An inquest heard a testimony from the grave of a retired railway worker who died due to being exposed to asbestos 50 years ago.

Walthamstow Coroners Court heard this morning that Joseph Lesurf, of New Wanstead, Wanstead, developed mesothelioma after being exposed while working in the 1950s and 60s for Great Eastern Railway.

Mr Lesurf, who died aged 78 on August 29 last year at Whipps Cross Hospital in Leytonstone, started an apprenticeship with Great Eastern Railway at the age of 18 in 1954.

After six years he moved to working in the engine repair shop, where he lagged pipes with asbestos for diesel engines, exposing him to the deadly fibres for up to two hours a day.

When Stratford Works closed in 1963, he moved to the London Transport depot in Walthamstow, where he was employed as a cleaner for around seven years until he retired.

The court heard a statement written by Mr Lesurf on August 15, the day after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Mr Lesurf recalled working in the heating room, a small eight by 12 foot room, which had pipes lagged with asbestos.

He said: “We were never provided with a mask or told of the dangers of asbestos when working with it.

“In Stratford Works especially, it was incredibly dusty work and my overalls would be covered in dust by the end of the day.”

Mr Lesurf began complaining of increasing breathlessness and weight loss during a visit to Whipps Cross in December 2013.

On July 31 last year, when he returned with the same complaints, he was found to have lost two stone since 2012 and a pleural effusion and malignant mesothelioma were found in his left lung.

Because he was not in a fit state for chemotherapy or radiotherapy, he died on August 29.

Coroner Nadia Persaud ruled that Mr Lesurf had died “as a result of industrial disease”.

She said: “I am satisfied he died from mesothelioma, which in the vast majority of cases is caused by asbestos.

“There is clear evidence he was exposed to a substantial amount of asbestos without protective equipment, so on the balance of probabilities, his death was caused by this asbestos exposure.”