Asbestos town dying as lawmakers dicker

Losing their health, and jobs
For now, many residents are struggling with medical bills. Some have filed for bankruptcy because of the financial strain. In September, a health administrator for Grace, which operates under bankruptcy protection, wrote hundreds of Libby residents that they no longer have asbestos-related disease or may not be as sick as they thought.

Tanis Hernandez, outreach coordinator for Libby’s Center for Asbestos Related Disease, said many of those who are sick can no longer work, further threatening their finances.

Hernandez, whose job includes helping sickened residents deal with legal problems and counseling dying patients, said the town has lost its innocence. Because Grace was the best employer in town, many people put their faith in the company to take care of them.

“Our trust has been damaged,” she said.

What many people don’t realize, she added, is that Libby’s particular disease is different and requires a different solution.

“It’s kind of an invisible disease,” she said. “Unless you know someone really well, you might not know how sick they are.”

Concerns about children
As for Skramstad, his wife and two of his grown children have also been diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases, likely a result of the dust he brought home on his clothes and shoes every night. Because the diseases can take years to develop, he fears his other children will be next.

“I am in terror of it every day,” he said. “It’s a hard cross for me to carry around. I went to work there and I carried that stuff back to my wife and kids.”

Skramstad’s wife, Norita, said so many people are dying that some town residents are thinking of replacing a growing collection of makeshift crosses with a more permanent memorial.

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