Pennsylvania Asbestos Resources

Asbestos in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is one of the most industrialized states in the nation.  Moreover, it was on the first wave of industrialization in the nineteenth century.  That meant the state was one of the leaders in the Northeast in developing steel and manufacturing facilities; during the mid-twentieth century it was known for its steel mills and manufacturing plants.  The age and type of the industries that drove Pennsylvania's economic engine were also industries that characterized what came to be known as the rust belt.

Both the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia metro areas were industrial centers.  The plants that made steel provided raw materials for the auto parts that were machined there and the ships that were built in the Philadelphia area.  Pennsylvania's miners and steelworkers enjoyed a prosperous era that met its demise with the advent of cheap steel from overseas.

During Pennsylvania's heyday the plants and mills for heavy industry made extensive use of asbestos and asbestos products.  The mineral's resiliency and heavy insulating properties resulted in asbestos insulation for many of the industrial production lines, particularly those that used heat.  That certainly included steel plants and shipbuilding yards.  Ships of that era insulated engine rooms and pipe systems throughout the vessel with asbestos.  Crewmembers and shipyard repair workers were exposed to asbestos constantly.  As a result, large numbers of shipyard workers and ship crewmen from that time period have come down with asbestos related diseases such as asbestosis and the deadly cancer, mesothelioma.

Pennsylvania had asbestos mines within its borders as well as all of the urban industrialization.  The state had an enormous population of working men and women who were exposed to asbestos before it was proven to be a carcinogen.  Because mesothelioma often does not appear until twenty years or more after asbestos exposure, many of its victims have only recently learned of their plight. 

Below is a list of jobsites where it is likely that some employees were exposed to asbestos on an ongoing basis.  If you or a family member were ever employed at one of these sites it would be worthwhile to discuss the consequences of asbestos exposure with your doctor.  If you have already learned about the damage asbestos can do, you should speak with one of our attorneys about the compensation that you are entitled to.

Asbestos Mortality in Pennsylvania

The health threat posed by asbestos has become a major national issue over the last thirty years; tens of thousands of asbestos-related disease sufferers have sued asbestos companies and won.  It is only recently that the pattern of death from this disease has become clear.  A study was released in 2004 that analyzed the reported deaths nationwide from asbestosis and mesothelioma over the period 1979 to 2000. 

Pennsylvania had the fourth highest number of asbestos fatalities among the fifty states.  Over that 2o year period 1,728 Pennsylvanians succumbed to asbestosis, while the number of mesothelioma victims was somewhere between 1,348 to 2,215.  The federal government began tracking mesothelioma deaths in 1999.  From 1999 through 2004 there were 1,010 mesothelioma deaths in Pennsylvania.  Clearly the health hazards of the rust belt years are continuing.

Cancer treatment in Pennsylvania

The National Cancer Center has designated sixty four prominent cancer treatment and research facilities as a network for a national program.  Forty one of those centers are "comprehensive cancer centers"  that will receive grants to further study effective approaches to cancer prevention, diagnosis, and therapy.  Pennsylvania is home to five of them.
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