Hazardous
Careers - Steel Mill Workers @ Risk of Asbestos Exposure - Time
Period (World War II), Use of Asbestos in Steel Mills, Case Study
(October 20th, 2008)
 Certain
groups of workers are at high risk of asbestos exposure due to the
surroundings or envinronment around which they work. In the United
States, the peak period when asbestos was very popular started from
the World War II to the early 1980s. Workers in the construction,
shipbuilding, railworks, and the steel manufacturing industry were
at great risk of asbestos exposure as they inhaled the fibers that
dissipitated into the air due to disturbance. This puts steel mill
workers at great risk of asbestos exposure as well, especially those
steel mills built before the 1980s. Steel mills are work areas where
laborers are required to work around extremely hot areas that involve
working with very hot substances (liquids, solids), hot locations
or hot machinery. Because asbestos is resistant to heat and energy,
it was widely used in the steel mills industries to prevent the
chance of fires erupting from factories. Any person who was in the
factory during working hours is at risk of asbestos exposure, even
if their work duties did not involve laboring.
 What
is the specific purpose of using Asbestos in steel mills? Asbestos
is extremely fire & heat resistant, has high tensile strength
and is also resistant to physical & chemical breakdown of substances.
Asbestos was used for insulating concretes, metals, plastics &
other materials as well as make them fire-proof. Because the metals
or concretes used in steel mills were very hot, asbestos was used
to make them resistant to heat and decrease the chance of fires
breaking out. Asbestos was also used in machinery that had moving
parts and were subject to heat & friction. Asbestos was added
to cement, insulation products and other construction materials
to reduce the hazards of fire and limit the spread if one does occur.
Another risk factor for steel mill workers was the fact that asbestos
was woven into the safety or protective clothes that were being
produced. Examples of such safety gear included face masks, coveralls,
aprons and gloves. While handling the clothing; asbestos fibers
could easily dissipitate into the air if the fabric was torn or
ripped, making the work of steel mill workers even more dangerous.
Furthermore, asbestos containing products were used in insulating
blast furnaces, steam pipes, boilers, and other tools that steel
mill workers used such as steel chains or coils as well as end mills,
reamers or steel cutting tools.
Case Study
 San
Francisco, CA — March 27, 2002 - The following case was believed
to be the largest asbestos verdict in a California court in history
because a San Francisco jury awarded $33,700,000 to a former navy
electrician and his wife, Alfred & Stephanie Todak. Mr. Todak
was diagnosed with mesothelioma lung cancer in March 2001, at the
age of 60. Mr. Todak is undergoing lung cancer clinical trials at
the University of Chicago mesothelioma clinic. The defendant of
the lawsuit was Foster Wheeler Corporation, a company that designs,
manufacturers and supplies marine boilers with asbestos-containing
materials such as refractory block insulation, roving material,
and gaskets. The San Francisco jury awarded the case to Mr. Todak
because Foster Wheeler's asbestos–containing type–D
marine boilers were not safe under California Consumer Safety statutes.
The design of these marine boilers pose a danger to workers around
it, as well as to the consumers that use it. The jury also found
Foster Wheeler was negligent in its design, manufacture, and supply
of its asbestos–containing boilers.
Mr. Todak's work history with Foster Wheeler included working at
the Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Company in Seattle, Washington,
from 1967 through 1972 and helping in the construction of 7 US Navy
“Landing Personnel Docks”, or LPD attack vessels. For
each LPD attack vessel, 2 type–D marine boilers were installed
and it was Mr. Todak's job to install these correctly. Mr. Todak
also worked as the lead electrician in LPD–9 U.S.S. DENVER
and LPD–10 U.S.S. JUNEAU ships which included the installation
and construction of the Foster Wheeler marine boilers.
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