The Long Beach Naval shipyard was covered in asbestos: important information for former employees

“In the twenty years prior to World War II and for twenty-five years after it, dozens of studies in England and the United States showed asbestos disease in shipyard workers…More workers died of asbestos disease due to building ships during WWII than died on the battlefield.”

• James F., White Lung Association (WLA).

More than 100,000 laborers working on shipyards have died from asbestos exposure (Laborers.org). The Long Beach shipyard was a particularly large and highly manned area where many thousands of workers were employed throughout the years (FAS.org). These shipyards were maintained by people just like you, or your parents. They went to work each day without any knowledge that the heavy amounts of asbestos, with which they handled daily, would be the cause of their death decades later.

Weitz & Luxenberg has been helping people just like you for over twenty years. We helped retired workers from the Brooklyn Navy Yard receive $75 million for asbestos-related illnesses caused asbestos exposure on the shipyard. Those who worked on the Long Beach Naval shipyard have the right to pursue financial compensation, as well. If you, your parents, or even grandparents would like your medical bills paid for, and general financial stability, contact Weitz & Luxenberg at (800) 476-6070.

How did the Long Beach shipyard workers get sick?

Asbestos was the insulation material of choice in the production and repair of Navy warships built at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard in California and other shipyard facilities during WWII. Asbestos, applied everywhere below deck, was chosen to help prevent fire at sea during combat engagements.

It wasn’t until after the war that the public began to recognize asbestos as a carcinogen that can lead to fatal diseases such as mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis.

Most major asbestos companies, such as Johns-Manville, had full knowledge that asbestos was toxic, and they intentionally hid this information from the public (multinationalmonitor.org). It is now common for someone with an asbestos-related disease to seek financial compensation from these companies. Many have even set up trust funds to facilitate the compensation process.

Weitz & Luxenberg helps the shipyard workers

The Asbestos Litigation Unit at Weitz & Luxenberg has obtained record-breaking verdicts and settlements for asbestos-injured shipyard workers for over 20 years. We have the resources to pinpoint which companies supplied the asbestos to the shipyard, and prove that they were aware of asbestos’s hazards.

Pursuing financial compensation through a lawsuit against these companies can do more than just cover your medical expenses, it can send a message that says “it is wrong to poison the very people working to protect you, and we are not going to take it!”

Cases like yours may help set a precedent so that big businesses never do something this negligent again in the United States of America.

To get started, simply fill out the form on this page. After submitting the form, a representative from Weitz & Luxenberg will be in touch with you in 24 hours.

Sources

Laborers.org: http://www.laborers.org/Phili_Medina_10-27-95.html

FAS.org: http://www.fas.org/man/company/shipyard/long_beach.htm

Multinationalmonitor.org: http://multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/issues/1987/04/asbestos.html