Asbestos Exposure Spotlight: Power Plants
While power plants are vital to the operation of many facilities, schools, and campuses throughout New England, they were also a major source of asbestos exposure to power plant workers through the 1980’s. At a typical multi-building facility, the power plant was the building that generated steam to heat the other buildings in the facility. This was a common design for manufacturing facilities and college campuses that were made up of multiple buildings. Back in the 20th century, most of these power plants utilized dozens upon dozens of asbestos-containing products. What types of asbestos-containing products were used in these power plants?
First, the biggest piece of equipment in these power plants were the boilers that generated the steam for the rest of the facility. Large, steam-generating boilers utilized many different asbestos-containing components, including insulation, refractory material, and gaskets. Insulation and refractory material needed to be replaced periodically throughout the lifetime of the boiler. Repairing these materials could expose the power plant worker to hazardous asbestos dust.
The gaskets on these large boilers were found in various places. The biggest gasket went around the boiler door. This gasket had to be removed and replaced each time the boiler door was opened. Gaskets were also used around the other manways and handholes on the boiler. Manways were other openings on the boiler that would allow a person to enter the boiler to inspect or repair it. Each time these manways were opened, the gasket needed to be replaced. Handholes were smaller openings on the boiler that allowed for inspection of internal components of the boiler, by sticking in a hand or your head to view the inside of the boiler. These handhole gaskets also had to be replaced each time the handhole was opened. The removing and replacing of these gaskets would create hazardous airborne asbestos dust.
Boilers were certainly not the only products that exposed power plant workers to asbestos. These power plants needed many more pieces of equipment to operate efficiently. This equipment included pumps, valves, steam traps, heat exchangers, and various others types of products. Most of these pieces of equipment used asbestos-containing gaskets and packing material through the 1980s. These pieces of equipment needed to be maintained on a regular basis, and replacing the gaskets and packing on these pieces of equipment would create hazardous airborne asbestos dust.
While a lot of the power plants in Massachusetts that operated during the 20th century are no longer in operation, many are still active today. Our office has handled cases arising from asbestos exposure at a number of power plants in the area, some of those include:
- Phillips Andover Academy: Andover, MA
- Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station: Plymouth, MA
- Bird & Son: E. Walpole, MA
- Dennison Manufacturing: Framingham, MA
- Harvard University: Cambridge, MA
- MIT: Cambridge, MA
- Boston Edison: L Street Station, Edgar Station, and Mystic Station
- Northeastern University: Boston, MA
- Holy Cross University: Worcester, MA
- Boston College: Chestnut Hill, MA
- Brooks School: North Andover, MA
- Groton School: Groton, MA
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with an asbestos-related illness like mesothelioma or lung cancer, and would like to know more about your rights, please call us for a free, confidential consultation at (617) 451-9191.
How Workers Brought the Dangers of Asbestos Home to Their Families
Most people would be surprised to know that there are a significant number of people who have developed asbestos-related illnesses without working with or around asbestos or asbestos-containing products. Most of these cases involve the spouse or family member of someone who worked with asbestos-containing products. But how did these household members, who never personally worked with asbestos-containing products, get exposed to asbestos dust?
The danger of asbestos arises when asbestos fibers are released into the air and are then breathed into the human body. This typically occurs when asbestos-containing products are repaired and replaced. For instance, when an old asbestos-containing gasket is scraped from a pipe flange, that scraping process releases asbestos-containing dust into the air. In most asbestos cases, the injured person is the worker, who breathes in this dust while personally doing the work.
Unfortunately, that is not the only risk created by asbestos-containing products. The dust from an asbestos-containing product can also get on the clothing of the person doing the work, as well as on the clothing of any individual who is working in the near vicinity. This dust can stay on the worker’s clothing for long periods of time, and when the worker wears his or her dirty work clothing home, the dust can come along for the ride.
Anyone who has done laundry before understands the typical process for washing dirty and dusty clothing. Instead of placing these dirty and dusty clothes directly in the washing machine, most people shake out these clothes in order to get all the dust off of them. Shaking out dirty work clothing creates dust that gets breathed in by the person doing the shaking, as well as by those who are in the area helping out with the laundry. And if the person who wore those dirty clothes worked with or around asbestos-containing products, the dust on those clothes could contain asbestos. We have seen many mesothelioma cases where the injured person’s only exposure to asbestos came from laundering dirty work clothing. This type of exposure to asbestos is called “take home” exposure and doing laundry is one of the more common sources. From an emotional standpoint, these cases are very disheartening, and usually come as a complete shock to families.
