W. B. Reitze to H. B. Moreno, Trip Report on Asberit and Magnebras in Brazil (1977)

A four-page trip report of May 2, 1977, from W. B. Reitze to H. B. Moreno, copied to Drs. Paul Kotin and George Wright and others. At the Asberit asbestos textile plant in Rio de Janeiro, Reitze found conditions that "reminded me a good deal of 'A' Building at Manville ten years ago": fibers visible in the air and "attached to the workers' clothing, their skin, and their hair," most workers barefoot, and accumulated fiber hanging "in garlands from the overhead wires and pipes." He saw not "one single respirator being used." J-M was "a minority stockholder in this operation and we have no operating responsibility," but he felt "we do have a moral obligation to make an effort to protect these workers."

What it shows

At J-M's Magnebras plant in São Paulo, by contrast, dust control had been installed and respirator areas were marked. But Reitze watched Magnebras contract crews install Thermobestos aboard ship and at the state oil refinery, sewing amosite blankets by hand, in scenes no different from "the dozens of shipyards" he had visited elsewhere. He expected "the same high percentage of asbestos-related diseases in this population just as we are encountering it in the United States," and product liability suits too, and urged ending Thermobestos in Brazil or converting to the asbestos-free Thermo-12 within 18 to 24 months, as he had in 1975 (Reitze on Thermo-12 in Brazil). For the Manville "A" Building, see the 1957 union complaints.

In Johns-Manville's chronology

Johns-Manville's own chronology of what the company knew describes this document as follows:

Reitze memorandum to H.B. Moreno, 5/2/77, describes asbestos health risks to workers at Asberit (Brazil). Asbestos hangs in "garlands" from overhead wires and pipes fibers on workers' clothing, skin, hair; dust engineer needs help; doctor sees some disease; J-M contract unit workers at risk; urges action. Similar conditions existed at other international locations.

Related documents

• W. B. Reitze and J. T. Vanderveen on Replacing Thermobestos with Thermo-12 in Brazil (1975)
• Union Complaints and J-M Correspondence on Dust in the Manville Textile "A" Building (1957)
• C. H. Stevens to W. C. Seeds on Dust Collection in the Manville A Building (1955)