Asbestos scare seals off Scientology cruiseship
Refurbishment work is suspended on ship used as a spiritual retreat
Wednesday 7 May 2008
A PANAMA-flagged cruiseship used by the Church of Scientology as its ultimate spiritual retreat remains sealed after a health scare forced refurbishment of the vessel being carried out by Curaçao Drydock Co to be suspended.
Work on the vessel's interior was halted on Freewinds 10 days ago after health inspectors from the government of the is...
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During a break from a deposition in 1995 in RTC vs Lerma,this litigant heard Scientology's scientologist lawyer Earle Cooley, tell lawyers for the Washington Post that he used to represent Johns Manville as a defense attorney against asbestos lawsuits...
Scientologists Exposed to Blue Asbestos - for 21 Years News
May 1, 2008. By Jane Mundy
Curacao, Netherlands Antilles:: Perhaps now that high-ranking
members of the Church of Scientology-including Tom Cruise-may have
been exposed to asbestos, an all-out ban on this human carcinogen in
the US may come about sooner. But it can also mean that thousands more
people can potentially develop mesothelioma
The MV Freewinds, Scientology's cruise ship, has been sealed and
docked in Caracao due to blue asbestos (crocidolite) that was released
and spread through the ventilation system, affecting thousands of
people.
The newspaper is The Daily Herald in St. Maartens. On the island of Curaçao (cure-ass-oh),
part of the Netherland Antilles, and the city is Willemstad.
Headline reads:
Freewinds Hides Information About Presence of Asbestos
WILLEMSTAD: During refurbishing and reparatory work, which involved
removing the ceiling and panelling on cruise ship Freewinds, blue
asbestos was released and ended up in the ventilation system.
Freewinds' captain did not report this when it's own personnel were
working on the ship on the Mathey warf in Otrobanda. The Curacao
Drydock Company (CDM), where the ship was taken for reparatory work on
the hull, heard from the surveyor that there may be asbestos on the
ship. The captain acknowledged the incident and said that after the
incident Freewinds had some investigation done. Keeping the incident
quiet became more noticeable when it turned out that the 40-year-old
ship contatined blue asbestos.
The question is whether or not the blue asbestos dust, which can cause
cancer, can be removed from the ship. The CDM has stopped all work on
the ship. The ship was sealed and isolated and experts will
investigate and measure the presence of asbestos dust in the hull and
surrounding areas. Commissioners Eugene Rhuggenaath (Economic Affairs)
and Humphrey Davelaar (Public Health) said on Friday.
CDM interim director Frank Esser, deputy head of the Department of
Labour Affairs Christiene van der Biezen were accompanied by two
inspectors and head of the health Department Tico Ras. Samples taken
from the panelling last week by inspectors that were sent to the
Netherlands showed that they contained significant amounts of blue
asbestos. After an extraordinary meeting, the Executive Council
decided to inform the public in general about the incident to avoid
remours and panic.
The CDM personnel were also informed via the media because it was
impossible to gather all the workers Friday evening to personally give
them the information.
[END]
A paraphrase of the new fund raising letter to be sent out by David Miscavige,
the leader of the amazing shrinking scam of scientology
Dear $cientologist,
Because the word $cientologist has fallen into such disrepute,. and in an effort to try telling the absolute truth for a change, I will from here on refer to $cientologists as 'rubes'.. okay?
Attention all rubes, because this scam is only about getting your money and retaining as much of your money as possible, and yes it is very expensive to pay lawyers to lie on our behalf to silence those who do not believe Hubbard's lies, and yes we were too cheap to procure a proper vessel for perpetrating the fraud of rube-ology upon your enfeebled minds, and yes we got a good a deal on this rustbucket because the previous owners knew it wold be impossible to remove the asbestos, and YES we knew that the only good rubeologist in scientology is a dead scientologist, because dead people can not sue us for fraud.
So we purchased an old ship cheap that was filled with deadly blue asbestos...and like all bad news that might affect the health of a scientologist we covered it up, because L Ron Hubbard said "If it is true for you it is true for you". So simple, if you do not know about this toxic dust that slowly kills you it will not be true for you, geddit? If you don't you will be sent to cramming at your OWN expense. This is how we keep scientology working. Any questions?