These cases also differ from the typical asbestos cases in how the evidence of exposure is put together. The most important part of an asbestos case is product identification. The Plaintiff or injured person has to prove they were exposed to asbestos from certain products. Typically, it is the injured person who will identify from which products he or she was exposed to asbestos. However, in “take home” exposure cases, the injured person is someone who didn’t work with asbestos products, and is unlikely to know which products they might have been exposed to. Therefore, in “take home” exposure cases, the more knowledgeable witness, with regard to product identification, is usually the spouse or household member who actually worked with the asbestos products and brought asbestos dust home on their work clothing. The spouse or household member can testify about the work he or she did with asbestos or asbestos-containing products and the condition of their work clothing when it was worn home. This evidence, combined with testimony that the injured person laundered the dirty work clothing, is sufficient to satisfy the requirements of product identification.
Unfortunately, these types of cases have become much more common in recent years. Our firm has handled many of these cases, and has the knowledge and experience needed to succeed in this complex area of litigation.
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with an asbestos-related illness like mesothelioma or lung cancer, and would like to know more about your rights, please call us for a free, confidential consultation at (617) 451-9191.
Close to home: How Asbestos Hides in Unlikely Places and Products
When most people think of asbestos, they picture a dark and dusty industrial building, a power plant with insulated steam pipes, or an old, noisy boiler in a basement of a run-down school. Because of these pre-disposed beliefs about what asbestos is and where it is found, the average person that did not work in an industrial trade is likely to think they have never come into contact with asbestos.
Few people realize that asbestos can hide in other places and products besides factories.
But asbestos can be found in unlikely places and products. For instance, most people are unaware that everyday beauty products such as baby powder and talcum powder were at times contaminated with deadly asbestos fibers. A number of lawsuits have been brought by individuals who used the Cashmere Bouquet brand scented talcum powder for a number of years, and later developed mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases. How can talcum powder contain asbestos? The connection between talc and asbestos is due to the close proximity of the two minerals in many areas of the earth’s surface. Tremolite, which is a type of asbestos fiber, is frequently found in the same areas where other minerals are mined, particularly vermiculite and talc. Mines that produced talc have often been found to also have tremolite asbestos fibers in the area from which the talc was being mined. In addition to causing asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer, there is also evidence that regular use of cosmetic talc may cause ovarian cancer in women.
Additionally, anyone who was involved with a home renovation project in the 1970’s or earlier likely worked with some type of asbestos containing product. Many building products in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s such as roofing shingles, floor tile, and joint compound contained asbestos fibers. Roofing shingles and floor tile would often have to be cut to size, which created dangerous asbestos dust. If you performed any home renovation work involving drywall or sheetrock during this time period, it is likely that joint compound was applied between sections of the new walls. And because most joint compound contained asbestos fibers until approximately 1980, when the joints between the walls were sanded, asbestos dust would be created.
As you can see, even if you never worked in an industrial trade or at a commercial facility, you may have been exposed to asbestos through a variety of different products, including products that are in our homes. And because many people forget how small asbestos fibers are, they underestimate the dangers of exposure. Check out the size comparison at this site to see just how small asbestos fibers are. And if you or a loved one has been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, please contact one of our attorneys.
National Healthy School Day: Are our school buildings “healthy”?
National Healthy School Day was created as a way to call attention to the many health issues facing America’s student population. While much attention is understandably given to the people and activities going on in our schools, we should not forget to examine the health of the buildings themselves. When we drop our kids off at school in the morning, or walk the halls on our way to a school concert, play or game, how often do we notice the building? We notice the colorful signs and posters that alert us to the activities going on, but we seldom take notice of the building itself, and with good reason. Schools are typically drab, uninteresting buildings, brought to life by their inhabitants and purpose, rather than their architecture or design. But what if the building itself posed a health risk? What if the school wasn’t “healthy”?
