YORK’S asbestos timebomb was linked to three more deaths at inquests held in the city.

Acting senior coroner Jonathan Leach ruled that the deaths of Raymond ‘Nev’ Waterworth and George Robinson were due to mesothelioma – a lung cancer caused by exposure to the chemical.

He added that although a third pensioner, James Simpson, died due to a heart problem, asbestos had also played its part.

Staff at the former York Carriageworks, where Mr Waterworth was employed between 1966 and 1986, have been among the worst affected by mesothelioma in the area.

The grandfather died at his home in Whitethorn Close, Huntington, aged 74, last September.

A letter he had written as part of a compensation claim before his death was read to the court. Mr Waterworth, who started out as an asbestos sprayer, wrote: “We were provided with masks, which fitted badly.

“When we stopped for lunch there was no special shop to sit in. There was asbestos all around in the atmosphere. There were around eight others doing this job and all of them have now died.”

Mr Leach said: “It is clear that it was that exposure that resulted in the mesothelioma that killed him.”

Mr Robinson, a retired electrician, died at St Leonard’s Hospice, in York, last November, aged 88, having lived in York Road, Strensall.

Between 1947 and 1985, he worked for the Department of the Environment, coming into contact with asbestos at various Yorkshire sites.

The court heard he had also written a similar letter before his death, in which he said: “At the time, none of them knew that asbestos was dangerous. It was mixed and placed by hand.”

Mr Leach told the inquest which was held on Wednesday at the Barbican in York: “My conclusion is that this death is one of industrial disease.”

Mr Simpson, a retired plumber, from Lister Way, York, died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease aged 80 in September last year.

Although the court heard Mr Simpson had a series of medical problems, Mr Leach concluded: “It is clear that Mr Simpson was exposed to asbestos and it was a result of that he died.”