BNSF Railway, a step-down company of Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., is currently the subject of a lawsuit over its alleged involvement in one of the most serious environmental and health crises in recent US history.
The case centers on the small town of Libby, Montana, where asbestos poisoning from a vermiculite mine run by W.R. Grace & Company devastated the population for nearly three decades.
Montana’s asbestos contamination case
Between 1963 and 1990, the mine served as the town’s economic backbone. However, it unintentionally exposed employees and residents to asbestos, a highly deadly material. This exposure occurred when asbestos combined with vermiculite and became airborne, spreading across the town via the air and mine workers’ clothing. The effects were grave, with hundreds killed and over 3,000 affected by respiratory ailments associated to asbestos exposure.
The W.R. Grace & Co. mine near Libby generated toxic vermiculite, which exposed residents to asbestos, sickening thousands and killing hundreds.
Lawsuit against Warren Buffett-owned company
The estates of two asbestos victims who lived in Libby sued BNSF for damages related to their deaths, and a trial is expected to begin Monday in federal court.
According to health experts, hundreds of people perished and over 3,000 were ill as a result of asbestos exposure in the Libby area.
The material was carried by rail from Libby and used as insulation in houses and businesses across the United States.
Attorneys for the railroad, owned by Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., deny liability.