By Treven Pyles on January 21st, 2026 in Jones Act
Over 600 offshore oil platforms sit within 40 miles of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, placing the Central Gulf of Mexico among the busiest deepwater drilling areas in the world. The workers who service these platforms start their journeys at ports like Fourchon, Lake Charles, Corpus Christi, and Houston before heading out on supply vessels, crewboats, and support craft.
During the weeks workers spend at sea working on platform operations, they're exposed to PFAS-containing firefighting foam kept aboard these vessels.
Supply vessels, crewboats, and offshore support craft transport workers from Gulf Coast ports to deepwater platforms where they spend extended rotations performing maintenance, drilling support, and logistics operations. When deployed during mandatory safety drills or actual fire emergencies, AFFF creates concentrated aerosols that crew members inhale and absorb through skin contact.
Workers handling foam concentrates, maintaining firefighting systems, and conducting cleanup operations after foam deployment face direct dermal contact with PFAS mixtures. Because offshore rotations typically last two to four weeks, seamen experience repeated exposure events during multiple training drills and equipment checks throughout their time aboard vessels in navigation. PFAS bioaccumulate in the body and resist breakdown, meaning cumulative exposure over years of offshore work results in substantial internal chemical burdens.
Maritime workers diagnosed with cancer linked to PFAS exposure aboard vessels may qualify for compensation under the Jones Act. To potentially qualify, you must have been diagnosed within the past three years. Workers who develop these PFAS-related cancers may be entitled to compensation:
A 2023 review of research found meaningful connections between PFAS exposure and higher risks of kidney and testicular cancers, especially when exposure levels were elevated. Other studies have linked PFAS to bladder cancer, breast cancer, leukemia, multiple myeloma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Jones Act protection applies to workers whose primary duties occur aboard vessels in navigation rather than on fixed platforms. Port Fourchon serves over 90% of Gulf deepwater production as a specialized logistics base where hundreds of supply vessels and crewboats operate daily. Workers who board these vessels to perform their jobs qualify for seaman status based on the nature and duration of their shipboard work.
Galley workers, deckhands, engineers, and crew members who live aboard supply vessels during multi-week rotations spend all their working time contributing to vessel operations. Even workers who eventually reach platforms must qualify based on vessel time rather than platform assignments. The difference matters since fixed platform employees usually aren't covered by the Jones Act, but vessel crew members exposed to identical PFAS hazards retain complete maritime law rights.
Maritime employers violated their duty of care when they required crew members to participate in AFFF training drills without warning them about cancer risks associated with PFAS compounds. Companies that stored PFOS-based foams aboard vessels after IARC classified PFOS as a Group 1 carcinogen demonstrated conscious disregard for worker safety. Running monthly firefighting drills that exposed deckhands and safety workers to heavy concentrations of foam spray without giving them respirators amounts to negligence under Jones Act standards.
Vessel operators who failed to audit their firefighting systems for PFAS content or replace contaminated equipment before the January 1, 2026, IMO prohibition deadline showed deliberate indifference to regulatory warnings.
If PFAS exposure aboard vessels working Central Gulf platforms led to kidney cancer, testicular cancer, or another serious illness, and your employer didn't provide the right protective gear or safety procedures, you may have a claim for compensation under the Jones Act. The Environmental Litigation Group has represented toxic exposure victims for over 35 years. For more information about filing a Jones Act claim, please contact us today.