Because fire is so dangerous onboard vessels, ship builders once used asbestos throughout vessel structures to try and mitigate the risk.
It now means they could have been exposed to the deadly material in almost every compartment and system of the vessels on which they worked before the 1980s.
The US-based Lanier Law firm has published a guide for workers to understand what they could have been exposed to, and how they could be entitled to compensation for asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma – none of which can be cured if not discovered in time.
“Some patients become ill 20 years after exposure, while others might not get sick for 50 or more years,” the guide says. “Doctors cannot remove asbestos from the body. Once you inhale the fibres, they stay with you for the rest of your life.”
Sources at a shipyard can include:
- Fireproof paint
- Mechanical parts such as gaskets, clutch facings and brakes
- Hatch, wall, floor and ceiling insulation
- Pipe wraps and pipe insulation
- Electrical wire coating
- Boilers and boiler insulation
- Adhesives and sealants.
While the material is no longer used in most modern shipyards, with the exception of yards in India, Brazil and China, says the firm, it can still be present during renovation or refits, or salvage work.
For the full guide, click here.
