Maine: Mesothelioma Lawyers Help ME Asbestos Exposure Victims

AUGUSTA, Maine – Mesothelioma lawyers from the national asbestos litigation firm of Levy Konigsberg LLP (“LK”) are continuing to help Maine mesothelioma patients and families obtain legal compensation from companies who manufactured, sold or used asbestos-containing products.

Every year, thousands of men and women across the country are diagnosed with mesothelioma, including many in Maine. Even more are diagnosed with lung cancer and asbestosis. According to statistics compiled by the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, Maine has the highest, both crude and age adjusted, death rates from mesothelioma in the country.

All of these asbestos-related diseases could have been prevented if workers had been properly protected from exposure to asbestos.

Maine Shipyard Exposure

Featuring two shipyards within its borders, Maine citizens have spent decades constructing, repairing and overhauling military and commercial vessels. Mesothelioma lawyers at LK are experienced in investigating unique exposures to asbestos suffered at the shipyards located in Maine.

Bath Iron Works Shipyard

Located along the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, shipbuilding at this shipyard dates back to 1762. Between 1940 and 1980, thousands of employees of the Bath Iron Works Shipyard have constructed U.S. Navy destroyers, frigates, and other combat vessels as well as private yachts and various commercial vessels. Featuring many workshops, including vessel assembly buildings, sheet metal facilities, fabrication and pipe shops, machine shops, and product warehouses, employees, independent contractors, military personnel and other visitors of the shipyard worked with and around numerous asbestos-containing products which were incorporated into the vessels constructed at the shipyard. As one of the largest employers in Maine, thousands of shipyard employees, independent contractors and military personnel were present at the Bath Iron Works Shipyard between the 1940s and 1980s. Mesothelioma lawyers at LK have extensive experience investigating asbestos exposures suffered at the Bath Iron Works Shipyard.

Portsmouth Shipyard

Known as one of the historically premier shipyards for construction and overhaul of submarines, the Portsmouth Shipyard located on Seavey Island in Kittery, Maine employed thousands of individuals from Maine and New Hampshire. Between 1917 and 1980, employees of the Portsmouth Shipyard constructed and launched submarines for the U.S. Navy, including the Abraham Lincoln (1961) and Sand Lance (1971). Other major operations, including the overhaul and repair of surface vessels, began in the early 1800’s and continue today.

Shipyard Exposure

Vessel building, repair and overhaul work performed at the Bath Iron Works Shipyard and Portsmouth Shipyard typically occurred in cramped spaces with poor ventilation systems resulting in regular exposure to high levels of asbestos dust. Individuals at these shipyards regularly worked with and around equipment and machinery which required asbestos-containing materials. Shipyard employees, independent contractors and military personnel frequently were exposed to asbestos dust from gaskets, packing, raw asbestos, insulation, and other asbestos-containing materials throughout their careers at these shipyards. Mesothelioma lawyers at LK are experienced in identifying the unique asbestos exposures suffered by individuals who were employed at the Bath Iron Works Shipyard and Portsmouth Shipyard. Despite your job responsibilities at the shipyard, there are many areas of asbestos exposure which an LK attorney will investigate.

Maine’s Paper & Pulp Industry

Between the 1960s and 1980s, paper and pulp mills were constructed throughout Maine, especially in rural sections of the state. Companies including International Paper, Mead, Champion Paper, Boise Cascade, Eastern Paper, and Lincoln Paper operated mills which produced and processed paper and pulp products. Historical statistics regarding the American paper and pulp industry illustrate the widespread presence of these mills in Maine. In 1930, Maine was the second largest producer of paper, second only to New York. By the 1960s, Maine again ranked second, behind only Wisconsin. These paper and pulp producing companies employed thousands of individuals in Maine exposing many to asbestos-containing materials at their mills. Although preventable, individuals present at these Maine Paper and Pulp mills were not warned about the dangers associated with exposure to asbestos dust.

Employees and independent contractors present at these worksites commonly worked with and around boilers, furnaces, turbines, ovens, motors and generators. Other products commonly used at paper and pulp mills include gaskets, packing, pipecovering, raw asbestos and masonry products, much of which contained asbestos. Mesothelioma lawyers at LK have extensive experience investigating the unique asbestos exposures suffered at paper and pulp mills in Maine.

Scientific Research

In 2002, an article was published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, investigating lung and pleural diseases of 62,937 males who worked for at least one year in the paper and pulp industry between the years 1945 and 1966. The study found that at least thirty-six percent of paper and pulp employees were exposed to asbestos while employed at a paper and pulp mill. Many of the paper and pulp employees who developed a lung or pleural disease performed maintenance work at the paper and pulp mill.