Asbestos was used in thousands of building products through the 1970s, and in a significant amount of products in the 1980s. Those asbestos products were used in the construction of offices, stores, homes—and schools. Any school built in the 1970s and earlier was likely constructed with at least some products that contained asbestos. Asbestos was used in joint compound, floor and ceiling tiles, insulation, gaskets, packing, fireproofing spray and other building products. Shepard Law has represented construction workers who were exposed to asbestos during construction of schools, as well as custodians who were exposed while buffing vinyl asbestos flooring and maintaining equipment in boiler rooms. But do those potential exposures still exist in our schools today? The answer might surprise you.
In 1986, Congress passed the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA). Among other things, AHERA required schools to investigate their buildings for the presence of asbestos, document its location, and remediate any asbestos that had the potential to become airborne or respirable. Largely due to AHERA, asbestos materials have been abated from most school buildings. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t there anymore. Abatement can take many forms, from complete removal to encapsulation. Encapsulation involves sealing the asbestos in place, so that it cannot be disturbed and made airborne, preventing the dangerous fibers from being inhaled by anyone in the building. Although encapsulation solves the immediate problem, the root of the problem is still lurking behind the walls, above the ceiling grid, or under foot.
The so-called “next wave of asbestos exposure” is this asbestos that lurks in buildings that were constructed during the heyday of asbestos products use. Experts predict that the mesothelioma and asbestos-related lung cancer cases we see in the next 20-40 years will be caused largely by asbestos that is currently hidden in office towers, factories, industrial buildings, homes and schools. When those buildings are renovated or torn down, there is the risk of asbestos exposures unless care is taken to properly remove and dispose of the asbestos.
Despite the efforts to identify and abate asbestos in schools over the past thirty years, there are still instances where asbestos is unexpectedly encountered and released. For example, in 2013, a group of students renovating a room at The Buckeye Education School, as part of a school project, unwittingly tore up asbestos-containing flooring. See the article here.
Luckily, stories like this one are the exception, not the rule. Most schools are perfectly safe for everyday use by teachers, students and administrators. But until a school is completely stripped of all asbestos materials, careful attention must be paid to renovation and repair work. Hopefully this will ensure that the next wave of mesothelioma does not include our most precious resource—our children.
Urban Redevelopment and Revitalization: The Next Wave of Asbestos Exposures?
It was recently announced that the L Street power plant in South Boston was being put up for sale by its current owner, Exelon Corp. This news likely has developers around Boston ready to pounce on the property, due to its proximity to the booming commercial real estate market of the Seaport District and the ever-increasing property values in South Boston. It is likely that the property will eventually be re-developed as a mixed-use property, featuring office space, residential condominiums and apartments, as well as commercial space. However, the fact that this property served as an active power plant for over a century may lead to a number of obstacles for potential re-development projects.
The former Boston Edison power plant first went into operation in 1892 as a coal-fired power plant. The plant was later transitioned to an oil-fired and later a natural gas plant, until it was retired in 2007. The property occupies 18 acres off of L Street at the border of South Boston and the burgeoning Seaport District. While the Environmental Protection Agency has been monitoring the property in recent years due to issues including contaminated soil and other environmental hazards, any proposed redevelopment projects are likely to be closely scrutinized by state and federal agencies.
Workers at power plants such as the Boston Edison L Street plant were exposed to a great variety of asbestos-containing products, including:
- Boiler insulation and firebrick
- Turbine insulation
- Gaskets and packing used in industrial pumps and valves
- Steam pipe insulation
As a result of these exposures, a large number of former workers at the L Street plant developed mesothelioma, asbestosis, and other asbestos-related conditions. While power plant workers up until the 1980’s were exposed to these products though directly installing or maintaining equipment in the plant, a new wave of exposures is likely to occur when old power plants and industrial spaces are re-developed or demolished. As urban renewal and gentrification takes place in cities across the country, developers and city officials will need to identify and deal with the issue of in-place asbestos being disturbed as former industrial buildings and power plants are renovated into commercial and residential property. Due to the significant amount of asbestos-containing products used in power plants and other industrial buildings through the 1980’s, the expense of remediation could be significant.
The danger of asbestos fibers being released during any demolition of existing structures on the L Street property may limit the options potential developers have in planning the re-development of the property. If existing buildings are to be renovated to become loft-style housing or office space, asbestos remediation contractors will have to make sure existing asbestos insulation on the property is properly encapsulated and secured. Simply demolishing the existing structures on the property may risk releasing airborne asbestos fibers into a heavily populated area. Regardless of what happens with the former L Street Power Plant, it is clear that the next wave of asbestos-related diseases will be caused by asbestos that is currently in place, and is disturbed and release during the course of renovation and demolition of old buildings.
