: Do you know if any of them
25
232: 1 said they contained asbestos?
2
3 ANSWER: I cant say for sure.
4
5 Wasnt that your testimony?
6
7 A Yes.
8 Q Okay. If you read up where that –
9
10 starting at line five, I asked you, Do you know if any
11
12 of those packages said asbestos free? Answer:
13
14 Asbestos free? No, I dont. Was that your answer?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q Okay. So when you testified at
19
20 depositions a couple of weeks ago, you told me that you
21
22 didnt know for sure if any of the products from State
23
24 Insulation truck contained asbestos, wasnt that your
25
233: 1 testimony?
2
3 A I dont believe that that was what I believed,
4
5 no.
6
7 Q Has anything happened in the last couple
8
9 of weeks to change your recollection of what you saw on
10
11 the State Insulation truck?
12
13 A I believe — I think maybe, not that I was
14
15 misled in the line of questioning, but, maybe, I didnt
16
17 understand the questioning, but, yeah I believe that
18
19 State delivered asbestos.
20
21 Q Okay. Did you see any instructions for
22
23 how to use the products of the products that came off
24
25 the State Insulation trucks?
234: 1
2 A No.
3
4 Q Did you see any warning labels on the
5
6 products that came off the State Insulation trucks?
7 A No.
8
9 Q Did you see any brand names on any of the
10
11 products that came off the State Insulation trucks?
12
13 A I cant really remember.
14
15 Q And you didnt see any trade names on any
16
17 of the products that came off the State Insulation
18
19 truck?
20
21 A I cant say for sure.
22
23 Q You dont know what year it was that you
24
25 saw these materials come off the State Insulation
235: 1
2 truck?
3
4 A What year? Oh, no.
5
6 Q I have no further questions.
7
8 MR. CIFALDI: Thank you, counselor.
9
10 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. RICHARDSON:
11
12 Q Mr. Huyler, my name is Mr. Richardson and
13
14 I represent John-Crane Houdaille in this action. I
15
16 have some questions of you.
17
18 Im a little confused and would like to go
19
20 back over your answers to some of the questions of
21
22 counsel earlier about your cigarette smoking.
23
24 You indicate that you smoked Camel
25
236: 1 cigarettes. Right?
2
3 A Thats correct.
4
5 Q Were they filtered or unfiltered?
6 A Unfiltered.
7
8 Q Okay. And you say you stopped when you
9
10 learned you had a problem in October of 86.
11
12 A Thats correct.
13
14 Q You said, I think, in answer to her
15
16 questioning, that you never read the warnings on
17
18 cigarette packs. Is that what you told her?
19
20 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. Thats a
21
22 mischaracterization. You could answer.
23
24 MR. RICHARDSON: Well, thats why I want to
25
237: 1 clarify it.
2
3 Q Id like to understand just what you said.
4
5 A I guess I never really bothered to read them.
6
7 Yeah.
8
9 Q Did you prepare answers to printed
10
11 questions in this case for your attorney?
12
13 A The Interrogatories?
14
15 Q Yes.
16
17 A Yes.
18
19 Q Is this your bad xeroxed copy of your
20
21 signature on these Answers to Interrogatories,
22
23 Mr. Huyler?
24
25 A That is. Yes.
238: 1
2 Q And theyre dated April 10 maybe, 1987.
3
4 Does that look right?
5 A Yeah.
6
7 Q And did you actually go through these
8
9 questions and give counsel your answers to the
10
11 questions?
12
13 MR. CIFALDI: Objection. That may intrude
14
15 into the attorney/client privilege.
16
17 You could answer if that was the
18
19 fact. Just dont disclose any conversations.
20
21 A I guess.
22
23 Q Are these your answers?
24
25 A Theyre my answers. Yes.
239: 1
2 Q As I recall these Interrogatories ask you
3
4 about cigarette smoking, dont they?
5
6 A Uh-hum. Yes.
7
8 Q And they ask you about the warnings on the
9
10 cigarettes?
