Asbestos Exposure | Navy Veterans

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• History of asbestos exposure in Navy veterans
• Legislation and legal rights for military veterans
  

Asbestos Exposure Amongst Navy Veterans and the Link to Pleural Mesothelioma 

Until as recently as the mid-1970s, nearly every ship and shipyard built by the United States Navy was equipped and fitted with construction materials that utilized asbestos. Mandated into use by all branches of the military, asbestos was especially popular with the Navy for its fireproofing and heat-resistance capabilities, since seagoing vessels ands submarines contained engines and boiler rooms and other below-deck areas that generated great amounts of heat. Given the very nature of travel on or under the surface of water – where close spaces crammed with humans and sensitive mechanical equipment needed protection from intense heat, as well as the possibility of devastating fires – it is understandable why asbestos would be considered such an important insulating and heat-protective material. More than 300 products, most of them used by the Navy, contained asbestos and were used shipboard between the 1930s and the 1970s in Navy military applications.

Not surprisingly, it has been reported that more than 30% of Americans now dealing with pleural mesothelioma and other forms of cancer due to asbestos exposure experienced that exposure while serving in the military. Particularly for naval men and women, who ate and slept below decks in atmospheres full of asbestos dust, the exposure to asbestos was ongoing and lasted for long periods of time. Even after the dangers of asbestos exposure became impossible to ignore in the early 1980s, and asbestos use was halted in military applications, the risk of asbestos exposure in ships and many military environments continues to exist since many of these vessels are still in service and require maintenance to remove old asbestos. Present-day military personnel are thus still at risk for asbestos exposure, although the government has taken steps to minimize exposure as much as possible.

With 25 million individuals currently living who have served in the US armed forces, and given the very long latency period between asbestos exposure and the development of diseases like pleural mesothelioma, it stands to reason that mesothelioma may yet claim many more of the brave men and women’s lives who have given their service.  Those veterans who served in the military between 1940 and the 1970s have an increased risk of asbestos-related illnesses, while Navy veterans and shipyard employees who worked between the 1930s and the 1970s have a greater chance of developing diseases like pleural mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure.

We are familiar with the legislation and laws set in place addressing military veterans and their rights, and have been aggressively battling mesothelioma for our clients through the legal system as well as through the sponsoring of medical research. The founding partner at the Simmons firm is a U.S. military veteran, and many of our attorneys on staff have also served with honor in the armed forces. Please contact us today if you are a veteran and feel you may have been exposed to asbestos while serving in the military, particularly if you are a Navy veteran, and the information provided above sounds familiar to you.