San Diego Naval Shipyard and Air Station
Naval shipyards around the United States have played a huge role in contributing to the military. Glenn H. Curtis established one of the most succesful shipyards in 1910. Located on the northern island section of San Diego, the 5,000 acre San Diego Naval Shipyard and Air Station facility collaborates with more than six major military defense organizations. The headquarters has complex responsibilities that range from fleet exercises to training aircraft and aircraft carriers on the Pacific coast. Before being acquired by the US Navy in 1967, this shipyard was known as Naval Air Rework Facility.
Before joining the war efforts, the San Diego Naval shipyard was primarily owned and controlled by the Army. It was not long after the First World War that this shipyard headquarters became a holding dock for different fleet carriers with the Navy. It also utilized different services to meet the needs of possible clientele.
The Navy gained complete control over the island at the start of The Second World War. This allowed the shipyard to eventually become one of the most prominent shipyards on the Pacific coast. Unfortunately, the need for shipyards began to decline during this period and the base began to take on responsibilities for naval aviation. There are over 300 acres of Navy submarine facilities that occupy this area. One of its biggest and most recent projects for the shipyard and air facilities was attempting to service different kinds of nuclear powered aircraft carriers. This organizations advancement has allowed it to multitask in different military areas and offer services to a wide variety of governmental and other contractual needs.
One of the biggest reasons that shipyard work has declined in this area is because many individuals involved with the shipyard are now developing lung-related illnesses such as mesothelioma and asbestosis. Both of these illnesses are caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibers within the shipyard. Some of the contaminated areas that are most prominent for loose fibers are; the boiler rooms, cemented areas, different pipe insulations, and other mechanisms that utilize asbestos. Most did not know that they were being infected with a hazardous material. For most workers, symptoms and signs of any lung related complication did not surface until many years after exposure. If you or a loved one has, or may have been exposed to asbestos from the San Diego Naval shipyard, contact a doctor immediately.