11
12 A I guess.
13
14 Q According to the set I have, you were
15
16 asked at Interrogatory I-22, Are you aware of the
17
18 United States Surgeon Generals warning placed on all
19
20 cigarette packages and advertisements? And your
21
22 answer to that question was, what, sir?
23
24 A Probably yes.
25
240: 1 Q Probably yes or yes?
2
3 A Yes.
4 MR. CIFALDI: Why dont you look at your
5
6 answers.
7
8 A Yes.
9
10 MR. CIFALDI: Im just going to object to
11
12 the relevancy of the warning.
13
14 MR. RICHARDSON: I will submit it goes to
15
16 credibility at this point, if nothing else.
17
18 Q And you were asked at I-23, Have you ever
19
20 read the warning referred to in Interrogatory I-22 and
21
22 what was your answer to that, sir?
23
24 MR. CIFALDI: Objection to relevancy. You
25
241: 1 could answer.
2
3 A Yes.
4
5 Q And you were asked at Interrogatory
6
7 No. I-24, Have you ever smoked cigarettes subsequent
8
9 to being aware of or reading the warning referred to in
10
11 Interrogatory I-22?
12
13 MR. CIFALDI: Objection to relevancy. You
14
15 could answer.
16
17 Q And what was your answer, sir?
18
19 A Yes.
20
21 Q My understanding of a rigger at a place
22
23 like Exxon would be that you would go in and put in new
24
25 installations, change old installations, things like
242: 1
2 that.
3 Is that a fair understanding of what a
4
5 rigger does?
6
7 A I guess for the general public thats a fair
8
9 estimation. Yeah.
10
11 Q Okay. A rigger is someone who is capable
12
13 of moving very heavy equipment and machinery. Is that
14
15 right?
16
17 A Thats correct.
18
19 Q And as a rigger you are a member of the
20
21 Teamsters union. Is that correct?
22
23 A Thats correct.
24
25 Q They have insulators at Exxon?
243: 1
2 A Yes.
3
4 Q Are they Teamsters also?
5
6 A Yes, they are.
7
8 Q And do they have pipefitters at Exxon?
9
10 A Yes.
11
12 Q Are they Teamsters also?
13
14 A Yes.
15
16 Q What do the insulators do while youre
17
18 removing and re-installing insulation?
19
20 A No, we would help them do that. We never did
21
22 that by ourselves.
23
24 Q And what do the pipefitters do while
25
244: 1 youre repacking valves?
2 A We would be helping them do that.
3
4 Q How would you be helping a pipefitter
5
6 repack a valve?
7
8 A By standing next to him and helping him do the
9
10 job.
11
12 Q What do you do to repack a valve?
13
14 A Take the bonnet of the valve off.
15
16 Q Did you do that or did the pipefitter do
17
18 that?
19
20 A No, I did that and I did it hundreds of times.
21
22 Q Okay.
23
24 A You want the whole system?
25
245: 1 Q Yeah.
2
3 A Take the bonnet of the valve off. Youd stick
4
5 down this little cork screw thing and you try to get
6
7 the old packing out with that and a lot of times you
8
9 got to chisel it out because it wont come out with
10
11 that and then you cut the new packing in strips and you
12
13 stuff it down there.
14
15 Q Did you do that?
16
17 A Sure.
18
19 Q Okay. What was the pipefitter doing while
20
21 you were doing this?
22
23 A A lot of times we had two or three valves to
24
25 pack. He would be packing one, I would be packing
246: 1 another one.
2
3 Q That was my next question. Why would you
4
5 repack a valve?
6
7 A Why?
8
9 Q You, in particular, as opposed to a pipe
10
11 fitter?
12
13 A Well, see, we had designated crafts but if you
14
15 had nothing to do your boss gave you something to do.
16
17 Q Okay. Would you get involved in repacking
18
19 a valve because it was leaking?
