Roy and his colleagues on the Norwich to Liverpool Street line had no idea that they were putting their lives at risk by driving the trains. But asbestos tape was used to lag the pipes on the steam locomotives, on which Roy was a fireman, until they were replaced by diesel engines during the early 1970s. Although the pipes were out of the reach of the engine crew, the asbestos tape became brittle and broke up, exposing them to the lethal asbestos fibres. Boilers were also encased in asbestos and dust could leak into the cab area. Diesel multiple units also contained asbestos in the driver s compartment as did the brake linings of trains.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibre often used as a fire retardant.
Its effect on health has been known for over a century, but unions have had to fight every inch of the way to get its use restricted, leading eventually to a UK and European ban on the importation, sale or new use of all forms of asbestos in 1999.