Asbestos Exposure Lawyer
Firefighters and Asbestos Exposure
People that become firefighters know that their lives will be in danger every time their engine responds to a fire at a building. They realize the potential dangers of roofs collapsing or beams falling and trapping an exit route. What many people, firefighters and civilians alike, do not realize is that firefighters risk their lives through exposure to asbestos as well.
In a survey of New York City firefighters who had been on the job for an average of 26 years, it was determined that more than half of the firefighters had abnormalities in their lungs show up on chest x-rays that were consistent with exposure to asbestos and could have been the early stages of asbestosis or mesothelioma. And this was in one city. Other cities with large numbers of older buildings are also prone to having the same problem among their fire fighting fleet.
Firefighters are frequently exposed to asbestos because they run into burning buildings that contain asbestos as a fireproofing material, a fire retardant, and a strengthening agent. If the building weren’t burning, the building would most likely be safe. Because of the disturbances created by fire, the asbestos-containing materials are disturbed and then are able to release their deadly fibers into the air. Despite the presence of masks meant to keep out the asbestos materials, not all can be kept out.
The risks to firefighters are not over when the fire is extinguished. If they go through the debris looking for family keepsakes or salvageable items, they can be exposed to the fibers then as well.
Contact an Asbestos Exposure Lawyer
If you have been exposed to asbestos on the job or in daily life, contact the asbestos exposure lawyers of Williams Kherkher at 1-800-781-3955.