Main Military Bases

Maine is home to several military bases including Dow Air Force Base (1947), Loring Air Force Base (1947), Naval Air Station (1943), and Portsmouth Base (1820). Military bases in Maine required the presence of mechanics, boilermakers, electricians, plumbers, millwrights, and many other tradespeople. Garages, boiler rooms, machine shops, fabrication shops, metal shops, stock rooms, warehouses, and other buildings contained asbestos which individuals present at these military bases worked with and around. Mesothelioma lawyers at LK are experienced in investigating asbestos exposures suffered by military personnel, civilian employees, independent contractors and visitors who spent time at these bases.

Maine Maritime Academy

In 1941, the Maine legislature created the Maine Maritime Academy, an institution which offered engineering, science and transportation training. Between the 1940s and 1980s, numerous individuals attended the Maine Maritime Academy and later earned land and sea-based maritime positions in Maine and throughout the country. During this time period, many of the maritime positions held by individuals across the country involved some type of exposure to asbestos-containing materials. Attorneys at LK are experienced in investigating asbestos exposures suffered by individuals employed in the maritime industry.

Power Plant Exposure

Spread throughout Maine, many powerhouses were constructed and operated for several decades, including coal-fired plants, atomic plants, nuclear plants, and hydroelectric plants. Between the 1920s and 1980s, thousands of individuals in Maine were exposed to asbestos at these power plants.

The generation of power in Maine required the use of large, high-temperature equipment. Boilers, furnaces, turbines, cooling towers and ovens were installed, maintained and repaired at these power plants. This equipment required large amounts of asbestos-containing products to properly function. Other products, including pumps, valves, motors, wire, cable, heaters, air conditioning units, gaskets, packing, chillers, and steam traps were necessary to allow the powerhouses to properly function. Individuals working at these Maine power plants were exposed to high levels of asbestos dust from their work with or around these products.

Powerhouse Exposure

Mesothelioma lawyers at LK are experienced in investigating powerhouse worksites. Due to the presence of various pieces of equipment and machinery throughout a power plant, there are many sources of exposure which must be investigated. During your free consultation with an LK attorney, we will explain the traditional and unique exposures suffered by individuals present at a powerhouse.

Other Maine Industry

Maine’s industry between the 1930s and 1980s included manufacturers and producers of paper and pulp, foundry materials, construction materials, chemicals, film and photography products, industrial chemicals, and other everyday consumer products. Individuals in Maine employed at these worksites performed the critical work necessary to make these companies successful without knowledge of the serious health hazards created by exposure to asbestos at these worksites. Mesothelioma attorneys at Levy Konigsberg have the expertise necessary to carefully analyze your work history to identify the unique asbestos exposures that were present at your previous places of employment.

Individual Case Review

In Maine, and across the country, many people also developed mesothelioma from non-occupational asbestos exposures, such as automotive work, home renovations and other hobbies, or from “second-hand asbestos exposure,” which occurred when work clothes contaminated with asbestos were worn home. An experienced Levy Konigsberg attorney will assist your family in determining all possible sources of your exposure to asbestos dust.

Maine worksites where asbestos exposure was common include:

Figure 1. Map of the most common asbestos exposure worksites in the State of Maine.

• Abenaki Mill (Madison, ME)
• Alloy Products Company (Sanford, ME)
• American Cyanamid Company (Sanford, ME)
• Androscoggin Mill (Livermore Falls, ME)
• Axford Paper Company (Rumford, ME)
• Bangor Hydro-Electric Company (Bangor, ME)
• Bangor State Hospital (Bangor, ME)
• Bath Iron Works Corporation (Bath, ME)
• Blue Rock Quarry (Westbrook, ME)
• Boise Cascade Paper Mill (Rumford, ME)
• Bowater, Inc. (Millinocket, ME)
• Broadman Hall (Auburn, ME)
• Brunswick Electric Light & Power Company (Brunswick, ME)
• Brunswick Naval Air Station (Brunswick, ME)
• Buerhaus Insulation Company (Auburn, ME)
• Capodanno (Bath, ME)
• Central Maine Power Company (Bucksport, ME)
• Champion Paper (Bucksport, ME)
• Chemitron Corporation (Searsport, ME)
• Chinet Company (Waterville, ME)
• City of Bangor Water Works (Bangor, ME)
• Conygham (Bath, ME)
• Cumberland Mills (Westbrook, ME)
• C.Y.R.O. Industries (Sanford, ME)
• Dow Air Force Base (Bangor, ME)
• Downeast Urethane Company (Auburn, ME)
• Eastern Fine Paper & Pulp (Lincoln, ME)
• Eastern Manufacturing Company (Lincoln, ME)
• Eastern Paper (Bangor, ME)
• Econby Corporation (Madison, ME)
• Elmer Montgomery (Bath, ME)
• FpL Energy Mason LLC (Wiscasset, ME)
• Georgia Pacific Corporation (Woodland, ME)
• Great Northern Paper Mill (East Millinocket, ME)
• Hearst Corppejepscot Paper Div. (Brunswick, ME)
• Hollingsworth & Whitney Company (Waterville, ME)
• Hyde Windlass Company (Bath, ME)
• International Paper Company (Jay, ME)

