Pennsylvania Shipyard Beaumont
The Pennsylvania Shipyard, which was located in the city of Beaumont, faced many of the same trials and tribulations that most every ship building and repair facility in the United States dealt with. By their very nature, these work sites were dangerous, intense work environments. Most people who accepted positions at these yards understood this fact, but thousands of them ended up facing a threat that they never recognized or expected.
Various products that were in use at the Pennsylvania Shipyard contained a mineral called asbestos. Goods such as insulation were made with vast amounts of the material, because asbestos is able to withstand extreme temperatures and is a natural fire retardant. Not only did it work well under intense heat, it was also easy to find and inexpensive to mine, making it extremely popular with manufacturing and mining companies. Hundreds of items were produced using the mineral, and they were regularly found in industrial settings such as shipyards all across the country.
One drawback with asbestos is that it is made up of tiny fibers that cling together, but they can easily break off and become airborne. This causes people to ingest the fibers, which are far too small to be seen by the human eye. People who worked with and around products that were made out of asbestos were very likely to breathe in large numbers of these fibers, and they might not have ever known it, except for one overwhelming problem: the mineral is toxic, and inhaling it often leads to serious illness or even death.
Anyone who is unlucky enough to accidentally take in asbestos fibers may later have to deal with tissue scarring, labored breathing and lung cancer. It generally takes many years for these conditions to develop, so people who worked at sites like the Pennsylvania Shipyard often spent years around this hazardous substance without ever realizing the risk. In the late 1970's, the public was made aware of the dangers that asbestos presented, but by then millions of American had been afflicted by simply being in close proximity to products that contained the mineral.
Because the symptoms of asbestos poisoning often take such an extended period of time to develop, people may go years without knowing they have been infected. Anyone who spent time at the Beaumont shipyard or other work sites where asbestos was commonly used is urged to see their doctor for an immediate checkup.
Last modified: December 28, 2010.
