OREGON MESOTHELIOMA LAWYERS

Located in the Pacific Northwest and bordered by the Pacific Ocean, Oregon’s maritime industry, both the naval and commercial sectors have been identified as a prime site for asbestos exposure. Shipbuilders and sailors were especially at high-risk for inhaling or breathing in asbestos fibers while on board these ships without even knowing or feeling it. Studies have shown that there is a higher risk for asbestos exposure for sailors or any type of ship worker that had to spend a significant amount of time below decks, in smaller, confined spaces as the asbestos fibers used to insulate various materials tended to break off and become airborne.

Adding to the types of possibly exposed workers are the shipyard workers; vermiculite workers who handled shipments of vermiculite from Libby, Montana; oil refinery workers; chemical plant workers and power plant workers. Essentially, in every job where heat, fire or electricity posed a threat to workers’ safety, it is highly likely that asbestos was employed to thwart those threats due to its heat and flame resistant properties.

It has also been established that blue and brown colored asbestos, named crocidolite and amosite, respectively, are the most harmful type of asbestos, and was regularly used in chemical plants for heat insulation. The very properties that made amosite and crocidolite very effective as an insulator—namely its rigid composition—also made it especially dangerous, as it was able to pierce straight through the lung tissue of unsuspecting workers. Once the lung tissue was pierced by these needle-like fibers, DNA would then affix itself to the fibers, thus causing cellular mutations and consequently, cancer.

OCCUPATIONS AT RISK

Below is a list of occupations that put Oregon workers at a known risk of asbestos exposure. If you worked in one of these occupations in the 1980s or earlier, there is a good chance that you were exposed to asbestos:

Chemical Plant Workers
Chemical Technicians
Construction Workers
Electricians
Engineers
Furnace Men, Smelter-Men & Pourers
Industrial Engineers
Industrial Plant Workers
Insulators
Longshoremen and Stevedores
Oil Refinery Workers
Pipefitters
Power Plant Workers
Shipyard Workers
U.S. Navy Veterans
Vermiculite Workers
Welders

JOB SITES WITH KNOWN ASBESTOS EXPOSURE

The following is a list of some of the Oregon job sites where there is a documented use of asbestos products. If you or a family member worked at one of these places, you may be at a heightened risk of asbestos disease.

If you believe that you may have been exposed to asbestos at your own job, please contact a mesothelioma attorney for more information. There are many other job sites in Oregon where asbestos was used.

Shipyards

Albina Shipyard
Astoria Voyage Repair Station
Cascade General Shipyard
Dyer Shipyard
Northwest Marine Ironworks
Portland Shipyard
South Portland Shipyard
Swan Island Shipyard
Tongue Point Naval Shipyard
Willamette Iron and Steel Yard

Power Plants

Georgia Pacific Power Company
Ogden Martin Energy Plant
PG&E Power Plant
Warm Springs Power Plant

Other sites

American-Pacific Corp.
Hannah Nickel Smelting Co.
LA Grand Industrial Supply Co.
Morris P. Kirk & Sons Inc.
Pacific Supply Corp.
Wah Chang Corp.
Waterfront Supply Corp.
Woodbury & Co.

MESOTHELIOMA IN OREGON

Like most states, it is widely believed that the number of deaths caused by mesothelioma is under-reported, as mesothelioma was often confused with or listed as lung cancer for most of the 20th century. Statistical variances aside, for the 20 year span between 1980 and 2000, the number of mesothelioma deaths were listed at 431, with approximately the same amount of deaths due to asbestosis. These numbers together amounted to 862 deaths total that were linked to asbestos exposure. Mesothelioma is a deadly cancer of the lining of the lungs and abdomen, which is caused by asbestos exposure.

Like other asbestos diseases, mesothelioma has a long latency period. This means that a person usually develops mesothelioma long after the initial exposure to asbestos – usually between 10 to 50 years later.

OREGON MESOTHELIOMA LAWYER

If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, and you believe you were exposed to asbestos in Oregon, it is important that you contact a skilled attorney with experience in asbestos litigation. In addition, time is of the essence, because you have a limited amount of time to file suit.

We urge you to contact one of our mesothelioma lawyers for a free consultation. We can help you investigate the sources of your exposure, and determine what companies were responsible.