" Yes, I have a question "
MAA, declare that person an SP and throw them over the side.
Anyone else have a question?
So after hiding this toxic poison for decades, we now must induce every rube who has ever been on the Freewinds..to do the Purification rundown at their own expense, and yes, you see we have no liability because we did not force you to take your next breath, you literally, "pulled it in" - all those billions of microscopic razors to slowly and silently destroy the cell walls in your lungs, and yes, ironic isn't it, that in your old age as you wheeze and gasp for breath after the asbestos has destroyed your lungs, you will laugh along with me about the name.. ha ha, they even had the nerve to call it the "Free Winds"... while you beg for your next breath....
Oh and rubes, we need you to donate more money so we can buy another ship to take you beyond the 10 mile limit where we can really practice scientology without interference of the supressive psychiatric controlled governments of the world.
Send your check, money order, credit cards, stock certificates, property titles TODAY to
The Work Was Free
666 Demonic Blvd
Tilden, Nebraska
The real Sea Org Motto:
We Come Back And Sue Scientology into Oblivion
During mid to late January, Lawrence Woodcraft and his daughters, Astra and
Zoe, as well as Astra's daughter Kate, visited all of us at the Lisa McPherson
Trust in Clearwater. During their visit, each of the Woodcrafts shared intimate
details of their personal experiences in Scientology's paramilitary Sea
Organization, so that others will be forewarned and hopefully not allow
themselves to be subjected to the same types of abuses. The Woodcrafts are a
very caring and courageous family to be willing to speak out and help others
avoid the hell on earth that people experience in Scientology's Sea Org.
You will be seeing much more of the Woodcrafts' (and other people's) stories
here and on our web site, lisatrust.bogie.nl, in the near future. But in the
meantime, while final touches are put on the written material and videos to
come, here is one story from Lawrence concerning Scientology's ship, the
Freewinds.
Many of you may know that the Freewinds is the only place where Scientologists
can get the super-secret OT VIII level. Other courses and auditing are also
delivered on this ship, at prices much higher than anywhere else. It is a
frequent holiday destination for public Scientologists anxious to limit their
exposure to "entheta" in the real world. Because the Freewinds sails in
international waters and is therefore outside the reach of any country's law
enforcement, there is also reportedly a highly secret RPF on the ship, where
Scientology's most high-level and legally dangerous defectors are sent for
re-indoctrination. Some of the people who have been there in recent years have
reportedly included Marty Rathbun, Ray Mithoff, Lyman Spurlock, Norman Starkey,
and Mike Rinder, to name but a few.
A licensed architect, Lawrence Woodcraft was assigned to prepare detailed plans
for remodeling the interior cabins and other spaces on the Freewinds following
its purchase by Scientology in 1987. Shortly after arriving on the ship, he
noticed a powdery blue fibrous substance under a layer of paint. Upon closer
inspection, he recognized it to be "blue" asbestos, the most dangerous form of
this carcinogen. Lawrence has written a sworn Declaration concerning this
discovery, his attempts to alert Sea Org officers (including David Miscavige's
sister-in-law Bitty Miscavige) about the problem, and their refusal to remove
it.
The Lisa McPherson Trust encourages everyone to read this Declaration,
especially Scientologists who have been exposed to this potentially deadly
substance on the Freewinds. We urge those Scientologists to seek real medical
advice from qualified doctors regarding the long-term impact of contact with
such a deadly toxic substance as "blue" asbestos. We would especially like to
thank Lawrence Woodcraft for blowing the whistle on Scientology's utter
contempt for the well-being of people who have worked on and visited the
Freewinds.
Bob Minton
DECLARATION OF LAWRENCE WOODCRAFT
1. I am over the age of 18 years.
2. The statements herein are of my own personal knowledge and if called
upon as a witness, I can testify competently thereto.