If you or a loved one is an undergoing treatment for lung cancer or mesothelioma and would like to learn more about your rights please call us for free, confidential consultation (617) 451-9191.
For further information regarding the L Street Power Plant click here.
Common Questions About Asbestos Litigation: “Am I a part of a class action? Are we suing my employer?”
One of the most common questions that I receive from my clients who have filed lawsuits for injuries resulting from asbestos exposure is whether their claims are a part of a class action lawsuit. We file individual lawsuits on behalf of our clients; your claims are not part of a class action.
Class actions are a very unique type of lawsuit. They consist of a large class of plaintiffs who have all suffered similar injuries that were caused by a common defendant or defendants. If a settlement is reached in a class action, those settlement proceeds are then divided among the entire universe of plaintiffs that are in the class.
The asbestos lawsuits that we file on behalf of our clients are separate, individual cases that are not connected to any other cases. They are not class actions. Each case has its own complaint and its own civil action number. The injured party and his/or her spouse will be the only plaintiffs named in the case. This ensures that each one of our clients’ cases receives the individual attention that it deserves.
Another common question regarding asbestos lawsuits has been asked over the years is: “Are we going to sue my employer?” The answer here is that the Massachusetts statute that governs workers’ compensation bars any third party tort claims against the claimants’ employers. This means that if you suffer a work-related injury, and you want to recover damages for that injury from your employer, your only remedy is through workers’ compensation. You typically cannot sue your employer in a tort case for a work-related injury; you must go through workers’ compensation.
So who are the defendants in an asbestos case? Asbestos lawsuits typically name as defendants the companies that manufactured and sold the asbestos-containing products to which the injured person was exposed. These companies are required to design safe products and to warn about the dangers associated with the products they manufacture and sell. That did not happen with asbestos. Other potential defendants include companies that sold or distributed asbestos-containing products, as well as those who used asbestos-containing products at their premises. Each asbestos case is unique and the facts of your case will determine who the defendants in your case will be.
At Shepard Law, we take an individual approach with each client and with each case. With our extensive experience litigating asbestos-related personal injury claims, we put our clients in the best situations for them to maximize their recovery. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or lung cancer and would like to know more about your rights, please call us for a free, confidential consultation at (617) 451-9191.
This Veterans Day, We Should Also Honor Those Who Were Injured by Asbestos
Each year in November we get the chance to pay tribute to the brave men and women who have served in the armed forces. While all veterans should be honored and thanked 365 days a year, Veterans Day provides us with a special opportunity to thank those who have served our country.
Many of our firm’s clients are veterans who are suffering from asbestos-related diseases, such as mesothelioma and lung cancer. Because of this, I have had the opportunity to work with those who have served in virtually every branch of the military. I always enjoy hearing stories about the things our clients encountered while defending our country, some clients even share old photo albums from their military service. While it is an honor to help these veterans and their families work through the process of litigating asbestos claims, it is also disheartening to know that because of their dedication and service, many veterans will continue to develop asbestos-related diseases every year.
Veteran’s Exposure to Asbestos
Asbestos was commonly used in various roles by the armed forces for many years. Asbestos was found in the equipment in the engine and boiler rooms on Naval vessels, as well as in the brakes and engines of Air Force and Naval aircraft, and in many other products. These products had to be maintained and repaired on a regular basis. That maintenance and repair work released asbestos fibers into the atmosphere, which could have been breathed in by anyone working in the nearby area.
Earlier this year, several attorneys from our firm took a trip to Battleship Cove in Fall River, MA (http://www.battleshipcove.org). We were treated to a tour of the USS Massachusetts and the USS Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. During this remarkable experience we explored every aspect of these vessels, including the engine and boiler rooms – which have remained largely intact from when the ships were operational. It was a particularly poignant experience since many of our clients worked in these engine and boiler rooms as either:
- Machinist Mates
- Boiler Technicians
- Electricians
- Firemen
- Engineers
In fact, asbestos was so prevalent among these positions that the military website miltary.com reported that:
‘Virtually every ship commissioned by the United States Navy between 1930 and about 1970 contained several tons of asbestos insulation in the engine room, along the miles of pipe aboard ship and in the walls and doors that required fireproofing.’