20
21 A Sure. Thats the only reason you repack them.
22
23 Q Okay. Would you, on occasion, depending
24
25 upon the process, just add a packing?
247: 1
2 A Sometimes.
3
4 Q How would you know a valve at Exxon was
5
6 leaking?
7
8 A Well, I guess most of the time you would see
9
10 steam blowing from it, from the bonnet or air blowing
11
12 from the bonnet or, you know, just, you know, whatever.
13
14 Q Would it be steam or air, would it be
15
16 liquid, too, sometimes?
17
18 A Most of the time, I think, it was steam or air.
19
20 Q Okay. And did that contain those
21
22 chemicals that Miss Banez asked you about?
23
24 MR. CIFALDI: Object to the broad nature
25 of question. If you can answer that
248: 1
2 please do.
3
4 A I dont know. You know, the steam valves
5
6 contained steam and air valves contained air.
7
8 Q Did you only use valves at Exxon to
9
10 control steam and air?
11
12 A No. We used them to control chemicals also.
13
14 Q And those valves would leak, too.
15
16 Correct?
17
18 A Thats correct.
19
20 Q And youd have to repair those valves that
21
22 would leak containing those chemicals. Is that right?
23
24 A Yes.
25
249: 1 Q Over what period of time during your work
2
3 at Exxon did you do that?
4
5 MR. CIFALDI: Do what, counselor?
6
7 MR. RICHARDSON: Repair chemical valves
8
9 that were leaking.
10
11 A I dont know.
12
13 What do you mean, chemical valves as
14
15 opposed to steam valves?
16
17 Q If there was a difference.
18
19 A Well, most of the work was done on steam valves
20
21 because steam mostly blew the packing out, and it was
22
23 called wire drawn, you know.
24 Q Im sorry, wire drawn?
25
250: 1 A Yeah. I think thats what the process is called
2
3 when it blows the packing out.
4
5 Q Over what period of time, if you know, did
6
7 you work on repairing chemical valves, during the 60s,
8
9 the 70s, the 80s or all of those periods?
10
11 A I dont understand your question. Are you just
12
13 asking me chemical valves or all valves in particular?
14
15 Q Chemical valves.
16
17 A I have no idea.
18
19 Q Okay. Do you know what kind of valves you
20
21 were working on? Do you know who made them?
22
23 A What kind of valves?
24
25 Yeah. I could only tell the name of a
251: 1
2 couple of valves. Maybe Alloyco (phonetic). I dont
3
4 really know.
5
6 You know, for how many valves I have ever
7
8 changed, I dont the names of them, no
9
10 Q You told us here today that you recall
11
12 using two packings, Anchor and John Crane — Im sorry,
13
14 Crane. Right?
15
16 A Yeah, both. Yeah.
17
18 Q Did you use them interchangeably or was
19
20 one used for one thing and the other used for something
21
22 else?
23 A No. I believe that we used them
24
25 interchangeably.
252: 1
2 Q Okay. You talked about them flaking when
3
4 you would work with them, was that because there was a
5
6 flaky coating on the outside of them?
7
8 A No. It was like almost like a graphite coating
9
10 on the outside.
11
12 Q Okay. And that would flake off when you
13
14 would work with them and get on your hands?
15
16 A Well, the fibers, you know, when you cut them
17
18 the fibers — a lot of times the bigger ones you had to
19
20 use a chisel and a hammer to cut and, you know, just
21
22 the little fibers, like, would come off.
23
24 Q Well, didnt you tell us before that they
25
253: 1 would — that flakes would come off when you worked
2
3 with them?
4
5 A Yeah. Yeah.
6
7 Q Isnt that what you told us before?
8
9 A Yeah, yeah. Flakes. Flakes. Well, flakes,
10
11 fibers.
12
13 Q Is it all the same to you?
14
15 A I generalize. I tend to generalize. Yes.
16
17 Q When did you recall that you used John
18
19 Crane packings?
20
21 A Thats just common knowledge that the –
22 MR. CIFALDI: Hes asking you when you
23
24 recall using it. Is that correct?
