WASHINGTON — Another group of former workers at Linde Ceramics on Thursday won their battle for federal compensation for the cancers they suffered because of exposure to radiation during the Town of Tonawanda facility’s work on Cold War-era nuclear weapons projects.

Those who worked at Linde Ceramics between Nov. 1, 1947, and Dec. 31, 1953—and their survivors — are now set to become eligible for the benefits. The government said in February that those who worked at Linde between 1954 and 1969 would be eligible.

It’s unclear how many people may be affected by Thursday’s ruling, said Jim Speciale, a Linde Ceramics retiree from Buffalo who has been involved in the fight for benefits.

“A lot of the guys are dead, but there are some families affected by this,” Speciale said. “Once this comes out, I’m sure we’ll be hearing from them.”

The unanimous ruling by the Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health is subject to approval from Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, but that is expected to happen routinely.

And once it does, survivors of the 1947-53 era at Linde and their families will be eligible for $150,000 federal payments.

“This has been a very, very, very long time in coming,” said Antoinette Bonsignore, an attorney who took up the plight of the Linde Ceramics workers in 2008.

Sens. Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand, D-N. Y., also pushed for the expansion of benefits for Linde Ceramics workers from that earlier era.

“Linde Ceramics retirees and their family members are finally going to get the compensation they deserve for their selfless and patriotic service throughout the Cold War,” Schumer said.

Gillibrand agreed, saying: “These unsung heroes unknowingly sacrificed their health and wellbeing to advance our Cold War efforts during a critical time in our nation’s history. This is a step in the right direction for Linde retirees to get the long overdue compensation they deserve.”

The ruling creates a “special exposure cohort” for the older group of Linde Ceramics workers. By being in that cohort and suffering from a cancer considered eligible under the program, they will now be eligible for the benefits without individually trying to prove their case.

Also on Thursday, the federal advisory board rejected a request for a special exposure cohort for a much smaller group of workers at the former Hooker Electrochemical plant in Niagara Falls.

jzremski@buffnews.comnull