The widow of a former Bradford Council plumber who died from an industrial illness is appealing for his former colleagues to come forward to help lawyers investigating whether more could have been done to protect him.

Michael Pitman died aged 71 in December 2010 after a five-month battle with malignant mesothelioma, which is caused by exposure to asbestos dust.

Before his death he told industrial illness experts at law firm Irwin Mitchell that he believed he was exposed to asbestos while working for Frank Robinson Plumbing and Heating Engineers in Bradford between 1954 and 1961 and when he worked as a plumber for the structural department at Bradford Council from 1964 to 1981.

Now his wife Kathleen, 68, is urging Michael’s former colleagues to get in touch. She said: “We were all devastated by Michael’s diagnosis and he straight away thought back to where he could have been exposed to asbestos.

“We moved from Bradford to Flamborough in the late 1980s to enjoy our retirement by the coast but now I have been robbed of that.

“He soon remembered coming into contact with the dust regularly while working at Frank Robinson Plumbing and Heating Engineers mixing asbestos powder over bath tubs and applying it to boilers and pipes.

“He also said when he worked for Bradford Council he would regularly come across asbestos whilst inspecting buildings. It’s still incredibly hard to come to terms with the fact we’ve lost Michael to such a terrible illness and we all miss him every day, I feel completely lost without him.

“I now hope as many of his ex workmates as possible will help the team at Irwin Mitchell investigate if more could potentially have been done to protect him from asbestos so we can finally honour his memory and get the justice we deserve for losing him in such a terrible way.”

Ian Toft, industrial disease expert at Irwin Mitchell’s Leeds office, said: “Mesothelioma is an aggressive and incurable cancer which devastates families and victims like Michael who worked in industries such as plumbing – a trade where we know workers regularly came into contact with asbestos.

“We hope Michael’s former colleagues will be able to confirm his recollection of the contact he had with asbestos.” Anyone with information should contact Mr Toft at Irwin Mitchell on (0113) 2186453 or e-mail ian.toft@irwinmitchell.com.