Kent woman seeks information after being diagnosed with asbestos illness

Christine Hobbs, now aged 76, worked at Furlongs Motor Engineers Ltd in Powis Street, Woolwich in the 1960s and at the Top Rank Bingo Hall in Upper Wickham Lane, Welling, Kent from 1971 to 2007.

She is appealing to fellow employees to come forward and share their recollections of working in those locations.

In 1961 or 1962, Christine began working for Furlongs Motor Engineers, where she did clerical work over about a year. While working at the Woolwich garage, Christine had to go into the service area where maintenance and repair work was carried out on the cars. She remembers the garage being dusty, which was a reason why she left, and believes that the brake shoes fitted to the vehicles were made of asbestos.

From 1971 to 1974 and 1976 to 2007, Christine worked at the Top Rank Bingo Hall in Welling as a cashier and book seller. Christine believes construction work went on throughout the years that she worked there, which also created a lot of dust and debris.

In 2019, Christine started having trouble breathing and in September 2020 she noticed she was suffering from increased breathlessness. She underwent a biopsy on Christmas Eve 2020 which found she had mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs caused by exposure to asbestos.

Patrick Walsh, asbestos claims solicitor at Leigh Day, said:

“We are appealing for anyone who worked at Furlongs Motor Engineers in the early 1960s and the Top Rank Bingo Hall between 1971 and 2007 to come forward with information, particularly relating to construction work at the bingo hall.”

Please contact Nicole Stringfellow of Leigh Day on 0207 650 1387 or email nstringfellow@leighday.co.uk