Another Lawsuit Blames Cancer On Radiation At Nuclear Plant

Two children of a former San Onofre nuclear-plant engineer have sued Southern California Edison Co., saying radiation leaks caused his fatal cancer.

“In his last days, we’d talk into the night,” said Gregory McLandrich’s widow, Linda McLandrich of Mission Viejo, Calif.

“I said, `Greg, how did you get this?’ and he said, `I believe I was overexposed to radiation.”’

It is the third lawsuit filed in two years on behalf of former San Onofre workers with cancer by attorneys Don Howarth and Suzelle Smith.

The utility denies that the cancers are linked to San Onofre radiation.

The McLandrich family’s suit is the third alleging that at least 1,000 highly radioactive specks of used fuel breached containers and endangered workers. One suit was filed by R.C. Tang, a former federal inspector, who settled for an undisclosed sum. The other was by Glen James, a former electrical engineer for two companies with plant-maintainence contracts. His suit is pending.