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Veterans & Mesothelioma > Military Asbestos Exposure > Exposure of Military Personnel to Asbestos

Asbestos Exposure

The government has designated asbestos as a carcinogen, and there is no safe threshold of exposure. The degree of risk is related to the length of exposure and how high the asbestos fiber concentration was in the air when the person was exposed. Exposure to asbestos is the major known cause of malignant mesothelioma. Many military personel who have contracted mesothelioma have told us their stories, read quotes from them here.

Materials Containing Asbestos

Most insulation materials before the mid-1970s contained asbestos. Many other construction materials also contained asbestos. Some of the most common products were:

Most Commonly Exposed Personnel

The following Navy personnel could have worked around asbestos:

Shipboard Exposure

Fire and engine rooms aboard ship typically had the highest exposure because of the insulation and refractory products necessary in these high-heat areas, but no area was considered safe. Pipe coverings throughout the ship were covered with asbestos lagging, and literally ran inches over the bunks in the sleeping quarters. In addition, ships crews generally lived and worked aboard ships during routine maintenance operations and sometimes while their ships were overhauled in dry docks over months long periods.

Shipyard Exposure

During World War II, large quantities of asbestos used by shipyards as they built, overhauled and decommissioned warships, exposed thousands of shipyard workers to its insidious effects. Based on statistics, working in an American shipyard during the war years was almost as deadly as fighting in the war itself. The combat death rate was roughly 18 per thousand service members. For every thousand wartime shipyard employees, about 14 died of asbestos-related cancer, and unknown numbers died of asbestosis or related complications. See our section on asbestos exposure and the Seabees.

In 1984, a medical survey of shipyard workers at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, VA, showed that 79 percent of these workers exhibited signs of lung abnormalities consistent with asbestos exposure, while x-rays given to 90 wives of workers revealed 8 to 9 percent showed similar abnormalities.

U. S. Government (Naval) Shipyards where ships were built and/or overhauled include:

Private Sector Shipyards where Navy ships, Liberty ships and Victory ships were also built include:

Navy Jobs and Asbestos Exposure

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Last updated Mon, 09/21/2009 - 11:37