25
254: 1 MR. RICHARDSON: Yes.
2
3 MR. CIFALDI: Time period.
4
5 A You mean exact date, like?
6
7 Q No. When did you first recall that, in
8
9 fact, you used John Crane packings?
10
11 A Gees, I cant tell you that.
12
13 Q Youve always known it?
14
15 A Yeah, just always known it.
16
17 Q Those Interrogatories ask you about the
18
19 products that you used and were exposed to. Do you
20
21 recall that?
22
23 A Yes.
24
25 Q And you were asked what products you used
255: 1
2 and were exposed to in those Interrogatories and you
3
4 answered with a long list of products. Didnt you?
5
6 A Yes.
7
8 Q And I direct your attention to
9
10 Interrogatory Answer No. I-6d in which you list various
11
12 types of asbestos block and pipe covering or
13
14 manufacturers of it, various manufacturers of asbestos
15
16 cement, various manufacturers of asbestos packing and
17
18 gaskets, and then miscellaneous asbestos products that
19
20 you remembered working with.
21 A Uh-huh
22
23 Q Did you list John Crane or Crane under
24
25 asbestos packing and gaskets?
256: 1
2 A Not at this time I didnt. No.
3
4 Q Is your memory of what you used better now
5
6 than it was when you answered these Interrogatories?
7
8 MR. CIFALDI: Objection to the form of the
9
10 question. You can answer.
11
12 A I dont believe so.
13
14 Q Thank you, sir. Thats all I have.
15
16 MR. CIFALDI: That you, counselor.
17
18 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. KOT:
19
20 Q Good afternoon, Mr. Huyler. My name is
21
22 John Kot and I represent one of the defendants in this
23
24 lawsuit.
25
257: 1 Mr. Huyler, do you recall testifying at a
2
3 previous deposition that your contact with packing
4
5 products was not frequent?
6
7 A Yes.
8
9 Q And would it be fair to say that your
10
11 exposure to insulation products was on a daily basis?
12
13 A I guess pretty much so.
14
15 Q Thank you. I have no further questions.
16
17 MR. CIFALDI: That you, counselor.
18
19
20 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. BERMAN:
21
22 Q Mr. Huyler, my name is Richard Berman. I
23
24 represent Foster Wheeler in this action.
25
258: 1 You dont know what project Foster Wheeler
2
3 did at the refinery, do you?
4
5 A They did a big one and, no, I dont know which
6
7 one. Im sure they did more than one even.
8
9 Q And isnt it true, that when you had
10
11 worked near Foster Wheeler insulation that you do not
12
13 work on the Foster Wheeler project?
14
15 MR. CIFALDI: Do you understand the
16
17 question?
18
19 THE WITNESS: No.
20
21 Q I will rephrase the question for you.
22
23 With respect to your contact with any
24
25 Foster Wheeler projects, they would do one portion of a
259: 1
2 job and you would do another portion of the job?
3
4 A Thats correct.
5
6 Q And it was only sometimes that the
7
8 projects even met in the middle. Is that correct?
9
10 A Thats also correct.
11
12 Q And at that time you would be doing work
13
14 on old things and they would be doing new work?
15
16 A Yes.
17
18 Q And aside from that, you didnt have any
19 with Foster Wheeler. Isnt that true?
20
21 A Pretty much so.
22
23 Q I have no further questions.
24
25 MR. CIFALDI: That you, counselor.
260: 1
2 (Recess).
3
4 REDIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. CIFALDI:
5
6 Q Mr. Huyler, I have no further questions.
7
8 Thank you for your time.
9
10 MR. CIFALDI: Anyone else have any further
11
12 questions?
13
14 MS. BANEZ: No. Thank you for your time,
15
16 Mr. Huyler.
17
18 (The deposition is adjourned).
19
20
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262: 1 Brody & Geiser (201) 738-8555 or (212) 732-0644.