Shipyard Workers & Asbestos Exposure

The workers that were assigned construction projects were very likely to be exposed to dangerous amounts of asbestos dust and to its poisonous fibers. In order to obtain the proper fit, the insulation had to be cut, ground and sanded.

Working in a shipyard puts you at the risk of developing a serious illness like mesothelioma, lung cancer or asbestosis. Unfortunately, the chances of your health improving after you are diagnosed with one of these diseases are extremely grim.

Relevant job titles

apprentice fitter
blacksmith
boat builder
boat operator
boatswain
boiler coverer
cast ship mixer
caulker
chipper
coal engineer
coppersmith
deck engine mechanic
diesel mechanic
engineman
fireman
grinder
hod carrier
hull foreman
hull department supervisor
hull maintenance technician
merchant seaman
naval engineer
naval architect
oiler
pad room worker
plumber
rigger
riveter
sandblaster
ship inspector
shipbuilder
stoker
water tender
wiper

Asbestos-related cancer eligible for filing a claim

If you developed one of the following cancers as a result of occupational exposure, you are eligible for compensation. If you are too ill, a family member can help you with the legal process. In the unfortunate event that you pass away before recovering compensation, your surviving family members will receive compensation on your behalf.

If, however, you struggle with non-cancerous pleural diseases such as asbestosis, pulmonary fibrosis, pleural plaques, pleural effusion, diffuse pleural thickening, COPD (emphysema & chronic bronchitis), pleurisy, lung nodules, lung spots, asthma, pneumonitis, tuberculosis, rounded atelectasis or lung scarring, please seek a second or even a third opinion as the rate of misdiagnosis is very high among the victims of asbestos exposure.

Companies that exposed shipyard workers to asbestos

Astoria, Clatsop County - Oregon

Astoria Marine Construction Co. (AMCCO, Dyer Shipyard)
U.S. Navy - Tongue Point Naval Shipyard

Baltimore County - Maryland

Barletta Industries - Sparrow's Point Shipyard and Industrial Complex
United States Coast Guard - Curtis Bay Coast Guard Yard
Bethlehem Steel Corporation - Bethlehem Fairfield Shipyard

Bath, Sagadahoc County, Maine - Maine

General Dynamics Corporation - Bath Iron Works

Bay City, Bay County - Michigan

Defoe Shipbuilding Company - Defoe Shipyard

Brownsville, Cameron County - Texas

Keppel Offshore and Marine Company - AMFELS Shipyard

Camden, Camden County - New Jersey

New York Shipbuilding Corporation

Charleston, Charleston County - South Carolina

U.S. Navy - Charleston Naval Shipyard (Detyens Shipyards)

Chesapeake Bay - Virginia

Colonna's Shipyard, Norfolk
Lyon Shipyard (Moon Shipyard, Repair Corporation), Norfolk
U.S. Navy - Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia Beach
Huntington Ingalls Industries - Newport News Shipbuilding
U.S. Navy - Norfolk Naval Shipyard
The Norfolk Ship Repair Company - NORSHIPCO

Corpus Christi, Nueces County - Texas

John Bludworth Shipyard, LLC
U.S. Navy - Naval Station Ingleside

Greater Houston - Texas

Brown and Root - Brown Shipbuilding
Kane Boiler Works, Galveston

Honolulu, Oahu Island - Hawaii

U.S. Navy - Joint Base Pearl Harbor - Hickam (Pearl Harbor Shipyard)

Hudson County - New Jersey

United States Steel Corporation - Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company
Todd Shipyards, Hoboken

Jackson & Harrison Counties - Mississippi

Huntington Ingalls Industries - Ingalls Shipyard
U.S. Navy - Naval Station Pascagoula
Harvey Gulf - Gulf Coast Shipyard, Gulfport

Jacksonville, Duval County - Florida

Atlantic Marine, Inc., BAE Systems - Atlantic Dry Dock
M. D. Moody & Sons, Inc- Bellinger Shipyards
U.S Navy - Mayport Naval Station

Jeffersonville, Clark County - Indiana

Jeffboat - Jeffersonville Boat & Machine Co.

Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska - Alaska

Vigor Industrial - Seward Ships Drydock

Lorain, Lorain County - Ohio

The American Ship Building Company

Los Angeles - California

The U.S Navy - Long Beach Naval Shipyard (Terminal Island)
Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation - San Pedro Bethlehem Shipyard

New London County - Connecticut

General Dynamics Corporation - General Dynamics Electric Boat, Groton
Thames Shipyard & Repair Co. (John P. Wronowski) - New London Shipyard
U.S Navy - Naval Submarine Base New London

New York City - New York

The Bethlehem Steel Corporation - Bethlehem Steel Shipyard Staten Island
U.S. Navy - Brooklyn Navy Yard
Caddell Dry Dock & Repair Company Inc., New York City
Todd Shipyard Brooklyn

Norfolk & Suffolk Counties - Massachusetts

Bethlehem Shipbuilding Company - Victory Destroyer Plant, Quincy
Bethlehem Shipbuilding Company - Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard
Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation - Bethlehem Atlantic Works
The U.S Navy - Boston Naval Shipyard (Charlestown Navy Yard)
General Dynamics Corporation, Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation - Fore River Shipyard

Orange County - Texas

U.S. Steel, Consolidated Steel Corporation - The Orange, Texas shipyard
Conrad Orange Shipyard, Inc.

Palatka, Putnam County - Florida

St. Johns Shipbuilding, Inc. (formerly Offshore Shipbuilding)

Philadelphia & Delaware County - Pennsylvania

William Cramp & Sons?Shipbuilding?Company Philadelphia
U.S. Navy - Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Chester

Pittsburgh, Allegheny County - Pennsylvania

Dravo Corporation - Neville Island Shipyard

Portland, Multnomah County - Oregon

Dillingham Corp. - Albina Shipyards
Vigor Works - Keyser Shipyards, Swan Island Shipyards
The Greenbrier Companies - Gunderson Marine LLC
Kaiser Shipbuilding Company - Oregon Shipbuilding Company
Northwest Marine Ironworks
Zidell Companies - Zidell's Shipyards

Portsmouth, Rockingham County - New Hampshire

U.S. Navy - Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

San Diego - California

General Dynamics Corporation - National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. (NASSCO)
U.S Navy - San Diego Naval Shipyard

Seattle Metropolitan Area - Washington

U.S. Navy - Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton
Larsen - Duwamish Shipyard Seattle
Henry Kaiser - Keiser Shipyards, Vancouver
Lake Union Drydock Company Seattle
Lockheed Shipyard (Puget Sound Bridge and Dredging Company) & Puget Sound Bridge Yards
The U.S. Navy - Naval Station Everett

Southeast Washington D.C. - Washington

U.S. Navy - Washington Navy Yard

Southern Louisiana - Louisiana

Avondale Industries, Inc, Northrop Grumman - Avondale Shipyard, Bridge City
Bollinger Shipyards LLC. - Lockport Shipyard
Conrad Industries - Conrad Shipyard LLC, Morgan City

Tampa Bay, Hillsborough County - Florida

Hendry Marine Industries, Inc. - Gulf Marine Repair Corporation
Edison Chouest Offshore - Tampa Ship, LLC (Tampa Bay Shipbuilding)

Warrington, Escambia County - Florida

U.S. Navy - Pensacola Navy Yard

Wilmington, New Hanover County - North Carolina

Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company

Labor union members are also eligible

Asbestos products handled by shipyard workers

The shipbuilding industry involved astounding amounts of asbestos until the 1970s. It was primarily used as insulation for boilers, hot water pipes, generators, incinerators, turbines, and steam pipes. However, asbestos insulation would sometimes cover the walls of various parts of the vessel that were prone to catching fire. Workers responsible for the maintenance and repair of equipment have a very high risk of developing a serious disease since they were in direct contact with asbestos by cutting, removing and sanding insulation.

Shipyard workers