Military Asbestos Exposure

Although Navy veterans are more frequently diagnosed with mesothelioma, service members from the Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard were not immune to asbestos exposure – and sadly even their families through second hand exposure.

Veterans from these branches may have been exposed to asbestos at military bases and facilities across the United States and abroad, including in barracks, mess halls, administrative buildings, aircraft hangars, shipyards, and vehicle maintenance facilities.

Many veterans who had history of asbestos exposure years ago are just now being diagnosed with mesothelioma, which can take up to 60 years to develop.

At Belluck & Fox, our nationally recognized mesothelioma lawyers are proud to help veterans from all branches fight for the compensation they need to pay for medical bills and other expenses related to their asbestos exposure. Get answers to your questions here.

Many veterans turn to our firm because our skilled mesothelioma attorneys are:

Recognized for securing maximum compensation for veterans. Over the years, our dedicated asbestos litigation team has won more than $800 million for mesothelioma patients and their families. We are extremely thorough in identifying every potential source of compensation for your claim, including asbestos manufacturing companies that may now be out of business but left behind trust funds to compensate victims.
Focused on mesothelioma claims specifically. The complexity of these types of claims requires complete dedication and in-depth experience. Our skilled mesothelioma lawyers have spent decades investigating these types of claims, and we will use our vast amount of resources to your advantage.
Committed to making this as easy for you as possible. You and your family have enough to deal with, and our attorneys want to lessen your burden, not add to it. We can travel to meet with you, no matter where you are in the United States. In addition, we can usually gather all the information we need for your claim without you having to physically go to court. Our clients appreciate our gentle bedside manner, with one saying: “Thank you so much for your patience, expertise and endurance yesterday at my dad’s deposition. You handled him with care and were mindful of his needs.”

Our dedicated mesothelioma attorneys are honored to fight for the rights of veterans who were exposed to asbestos while serving our country at home and abroad. Our firm is committed to demanding full and fair compensation from the asbestos companies that put our brave men and women in danger.

Asbestos Exposure Risk Stretches Across All Branches

TheDepartment of Veterans Affairs warns that personnel from any branch of the military could have been exposed to asbestos. In particular, those service members whose duties included:

Mining
Milling
Working in shipyards or on ships
Demolition of old buildings
Carpentry and construction
Working with insulation
Manufacturing and installation of flooring, roofing, cement sheet, and pipe products
Servicing friction products (such as clutch facings and brake linings in vehicles)

In addition, the VA warns that any personnel who served in Iraq or other Middle Eastern countries may be at risk when older buildings in the region are damaged and asbestos fibers are released in the air.

Army

In the late 1990s, the U.S. Army launched its Installation Asbestos Management Program to implement abatement procedures and alert service members who may be at risk of exposure. Unfortunately, many soldiers had already been put at risk by that point. As part of the Installation Asbestos Management Program, the Army warned that asbestos could be found in various military buildings, machinery and equipment. Some are listed below:

Gaskets
Brake pads
Flywheels
Clutch Disks
Preassure plates’

Any soldiers who worked in jobs that required them to handle these asbestos-containing materials could have been exposed. In addition, soldiers who work on Army vehicles may be at risk of exposure from asbestos-containing brakes and clutches.

Air Force

From World War II and into the 1980s, the U.S. Air Force used asbestos components in buildings, planes, jets, helicopters, and other aircraft and vehicles. Air Force personnel may have been exposed when working on the same types of building materials that were used by the U.S. Army.

In addition, aircraft mechanics and others working in aircraft repair and maintenance hangars or on airfields could have been exposed to asbestos through:

Brakes
Gaskets
Hoses
Wiring
Pumps, valves, and turbines

The Air Force now has a Facility Asbestos Management plan in place to protect service members from exposure. Unfortunately, many Air Force veterans were unknowingly exposed to the material for years by manufacturers that failed to warn of the danger of their products.

Marines

Marine Corps personnel faced exposure to asbestos on multiple fronts, as Marines frequently worked around ships, on land, and with aircraft. As with the Navy and the Air Force, service members in the Marines who worked on or around ships, in shipyards, or on military aircraft may have been exposed. In addition, personnel who worked in repairs, maintenance, and construction at Marine Corps facilities may have been exposed to building materials that contained asbestos.

The Marine Corps Asbestos Safety Program warns of exposure through:

Pipes
Gaskets
Floor tiles
Brakes and clutches in vehicles

Coast Guard

Although much smaller in size when compared to the Navy, the Coast Guard shares similar seafaring duties. Thus, Coast Guard veterans may have been exposed to asbestos in the same manner as Navy veterans ─ while serving on ships and in shipyards. The Coast Guard has warned that even today, “asbestos is in a variety of materials on Coast Guard cutters.” Coast Guardsmen may have been exposed to dangerous materials when working with pipes, boilers, gaskets, brakes, to name a few.

The Coast Guard has outlined its Asbestos Management Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTP) to alert service members about lingering dangers from asbestos on its vessels. However, for many Coast Guard veterans, the damage may already have been done years ago.

Our Mesothelioma Attorneys Fight for Veterans from All Branches

If you or a family member has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, you deserve to be able to afford access to the best treatment options available. At Belluck & Fox, our dedicated mesothelioma attorneys will fight aggressively for maximum compensation from companies that manufactured dangerous asbestos products and sold them to the military.

Our firm will do everything in our power to help you and your family cope with your mesothelioma diagnosis, including:

Connecting you with top-notch mesothelioma doctors, nurses, caregivers, and other patients
Working with you to develop a plan to care for your family
Fighting for payment of all medical bills and lost wages, as well as compensation for pain and suffering

There is no cost to discuss your case with us, and we do not charge any legal fees upfront to get started on your claim. In fact, you don’t pay legal fees unless and until we recover compensation for you.

If you or a loved one served in the military and have now been diagnosed with mesothelioma, contact us today to learn how our attorneys can help.

Sources:
Marine Corps Asbestos Safety Program