Widow of Refinery Worker Sues IMC Over Fatal Lung Cancer, Alleging Asbestos Exposure, Unsafe Conditions, and Negligence
Surviving relatives of deceased refinery workers continue to appeal to the courts for damages from the companies involved in the facility's management and operations.
2025-08-27 12:37:35 - VI News Staff
A new civil complaint filed last week by the widow of Jeanne Leroy David claims that his diagnosis of metastatic lung cancer related to asbestos, and his subsequent death, was the fault of the Virgin Islands Industrial Maintenance Corporation, named as defendant.
Mr. David worked at the refinery on St. Croix's south shore from the late 1980's, when it was owned by HOVIC, through the transition to Hovensa. Over the course of his employment, Mr. David “worked for various contractors,” the lawsuit claims. His alleged “exposure to toxic dusts primarily occurred in the late 1980s and early 1990s.”
According to the complaint, the dust contained asbestos, silica, and “catalyst.” Respiratory protection used by Mr. David was “substandard,” and “wholly inadequate to guard against the inhalation of toxic substances,” the lawsuit argues. As a result, Mr. David “came into contact with and inhaled asbestos-, silica-, and/or catalyst-laden dusts well in excess of the government limits as well as the scientific consensus standards.” Conditions at the refinery, the lawsuit alleges, violated contemporary occupational health and safety regulations.