3. My name is Lawrence Woodcraft. I am a citizen of the United Kingdom
and a legal permanent resident of the United States of America. I am a former
member of the Sea Organization of the church of scientology.
4. I joined the Sea Organization at the Flag Land Base in Clearwater,
Florida in September 1986. Prior to this I was an architect in London, England
from 1975 onwards.
5. In February 1987 the Sea Organization asked me to work on a project
for
them. They had purchased a Cruise ship formerly called La Boheme and owned by
Commodore Cruise Lines. They renamed this ship Freewinds and Majestic Cruise
Lines operated it for the Church of Scientology.
6. I was asked to go to this cruise ship and prepare detailed plans for
remodeling the interior cabins and other spaces of the ship. The church's
interior designers had prepared sketches of how they wanted the new designs to
be. Now they needed detailed plans for actual construction. The plans were
ambitious: They wanted to convert a restaurant space into course rooms for the
delivery of OT8 and to convert a lounge area into a restaurant. All of the
cabins were to be upgraded and in some cases two or more cabins brought
together to make suites. Some cabins were converted into offices for the IAS
(International Association of Scientologists). In short, every space of the
ship was to be converted or remodeled in some way.
7. I flew to the ship, which was moored in great secrecy at the island
of
Curacao in the Caribbean. It was explained to me that the ship was in a secret
location and would never be brought into United States territory because it
could be seized by the authorities against taxes the Church owed the IRS. At
this time there were probably about 100 Sea Org members aboard working on
upgrading the crew living accommodations, carrying out repairs to the ship,
training in seamanship, etc. I was in the company of Steve Kasaki who was
called the Renos I.C. (in charge), although he didn't have any qualifications
or any special knowledge of ships. I was to be the ship's architect.
8. One day Steve and I went into one of the cabins, which were in
decrepit
condition, and he took a hammer and removed a section of paint from the outer
steel wall, as he was curious about the construction. Under the layer of paint
I noticed a powdery blue fibrous substance approximately 1 ½" thick between the
paint and the steel wall. I told him I thought it was asbestos, which is a
hazardous substance, and the fibers must not be allowed to go airborne. Steve
said that he didn't think it was asbestos and it wasn't dangerous.
9. In architecture school in the UK (University of Nottingham), I had
attended lectures on the hazards of asbestos. We had been trained that prior
to 1970 or thereabouts, asbestos was commonly used in buildings as insulation
and fire protection. It was then declared a carcinogenic substance, to the
degree that a single microscopic particle was like a little hook that would be
breathed in, and hook itself into the lining of the lungs. There, a single
microscopic particle could remain lodged for even 20 years, and then in the
right conditions, cause lung cancer. We were taught that there was no safe
exposure level; any exposure was potentially lethal. We were taught that
asbestos could be present in ceiling tiles, floor covering, roof tiles, heating
and pipe insulation. We were taught how to recognize it and that if discovered
in an old building, a specialized abatement company would have to be brought
in. Such a company wears full-body protective respirators, fully seal off the
building with plastic sheets, remove the asbestos in special containers and
take it to hazardous materials dumps. In short it was to be treated as
seriously as if it was radioactive. To knowingly release asbestos into the
atmosphere is a criminal offense in the UK as it is in the USA. I remember
being taught that there are two types of asbestos, white asbestos, which might
be added to ceiling tiles as a kind of "binder" or used to wrap pipes; and
"blue" asbestos, the most dangerous kind. This is pure 100% asbestos commonly
colored a bright blue color. Microscopically, if white asbestos is a single
hook, blue asbestos is a ball of hooks so the chance of it attaching itself to
the lining of the lung is much greater. I remember that they discovered blue
asbestos in railway carriages in England and it was a big "flap." The
carriages were taken out of service and specially disposed of.
