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How Can a Instrument Engineer Get Mesothelioma by Occupational Exposure to Asbestos?
Instrumentmen repaired various types of precision instruments, such as watches, clocks, sub periscopes, sextants and office equipment, often on tenders and shore installations or on carriers. Some of these instruments were inside ships where workers may have been exposed to installed insulation or lagger. Additionally, Navy ships often contained numerous asbestos=containing materials that these workers could have been exposed to. As they worked around these materials, they could have breathed in airborne asbestos fibers.
Locations in the United States for the Highest Employment Rates for Instrument Engineers
The instrumentman rating was disestablished in 1999, so there are not currently any individuals employed in this rating. Former instrumentman worked in areas where they were deployed based on the country’s needs for safety and defense.
Similar Occupations as Instrumentmen
Similar occupations as instrumentmen include the following:
- Appliance repairman
- Boatswain’s mate
- Boilermaker
- Damage controlman
- Deck worker
- Electrician’s mate
- Engineman
- Pipefitter
- Steamfitter
Lawsuits and Settlements Involving Instrument Engineers and Mesothelioma
Up to 30% of mesothelioma diagnoses are to military veterans, with a substantial portion involving Navy members. Some of these individuals seek compensation for their asbestos exposure by bringing lawsuits against the manufacturers of asbestos products that they were exposed to. For example, a retired U.S. Navy boiler tender who also worked for a short time as an instrumentman was awarded $35.1 million by a Los Angeles jury in 2007. He worked as a boiler man for four years during the Korean War until he was honorably discharged in 1955. He was exposed to asbestos in pump, valve and pipe parts during his time in the Navy. He was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in 2007. He described the cramped, hot and dirty quarters of the engine room where he formerly worked and that he used asbestos-containing products manufactured by Leslie Controls and Warren Pumps. The verdict included $25 million for pain and suffering, $10 million to the victim’s wife for loss of consortium and $100,000 for economic damages.
Individuals who were exposed to asbestos during their Navy careers may have a variety of options to receive compensation for their asbestos exposure. For example, they may be able to file a VA claim for benefits. However, to receive these benefits, they must be able to show that at least 50% of their asbestos exposure stemmed from their military career. They may also be able to pursue a personal injury claim against a manufacturer of asbestos products that they were exposed to or for pursuing compensation if they were exposed to or file a claim with an asbestos trust fund.
Studies Related to Instrumentmen and Asbestos
A few studies have explored the connection between the Navy and asbestos exposure. A 2018 Vanderbilt University study concluded that there was a significantly higher number of mesothelioma mortalities among Navy veterans who worked in areas with a high potential for asbestos exposure. The study found that only 20% of more than 100,000 surveyed workers had high potential for exposure to asbestos, but they represented 55% of the total number of deaths. These workers in high exposure jobs included boiler technicians, water tenders, machinist’s mates and pipefitters, who worked around the same types of materials that instrumentmen may have come in contact with.
The 2010 study entitled “Asbestos-related cancers among 28,300 military servicemen in the Royal Norwegian Navy” found increased risks of mesothelioma among engine room crews even when service personnel worked less than two years. Lung cancer was approximately 20% higher than expected for engine crew and non-engine crew members. Colorectal cancer was also higher in non-engine crews.
In 2011, a study entitled “Government and Navy knowledge regarding health hazards of asbestos: A state of the science evaluation (1900 to 1970)” was published in Inhalation Toxicology. This study detailed the government’s knowledge at various intervals and revealed that the government understood the link between asbestosis and asbestos exposure even though it continued to use asbestos in its ships until 1980.
Types of Asbestos Products Used by Instrument Engineers
Navy ships once contained more than 300 asbestos-containing products, so instrumentmen may have been exposed to a variety of asbestos-containing products, such as:
- Boilers
- Pumps, valves and hydraulics
- Gaskets and packings
- Liners
- Sealants and adhesives
- Pipe and duct wrappings
- Wallboard and dryboard
- Electrical wire coatings
- Fireboxes
- Spray-on, batt, block and loose-fill insulation
- Capacitors, meters and relays
- Cement powder
- Mortar mix
- Deck and floor tiles
Manufacturers of Asbestos Products Used by Instrument Engineers
Some of the large manufacturers that sold asbestos-containing products to the general public also sold these materials to the Navy. The following types of Navy ships used asbestos-containing materials:
- Aircraft barriers
- Ammunition and explosive freighters
- Amphibious assault craft
- Auxiliary ships
- Battleships
- Corvettes
- Cruisers
- Cutters
- Destroyers
- Destroyer escorts
- Escort carriers
- Frigates
- Hospital vessels
- Landing craft
- Liberty ships
- Merchant marine ships
- Minesweepers
- Oilers and tankers
- Patrol boats
- Submarines
- Troop carriers
