asbestos has been used around the world for decades to prevent fire in cities and ships. The advanced weaponry that was created during World War II required nations and militaries around the world to develop new techniques of preventing damage from fire.
Asbestos, a toxic mineral known to cause malignant mesothelioma, was the primary substance used because of its innate resistance to heat and fire as well as its cost effectiveness.
According to a historical 2008 study “asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences,” asbestos consumption in the United States during 1932 was 197 million pounds each year. In a short five years, consumption rose to 633 million pounds per year and would continue to increase during WWII to 783 million pounds. During the Cold War rearmament phase, asbestos usage in the United States would reach 1,400 million pounds per year.
In 1922, the U.S. Navy mandated where asbestos would be used in submarines. South African chrysotile asbestos was specified for gaskets, insulation, packing and tape. Transvaal amosite asbestos was essential for light-weight and high insulation. In accordance with executive orders, asbestos was classified as a critical material and stockpiled for wartime usage.
The first asbestos Conversation order was issued on January 20, 1942 by executive order from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. This conservation order would not be repealed until the end of World War II in August 1945. During the war, the United States was experiencing an acute shortage of asbestos for the production of ships.
Before 1955, there were less than a hundred known cases of asbestos-related disease in the world. As of 1999, the United States experienced approximately 4,000 deaths each year that can be attributed to asbestos. According to the study, the median age of these fatalities is 73 years.
Research from the study showed that shipyard workers carried a mortality rate from asbestosis that is 16 times more than the average of other occupations. Many of these deaths are concentrated in areas along the East Coast of the United States where thousands of ships were built during World War II.
Additional information about mesothelioma and asbestos exposure in shipyard workers may be found through the Mesothelioma Center.