A FORMER Royal British Legion member who raised more than £115,000 for its poppy appeal died from asbestos exposure, an inquest heard.

Dennis Harper, 82, spent 15 years fundraising for the Woodstock branch with his wife Josephine at Cherwell Valley Services, off junction 10 of the M40.

An inquest at Oxfordshire Coroner’s Court heard he died from asbestos exposure on Friday, May 30, after a tumour was found in his ribs.

The legion’s Woodstock branch vice-chairman Gordon Hollis, who grew up with Mr Harper, said: “He was a very nice and straightforward chap and I always got on well with him all my life.

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“He worked hard for the legion and was a good helper.”

Mr Harper, of Bear Close in Woodstock, was exposed to the hazardous material while working for building contractor DA Berry from 1961 to 1969.

His job included painting and decorating in new large housing estates in Oxfordshire and he came into contact with asbestolux, used for insulation.

He went on to work for Blackwell’s bookshop as a maintenance engineer for 26 years and was not exposed there.

Mr Harper, who served in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during his National Service, complained to his GP about sharp chest and stomach pains in August last year.

A scan eventually revealed the tumour and his condition deteriorated, before he died at Sobell House Hospice in Headington.

A post mortem examination showed he died from mesothelioma, a form of cancer most commonly caused by asbestos exposure.

Coroner Darren Salter recorded a conclusion of industrial disease on Tuesday.

In August, the Oxford Mail reported that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) predicted a peak in asbestos deaths in Oxfordshire from 2015 to 2020 as the delayed harmful effects of exposure come into effect.

The mineral was prevalent in industrial buildings between the 1950s and 1970s.

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