Todd Shipyard, San Francisco

The Todds Shipyard in San Francisco was one of 11 shipyards owned and operated by the William H. Todd Corporation, which was founded in 1916. Together the Todd Shipyards built or repaired an astounding 23,000 ship for the World War II effort. The San Francisco shipyard was opened in the early 1900s, and thousands of men and women worked there in the following decades. Unfortunately, many of these shipyard workers were exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos.

The Boom Years: Heavy Asbestos Exposure

The San Francisco Todd Shipyard is now closed. In its boom years during WWII, shipyard workers frequently handled parts and components that contained asbestos, such as:

• Boilers
• Cement
• Gaskets
• Pipe covering
• Pumps
• Turbines
• Wall and ceiling insulation

No Protective Gear

In those years, there was some suspicion that asbestos could be dangerous, but shipyards and other industries declined to spend the money needed for protective equipment that could have given the workers some relief from the asbestos dust.

The fibers of asbestos that dislodge when an asbestos product is disturbed are the danger ─ these microscopic fibers lodge themselves in the lungs and other internal organs when they are inhaled. Shipyard employees working with or even near asbestos products were exposed to toxic asbestos on a daily basis, often for years at a time.

Mesothelioma, Lung Cancer, Respiratory Disease

The tragic outcome of prolonged asbestos exposure is cancer and other respiratory diseases. Mesothelioma (a cancer whose sole cause is asbestos inhalation), lung cancer, and asbestosis are the most common diagnoses, and there are more.

If you have been diagnosed ─ or your loved one has been diagnosed ─ with an asbestos-related disease, it's time that you found out more about your options. Contact us today.