Although the engine and boiler rooms we saw were clean of asbestos, this was not the case when these vessels were operational and it was easy enough to image what the working conditions would have actually been like aboard a Naval vessel during the mid-20th century. At that time, those engine and boiler rooms would have been packed with servicemen, whose work on the equipment would have created a dusty and dirty atmosphere. It was that dust, inhaled by unsuspecting men and women which decades later has caused so many veterans to suffer from asbestos-related illnesses.
Protecting Your Legal Rights
Our office has represented hundreds of veterans in asbestos cases over the years so we understand how and where asbestos was used in military applications. Often, our clients were not even aware that they had come into contact with asbestos until they received a diagnosis of mesothelioma. If you or a loved one is a veteran that has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, you may qualify for additional benefits. Please call us for free, confidential consultation (617) 451-9191.
What You May Not Know About Lung Cancer
November is lung cancer awareness month and with good reason. According to the American Lung Association, “Lung cancer causes more deaths than colorectal, breast and prostate cancers combined. An estimated 158,040 Americans are expected to die from lung cancer in 2015, accounting for approximately 27 percent of all cancer deaths.”
What causes lung cancer?
Most people know that smoking is a major cause of lung cancer and if you’re a man the risk is even higher. In a recent study conducted by the US Surgeon General, it was reported that that male smokers are twenty-five times more likely to develop lung cancer than non-smoking males. Many of us also know that occupational exposure to asbestos is another risk factor that increases your chances of developing lung cancer. However, the general public is not as aware of the synergetic effect that occurs when smoking and exposure to asbestos are combined. For these individual, the risk of developing lung cancer doesn’t just increase – it multiples.
Combining smoking and asbestos exposure multiplies risk
For reasons that are not yet completely understood, asbestos poses a greater risk for lung cancer in individuals who smoke cigarettes. It is generally accepted that smoking and asbestos exposure have a synergistic effect. This means that smoking and asbestos combines in the lungs in a way that multiplies the risks that either would have on its own, although studies differ as to the extent of the multiplying effect.
This multiplying of risks is of great significance because the vast majority of individuals who worked with or around asbestos-containing products were also smokers. Consider the occupations that are most often associated with asbestos exposure:
- Shipyard workers
- Navy veterans, particular those who worked in the engine and boiler rooms
- Insulators, pipecoverers and laggers
- Pipefitters and plumbers
- Boilermakers
- Machinists and millwrights
- Plasterers and drywall installers
- Auto mechanics
Men who worked in these occupations were extremely likely to have smoked. In over twenty years of representing victims of asbestos exposure, I can count on two hands the number of lung cancer cases where my client was a lifelong non-smoker and we can understand why. These trades occurred in environments where smoking was not only allowed, it was socially encouraged. Most construction crews were given smoking breaks during the day.
“I have had clients tell me that they weren’t really interested in smoking, but they started doing it because they didn’t want to be left out of the smoking breaks that their buddies were allowed to take.”
—Mike Shepard
US military veterans were practically told to smoke – until 1975 cigarettes were included in K-rations and C-rations. A machinist mate in the United States Navy worked in an engine room that was loaded with asbestos insulation, gaskets and packing, while regularly smoking cigarettes. It is no wonder that so many of my clients are former Navy firemen, machinist mates, electricians and the like. They spent their working hours in a windowless compartment surrounded by boilers, turbines, pumps, valves and a multitude of other equipment that incorporated asbestos insulation, gaskets and packing. That equipment was in constant need of service and repair, creating daily exposures to asbestos. All the while, these veterans were smoking cigarettes as a way to deal with the stress and monotony of life on board a Navy ship. Now, decades later, those two carcinogens have combined in their lungs to cause cancer.
What can you do?
Throughout this month please join us – advocates, survivors, caregivers and family members – as we show support for the lung cancer community and recognize the toll that both smoking and exposure to asbestos has taken, and continues to take, on the men and women who built this country and the service men and women who have protected it.
We want you to know your rights. If you or a loved one suffers from Mesothelioma or lung cancer, call for information on how we can help. Time is of the essence, so call us today (617) 451-9191.