Admiralty Lawyer & Attorney

A Troubling Admiralty Law Issue - Asbestos on Ships

Admiralty law is an area of law in which attorneys can spend the majority of time on literally hundreds of different types of issues. Everything from a ship's sea-worthiness, jurisdiction over a controversy that occurred on international waters, responsibility for the delivery of damaged goods and just about anything else one could think of all fall under the realm of admiralty law, and these are often complicated issues.

However, there is one specific issue that the admiralty lawyers at Williams Kherkher feel the need to feature for your benefit, as it's an issue that's been responsible for the deaths of countless people who have worked on ships or at sea - asbestos on ships. Below is a brief look at the issue, but if you have been harmed as a result of asbestos exposure on a ship, contact an admiralty lawyer at Williams Kherkher today to schedule a free initial consultation.

Asbestos - Diseases It Causes

Asbestos is a substance that penetrates a person's lungs, and that's why almost all of the diseases that have been linked to asbestos attack the respiratory system. The three most common are mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer. Each of these diseases share commonalities, in that the fibers from asbestos penetrate the lungs and 'attach' to the lining of the lungs. Eventually, mucous forms around these fibers that was originally sent there by the body in an attempt to expel these fibers. However, this does not work, and what's left is basically a tumor that eventually destroys the respiratory system.

Asbestos on Ships - Why is it there?

Asbestos can be found on ships because this was a substance that, prior to the harmful nature of it being discovered, was quite prevalent in buildings and structures of all types because of the advantages it presented. These advantages were especially important for any ship to be protected from natural and non-natural hazards.

Specifically, asbestos is extremely flame-retardant, which is obviously an advantage on a ship, as the very structure of a ship is threatened with any sort of fire. Asbestos is also extremely resistant to corrosion in general, and every ship fights a constant battle against corrosion due to the erosion that occurs when a ship's hull interacts with the strong currents of any body of water.

Generally, asbestos is a substance that's no longer common, but the diseases that are associated with asbestos, particularly mesothelioma, can take years and sometimes decades to develop and to be diagnosed. If you have been harmed due to exposure to asbestos on a ship, contact an admiralty lawyer at Williams Kherkher immediately to schedule a free initial consultation.