Transit Worker Dies Following Asthma Attack

Transit Worker Dies Following Asthma Attack

Shirlyn Staton, a transit worker who crossed picket lines Dec. 22 to return to work, died that morning as she cleaned a Brooklyn subway station.

According to police, the cause of death was cardiac arrest brought on by an asthma attack. Ms. Staton, an 11-year veteran, was treated at the scene by Emergency Medical Service personnel before being transported to Long Island Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 9:37 a.m.

Under Investigation

A spokesman for Transport Workers' Union Local 100 declined to comment on the incident out of deference to the family, but confirmed that investigators from the state's Public Employee Safety and Health office were looking into the incident.

Other union sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed Ms. Staton had a history of breathing problems, but nothing that indicated she would experience such a severe asthma attack.

She reportedly entered a bathroom that was being cleaned by another worker at Hoyt St. and Schermerhorn St. station around 7:55 a.m., and immediately the heavy solvents and chemicals put her into respiratory distress. The room had no windows or ventilation of any kind.

Trouble Moving Her

Police responded to the scene almost immediately, but there was apparently a delay in moving Ms. Staton, who was significantly overweight, out of the underground station once EMS arrived.

Her roommate, Norma Goggins Mack, told the Daily News that Ms. Staton, 43, had to go back to work because she had no other way to pay her bills.

"She was a dedicated worker," Ms. Mack said. "She loved her job."