Secret files reveal Boeing doctor warned of toxic risks, birth defects

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Editor’s note: This is part of ongoing coverage examining the dangers of chemical exposure to Boeing workers in the Puget Sound region, including the Everett plant. According to records obtained exclusively by The Daily Herald, the aerospace company knew for decades — since at least 1980 — that toxins used in its factories posed risks not just to employees, but to their unborn children, too.

EVERETT — On March 18, 1980, one of Boeing’s top doctors made “a rather disastrous attempt” to alert company leadership to a problem that could be fatal.

“During the ‘routine and usual’ course of their employment,” tens of thousands of Boeing workers in the Puget Sound region were being exposed to “probably hazardous” and “certainly uncontrolled” amounts of toxic chemical mixtures, Dr. Barry Dunphy warned in a presentation to the company’s president.

-snip-

As Boeing’s occupational health manager, Dunphy recommended protecting employees with uniform chemical labeling, medical monitoring, special training and other measures. This could be done, he advised, by building a stronger “industrial hygiene” program within Boeing’s medical department.

His pitch failed.

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/secret-files-reveal-boeing-doctor-warned-of-toxic-risks-birth-defects/


A recap of 3 lawsuits over chemical exposure at Boeing plants

THE ALLEGATIONS:

Three families sued the Boeing Co., alleging three parents were exposed to chemicals while working in company factories, causing birth defects in their children. The parents unknowingly suffered reproductive harm, the lawsuits allege, while touching and inhaling a mix of toxic industrial products containing heavy metals and organic solvents.

The lawsuits were filed in King County Superior Court in 2020.

THE PLAINTIFFS:

Marie Riley, now 42, was born with Tetralogy of Fallot, a set of four heart defects that’s led to other cardiac problems and two open-heart surgeries. Her mother Deborah Ulrich worked at Boeing’s Electronics Manufacturing Facility, once south of downtown Seattle, in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Tianna Hatleberg, now 28, was born with a rare condition called Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum. She suffers from physical and intellectual disabilities because she is missing part of her brain. Her father Shawn Hatleberg was a mechanic at Boeing’s Everett plant working on 747s when she was conceived in 1993. He still works for the company.

Natalie Ford, now 8, was born with a rare genetic mutation that causes a condition known as Pitt-Hopkins Syndrome. She has the mental and mobility functioning of an infant and will require around-the-clock care for the rest of her life. Her father Dana Ford began working as a mechanic at the Everett plant in 2012 and is still employed there.

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/a-recap-of-3-lawsuits-over-chemical-exposure-at-boeing-plants/

Born with heart defect, Boeing worker’s child ‘never knew anything different’

Editor’s note: Late last month, the Boeing Co. and Marie Riley reached terms of an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed amount, according to a motion filed in King County Superior Court on Nov. 7. Two other lawsuits, filed by children of mechanics at Boeing’s Everett plant, are still pending.

Most rarely take note of the subtle “lub-dub” in their chest. A steady drum, rising and falling with emotions.

But Marie Riley always considered her heart’s rhythm more than just lifelong background noise. For as long as she can remember, a beat out of sync has been something to fear.

Riley has a set of four heart defects, known collectively as Tetralogy of Fallot. Her diagnosis marked the beginning of her life — and the first chapter in a history of cardiac complications.

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/born-with-heart-defect-boeing-workers-child-never-knew-anything-different/