A trial commences on Monday against Warren Buffett's BNSF Railway concerning the lung cancer deaths of two individuals who resided in Libby, Montana, a town where numerous people were exposed to asbestos from a vermiculite mine. The W.R. Grace & Co. mine near Libby produced contaminated vermiculite for decades, leading to the sickness of thousands and the deaths of hundreds.
The estates of Thomas Wells and Joyce Walder filed a wrongful death lawsuit in 2021, alleging that BNSF and its predecessors stored asbestos-laden vermiculite in a rail yard in town, allowing the dust to spread without warning residents about its dangers. The lawsuit argues that exposure to asbestos fibers from the vermiculite led to lung cancer and other respiratory illnesses.
