Family appeal for help after Carnforth engineer’s asbestos-related death

The family of a Carnforth man who died from mesothelioma have appealed for former colleagues to come forward with information about conditions at a Lancaster factory in the 1960s.

Anthony Allen, known as Tony, from Carnforth, died in 2025 aged 81 after being diagnosed with the incurable cancer caused by exposure to asbestos during his career as an electrical engineer.  

Following training at Lancaster and Morecambe College, Tony began his working life in 1960 as an apprentice electrician with James Williamson & Son Limited at Lune Mills in Lancaster.

Following his apprenticeship, he continued working for the company when it began operating as Nairn-Williamson Limited.   

During his time there in the 1960s, he carried out electrical work on plant and machinery throughout the factory, including maintenance work inside industrial ovens that were padded with asbestos insulation.  

Tony developed symptoms in late 2023 and after visiting his GP in September 2024 was referred to hospital and diagnosed with mesothelioma, an asbestos-related cancer, in early 2025.

He sadly died from the disease on June 23.

Tony is survived by his wife Pauline Allen and daughter Heidi Allen.

“We are devastated to lose my dad, and he suffered a painful and distressing death," said Heidi.

Mesothelioma is an aggressive terminal cancer caused by historical asbestos exposure, with symptoms often not appearing for decades later.

These can include chest pain that is often sharp or persistent, shortness of breath due to fluid buildup (pleural effusion), a dry, persistent cough that may worsen over time, lumps under the skin especially on the chest, fatigue, and unexplained weight loss.  

Heidi said her father’s death came as a shock to the family, particularly given how well he had been until relatively shortly before his diagnosis, despite the decades the deadly disease had lain dormant in his lungs. 

“When he was finally diagnosed, we were told he only had a short time left," she said.

"It came completely out of the blue and was an utter shock. He'd always been in good health, he never smoked or drank, and I genuinely thought he would live to a much older age. So, it came a bit out of the blue.”  

Heidi said her father's condition deteriorated rapidly after his diagnosis. 

“Right up until a couple of months before he died, Dad was still on his feet and looking after himself.

"In the final months he struggled to breathe and had to have fluid drained from his lungs three times a week. It was heartbreaking to see. 

Heidi said her father’s death had left a huge hole in her life.

"I was an only child and spoke to him every day.

"I always went to him for guidance and advice. Losing him has left a huge gap in our lives and we're still struggling to come to terms with it.” 

The family has instructed law firm Slater and Gordon to investigate how Tony came to be exposed to the deadly hazardous material.

They are now asking for anyone who worked alongside him at James Williamson & Son Limited or Nairn-Williamson Limited in Lancaster during the 1960s, or who may have knowledge of the working conditions to come forward.

Tony Allen

Information about the presence and use of asbestos at the factory, including anyone who remembers the industrial ovens or maintenance work carried out on plant and machinery, is particularly important. 

“He always knew he had been exposed to asbestos dust while working at Williamsons during the 1960s," said Heidi.

"He actually kept a newspaper cutting about another former worker who had died from mesothelioma in 2002, caused by asbestos exposure at Williamsons, just in case because he was worried he would develop the condition himself one day. 

"Whilst we are sure he was exposed to asbestos during his time with the company, we need to try to find more information about the circumstances of that exposure.

“We need people who worked with my dad, or who remember the conditions at the factory, to come forward. If my dad had seen an appeal like this for someone else, he would have tried to help, so we're hoping others will now do the same for him.”  

David Dunne, principal lawyer in the Industrial Disease team at Slater and Gordon, said that historical witness evidence regarding Lune Mills is critical to the investigation.  

Even seemingly small details about the factory, the work carried out there or the materials used could help the family establish more precisely how and when Tony was exposed to asbestos.  

"Mesothelioma is a devastating disease which can take decades to develop after exposure to asbestos," said Mr Dunne.

"Sadly, by the time symptoms appear it is often too late for effective treatment.” 

Anyone with information is asked to contact David Dunne at Slater and Gordon by email at David.Dunne@slatergordon.co.uk or by calling 0330 995 5736. 

Alternatively, they can contact Amy-J Butcher at Amy-J.Butcher@slatergordon.co.uk or on 0330 995 6160. 

James Williamson & Son was founded in Lancaster in the 1840s by James Williamson Snr and later expanded by his son James Williamson (later Lord Ashton) into a massive linoleum and leathercloth enterprise.

In late 1963, Williamson's merged with Nairns of Kirkcaldy to create Nairn-Williamson, becoming the country's largest floor covering producer.

Eventually the bulk of production was focussed at Kirkcaldy, leading to the scaling down and eventual end of modern linoleum manufacturing at the Lancaster (St George's Works) site.

The site closed more than 25 years ago.

Asbestos is a general name given to several naturally occurring fibrous minerals that have crystallised to form fibres.

The properties of asbestos made it an ideal material for use in a number of products, including insulation material for buildings, boilers and pipes; car brakes and floor tiles, insulating board to protect buildings and ships against fire; asbestos cement for roofing sheets and pipes.

Due to the risks to health following inhalation exposure to asbestos the importation of blue and brown asbestos has been banned in the UK since 1985. This ban was extended to include white asbestos in 1999.