10. Back to the Freewinds. I went into the engine room, saw a section
where ceiling panels had been removed, and saw a big chunk of blue asbestos
hanging down. I went to the Chief Engineer and said there is exposed asbestos
in the engine room. He said that it was not asbestos. Here, I did some
research. The Freewinds was built in Finland in 1968. On board were the
original plans from the shipyard. I went through the plans. Even though the
notations were in Finish, I saw the word asbestos over and over. The ship was
divided vertically into fire compartments with steel walls that ran the full
height of the ship. They were lined both sides with 2-3 inches of blue
asbestos. The underside of every deck was lined in asbestos. The outside
walls of the ship had been sprayed with asbestos. All the ceiling panels
contained asbestos. In short, asbestos was everywhere as was typical of a ship
built in the sixties. I read that the SS United States, which I remember
operating between South Hampton, England and New York in the sixties, contained
so much asbestos that it was impossible to scrap it even though it contained
thousands of tons of valuable steel. The process of scrapping it would have
released asbestos into the air, which was a criminal offense with jail time and
massive fines and the prospect of civil litigation. It occurred to me that you
do not see old cruise ships in service, you only see new cruise ships in
service, built after the seventies when the true dangers of asbestos were
realized by medical research.
11. No one on the ship knew anything about asbestos, nor did they care.
I
thought to myself, the Church has been tricked into buying a cruise ship for
$11 million that is a total liability, that is so full of lethal asbestos, the
only option is to sink it in deep water. If asbestos remains permanently wet
it is not dangerous, it is dangerous when dried out and flaking, releasing
fibers in the air that are then breathed in. To me this seemed a daunting,
enormous problem. How could the church possibly bring their public
parishioners to this ship and expose them to such a hazardous substance. I
thought that the legal liability alone would terrify them (As a new Sea Org.
member I didn't know at this time the scientologists cannot sue the Church).
Around this time Bitty Miscaviage visited the ship. She was the Church
executive with overall responsibility for the ship project. I went to her and
took copies of the ships blueprints and showed her the full extent of asbestos
on the ship. At first she was calm, but as I further explained the dangers,
she begun to realize that it was a problem. We had a meeting to discuss the
problem of asbestos. Steve Kisacky stated that L. Ron Hubbard doesn't state in
policy that asbestos is dangerous; he only states that fiberglass is dangerous
and therefore we are only removing the fiberglass. In fact, the dock next to
the Freewinds was piled high with fiberglass that had been removed by Sea Org
members. It was explained to me that the ship was being remodeled only
according to the written policies and "advices" of L. Ron Hubbard. Since
Hubbard had been in the US Navy and had then founded the Sea Org and had run a
fleet of ships, he knew everything about ships. If asbestos was dangerous, he
would have written this somewhere. Also Hubbard knew everything about cancer.
He had written that cancer was caused by the mind and specifically second
dynamic aberration (problems with relationships). I was told that people only
get sick if they go into "agreement" with being sick. As the ship was going to
be filled with "operating thetans" doing the highest level in Scientology (OT
8) nothing was going to make them sick. I was being a "wog"
(non-scientologist) worrying about a little thing like asbestos.
12. I forgot about the asbestos, even though this went against my
education, and the renovation work got fully underway. Ceiling panels were
removed; the asbestos was scraped away to make room for new electrical wiring
and new air-conditioning ducts. The ship was so old that salt water from the
ocean was used to flush the toilets. The salt water had corroded the pipes and
so leaks were everywhere. All the pipes were replaced and as the old pipes
were torn out, the steel walls coated with asbestos were drilled into and cut
through by Sea Org members. Holes were cut through the steel decks, sections
of the vertical fire compartmental walls were removed to make way for
relocating restaurants etc. etc. Asbestos was everywhere blowing around the
ship like an insidious blue dust of death. It was piled up in the corridors,
big chunks of it lie on the floor. I was freaked out and would wear a mask,
but I know that a disposable facemask did nothing, because people who handle
asbestos wear full body suits and actual respirators.
13. It reached a point that the renovation work was falling behind, and
was
beyond the scope of Sea Org members on the ship. The ship contracted with a
ship refit company out of Southampton England, who commonly worked on cruise
ships in Miami. The company sent about 40 carpenters and other workers to the
ship from Miami. I had prepared the plans and materials were airfreighted from
Miami or even obtained locally on the Island.
