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What It Was Like To be on a Ship

If you are like many Navy veterans, you recall your time in the Navy with a mixture of pride in the service, relief at the hardships you survived, and fondness for the friends you made. There were plenty of challenges and hard work while serving aboard a Navy ship. There were also some hazards aboard ship that you may not have recognized at the time—hazards such as airborne asbestos. Asbestos was used extensively in military ships and supply ships built from World War II through the late 1970s. That’s why Navy veterans and veterans of the Merchant Marine are at risk of developing asbestos-related disease such as mesothelioma, a life-threatening respiratory cancer caused by inhaling asbestos dust.

If you are a Navy veteran or a former merchant marine seaman and recently have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, you may have a legal right to claim financial compensation. Belluck & Fox LLP is a nationally recognized law firm based in New York that represents veterans and merchant mariners with asbestos and mesothelioma claims. Belluck & Fox has won more than $350 million in compensation for its clients and their families. We can help you.

For a free case evaluation, contact the firm at 877-695-2909 or through the online contact form.

A Floating Industrial Plant Filled with Asbestos

Space aboard a ship is limited—whether you served on a large Navy ship such as a carrier, cruiser, battleship or destroyer or a supply vessel used by the Merchant Marine to transport troops and supplies. Sailors and seaman live and work in close quarters for weeks and months at a time. As a Navy seaman or Merchant Marine seaman, you performed your daily routines when the ship was underway whether the conditions were rough or calm.

A large ship is essentially a floating industrial plant loaded with industrial equipment. There is a great deal of work to be done to keep a ship operating efficiently 24/7. There is nearly constant motion and vibration when a ship is underway. You can feel it whether you work on deck or below deck. Many sailors worked in confined spaces.

For example, if you were assigned to work in the engine room, you had a sweaty job because of the heat generated by the ship’s power plant. Asbestos was used extensively throughout a ship’s engine room and boiler rooms because of its heat resistant properties. Most sailors were completely unaware of the dangers of breathing asbestos and did not wear respirators or breathing protection.

While certain jobs had higher risk of exposure to asbestos, any Navy veteran who served on a ship or spent time in a shipyard may have been exposed to asbestos fibers.

Asbestos Manufacturers Aware of Hazards of Asbestos Supplied to Navy

Unfortunately, many asbestos manufacturers knew or should have known of the health hazards of the products they provided the Navy. But they failed to warn of the hazards of asbestos. No seamen wore any kind of breathing protection to prevent inhaling the dust in the air in the engine room, even if you were doing repair or maintenance work and stirring up dust. And it does take constant maintenance and upkeep to keep a ship in good repair.

As a Navy veteran, you may be far more aware of the dangers of asbestos today than you were when you served aboard a ship. Unfortunately, there were plenty of opportunities to inhale asbestos aboard a ship, even if you didn’t know it at the time. Asbestos disease typically develops in Navy veterans and veterans of the Maritime Marine three to five decades after they served. If you are a veteran of the Navy or the Merchant Marine who served in the 1950s, 1960s or 1970s or 1980s, you may only recently have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or asbestos disease.

Contact An Experienced Asbestos Disease Law Firm that Serves Veterans

If you are a Navy veteran or veteran of the Merchant Marine who has developed mesothelioma, you may have a legal right to claim financial compensation for the harm you have suffered. Financial compensation may cover your medical bills and provide some financial security to your family. Belluck & Fox LLP is a nationally recognized law firm based in New York that represents veterans and merchant marine seamen with asbestos and mesothelioma claims. Belluck & Fox has won more than $350 million in compensation for its clients and their families. We can help you.

For a free case evaluation, contact the firm at 877-695-2909 or through the online contact form.