• Jay Paper Mill (Jay, ME)
• Kathadin Pulp & Paper Company (Lincoln, ME)
• Kennebec River Pulp & Paper (Madison, ME)
• Keyes Fibre Company (Waterville, ME)
• Lincoln Pulp & Paper (Lincoln, ME)
• Lockwood Company (Waterville, ME)
• Loring Air Force Base (Limestone, ME)
• Madison Electric (Madison, ME)
• Madison Paper Company (Madison, ME)
• Maine Central Railroad Company (Waterville, ME)
• Maine Seaboard Paper Company Division (Bucksport, ME)
• Maine Yankee Atomic Power Station (Wiscasset, ME)
• Maine Yankee Nuclear Power Plant (Wiscasset, ME)
• Mead Paper Group (Rumford, ME)
• New England Insulation Company (Bangor, ME)
• Northeast Coal & Dock Corp. (Bucksport, ME)
• Northeastern Paving Corp. (Westbrook, ME)
• Northern Chemical Industries, Inc. (Searsport, ME)
• Northern Paper Company (Madison, ME)
• Ohemetron Corporation (Searsport, ME)
• Otis Mill (Livermore Falls, ME)
• Oxford Paper Company (Rumford, ME)
• Pharris (Bath, ME)
• Pineland Hospital & Training Center (Pownal, ME)
• Pine Tree Insulation (Auburn, ME)
• S.A. Maxfield Company (Bangor, ME)
• S.D. Warren Company (Westbrook, ME)
• Sanford Sheet Plant (Sanford, ME)
• Sappi Fine Papers (Westbrook, ME)
• Scott Paper Company (Westbrook, ME)
• St. Croix Paper Company (Woodland, ME)
• St. Regis Paper Company (Bucksport, ME)
• Standard Packaging Corporation (Lincoln, ME)
• Union Chemical Company (Knox County, ME)
• United States Naval Air Station (Brunswick, ME)
• University of Maine (Bangor, ME)
• W.F. Wyman Power Station (Yarmouth, ME)
• Wiscasset Steam Plant (Wiscasset, ME)
• YMCA (Bath, ME)

If you or your loved one are a Maine resident or were exposed to asbestos in Maine, and have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, please call (800) 315-3806 or submit an email inquiry on this website to receive a FREE consultation with mesothelioma lawyers at Levy Konigsberg LLP.

ATTENTION: Mesothelioma has no known cure and often causes severe pain, suffering, and other types of damage, such as loss of consortium, and loss of income. Additionally, due to the exceedingly high cost of mesothelioma treatments, many families exhaust savings and accumulate financial debt in order to pay for the medical expenses of their family member.

Under the law of most states, pain and suffering from mesothelioma may be compensated through the award of money damages, usually obtained with the help of experienced mesothelioma attorneys. In some states other types of damages may also be recovered.

Asbestos litigation affords mesothelioma victims the opportunity to receive financial compensation and hold accountable the companies that caused their asbestos exposure.

IMPORTANT: If you or your family member has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, you should get in touch with a mesothelioma lawyer as early as possible to determine if you have a mesothelioma case and to:

• Preserve your rights to bring a legal action against the responsible parties within the limited time frame allowed by law, known as statute of limitations;
• Obtain maximum compensation in your case by being able to:
  • Preserve evidence and establish facts of the asbestos exposure while the claimant is still alive and able to provide information;
  • File and resolve a lawsuit against the responsible parties before they file for bankruptcy or, if they already have, to obtain compensation before their bankruptcy trust funds run out of money;
• Expedite your case, as courts tend to give higher priority to mesothelioma lawsuits where the claimant is still alive.

Find out whether you have a case by speaking to one of our experienced mesothelioma lawyers via our 24/7 toll-free hotline at (800) 315-3806 or submit an email inquiry. Our attorneys will be quick to respond to you and happy to answer all of your questions.

NOTE: While our offices are located in the states of New York, New Jersey, and Georgia, many of our mesothelioma lawyers are licensed to practice law in a number of U.S. states and have the capability and extensive experience of representing mesothelioma clients throughout the United States. You are encouraged to contact us with any questions.