14. When the re-fit company arrived (they were non-Scientologists), they
saw the asbestos everywhere and had a fit. They threatened to immediately pull
their men off the project. There was in Scientology what is called a PR
(public relations) flap. The re-fit company boss said it was dangerous and he
couldn't expose his men to it. So that the re-fit company could fulfill their
contract, a handling was worked out. An asbestos team was formed using Sea Org
members (3 or 4). Wherever there was exposed asbestos they would rush to the
location and spray it with water and or paint. The idea was that the asbestos
shouldn't be dry and flaking and therefore releasing airborne contamination.
This was an extremely poor handling and the ship refit contractors were very
unhappy; they would even sleep in their cabins wearing masks. After a few
weeks, they left the ship. I think in addition to the asbestos problem, the
Church had run out of money to pay them. They left the ship in Oct. 1987 and
went back to the UK with a very low opinion of Scientology.
15. Now, the church decided to employee Scientologists who were
carpenters,
metal workers and from allied professions. They had full room and board on the
ship and were paid $800 per week for working on the remodeling. Approximately
80 or 90 such Scientologists were brought to the ship and so employed. As they
were Scientologists, the were easy to control and the asbestos problem was no
longer an issue. They completed the remodeling by June 1988 for the Maiden
Voyage. By the time the ship was finished, all the paneling was put back in
place and the walls were painted and wallpapered, the floors were carpeted and
new furniture was installed. It looked great, but behind the paneling, the
asbestos was left hanging and flaking and falling apart. The ceiling panels
were set in a metal grid system, which is a long way from being airtight.
Every time a panel is removed for routine maintenance, asbestos dust is
released into the rooms, cabins and corridors of the ship. This is continuing
to this day. A ship at sea is subjected to intense vibration and so the
already loosened asbestos becomes progressively looser and releases more
airborne contamination.
16. I have now passed my architectural examinations and am a licensed
architect in the State of California. The State takes asbestos very seriously
and it is a criminal offense to release any amount of asbestos into the
atmosphere. If any asbestos is suspected in an old building an abatement
company has to be called and this is very expensive. I worked on a restaurant
project remodel, as the architect and project manager, where ceiling tiles were
removed in a shopping mall where a restaurant was located. The original steel
frame had been coated with asbestos for fire protection. With the ceiling tiles
removed asbestos dust filled the restaurant: earthquakes had loosened the
asbestos over the years. The EPA was called in and had special monitoring
equipment to measure the level of asbestos in the air. They took air samples
and sent it to a special laboratory for analysis. Then, a cleaning crew arrived
from a licensed asbestos abatement company, wearing "space suits." They sealed
off the entire area with plastic sheets and entered through air locks. Twenty
men worked through the night and cleaned the entire restaurant, every last
spoon, every plate, and every surface. Their bill was in excess of $20,000 for
one night. I would say that the magnitude of the problem on the Freewinds means
that it cannot be solved without spending millions.
signed by Lawrence Woodcraft
Clearwater, Florida
January 24, 2001
After reading the Woodcraft declaration and watching the video on lisatrust.net
on the contamination from asbestos on the Freewinds I would welcome being
contacted by competent and sufficently well-grounded law firms or multiple law
partnerships interested in representing me and/or a class of persons who have
been subjected to this intensely dangerous asbestos contamination.
I was on the Freewinds for many weeks, sometimes with heavy seas and also lots
of vibration from maneouvers into and out of dock where asbestos particles must
have been released in quantity.
This request for contact by competent law firms would hereby absolve them of the
accusation of "solliciting" a case.
Mesothelioma is mainly caused by breathing in asbestos. The microscopic
needles are breathed into the lungs
Wall Street Journal March 5th 2001:
"Like the ubiquitous mineral
itself-once prized for its fire-retardant and insulating
qualities-asbestos lawsuits are proving to be ineradicable...... Over
the years, companies that used asbestos in everything from drywall joint
compound to brake linings have paid roughly $20 billion in damages and
court costs in case of people exposed to the mineral. A generation ago,
some expers predicted that asbestos suits would be tailing off by now.
But the pace is only picking up....."
