A retired plumber was diagnosed with cancer after being exposed to asbestos while working at Blackburn train station.

During his working life Vincent Holland, who was born in Rishton, worked as a plumber for a company called Tattersall's between 1948 and the early 1960s.

In 2014 he was diagnosed with mesothelioma - a type of cancer which is associated with exposure to asbestos.

He died at his home in Dill Hall Lane, Church, on July 30 of this year.

READ MORE:Blackburn mum was exposed to asbestos when market roof was demolished

At an inquest at Preston Coroner's Court yesterday (September 9), Area Coroner Richard Taylor said: "He was diagnosed with rectal cancer in October 2019 which in April 2021 showed significant progression.

"After discussions he opted for management in the community and it was agreed it was best to treat him with supportive care."

The inquest heard that Mr Holland, who was 90 when he died, had written a statement following his mesothelioma diagnosis in which he said the "only time" he was exposed to asbestos was when he worked for Tattersall's.

In his statement Mr Holland said: "It was a large company with big contracts all over the country. We did a job at Edisford Bridge [in Clitheroe] putting in asbestos drains rather than cast iron drains, we had to grasp them and I recall dust going all over my trousers.

"On many other jobs I was exposed to asbestos.. It was part and parcel of the job.

"Pipes would be lagged with asbestos. The laggers mixed asbestos with their bare hands and we would often walk past when asbestos work was being done."

In the statement he wrote before his death Mr Holland also recalled a job he worked on at Blackburn train station where he said "no one was wearing a mask and it was very dusty".

"We were removing a whole water system," he said.

"They took all the pipes out. I recall taking my meals in the boilerhouse. I was on that job for 12 weeks but it could have been longer. No one was wearing a mask; it was very dusty."

Dr Richard Robinson, who saw Mr Holland on July 17, two weeks before he died, said he was "weary and struggling".

"It was thought this would be his final illness," Dr Robinson said in a statement.

"The cause of the decline was advancing rectal cancer. The district nurses were called by his partner as he was in significant abdominal pain."

The cause of Mr Holland's death was recorded as rectal cancer with mesothelioma being a contributory factor.

Returning a narrative conclusion the coroner said there was "no doubt" that Mr Holland had been exposed to asbestos during his working life.

"It contributed towards his death but it hasn't caused it."

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