Asbestos Products

Roofing Felt

Until only very recently, asbestos was a popular material in industrial, commercial, and construction applications. Asbestos typically found its way into homes and workplaces during construction or renovation, when asbestos-containing products such as floor tiles or roofing felt were installed. These products remained popular for many decades because they were cheap, made from easily acquired materials and minerals, and had beneficial fire-retardant properties. Only after years and years of use, when the public began to catch on to the dangers posed by asbestos, did legislators and health groups call for a ban on some asbestos products. Many of these asbestos-containing construction materials were only banned three decades ago, in the 1970s, and more than a few asbestos products remain on the market today. If your home was built before 1970, it is likely to contain asbestos.

The presence of asbestos in your home or workplace can take many forms. Asbestos insulation, floor tiles, and roofing felt can be found in most buildings constructed years ago. Products such as asbestos roofing felt are a particular hazard for the workers who install these dangerous materials. Asbestos roofing felt was typically installed on flat roofs, such as those on large commercial buildings, institutions, and schools. The felt consisted of large sheets of asbestos material painted over with asphalt. As long as these asbestos materials are sealed beneath a layer of asphalt, they post no particular danger to those inhabiting the building and surrounding area. However, workers who installed these large sheets of asbestos were likely exposed to dangerous, friable asbestos fibers when manipulating and installing the sheets. Years later, many of these roofers have developed serious illnesses as a direct result of their exposure to the friable asbestos.

In the event of a building renovation or remodeling, both workers and the building inhabitants are at risk of exposure to the asbestos. If not removed and handled by a licensed professional asbestos-removal team, asbestos can be released into the atmosphere once it and the asphalt that covers it are disturbed. When this happens, asbestos fibers may contaminate the building and the surrounding environment. Anyone in the area may be at risk of breathing in harmful asbestos fibers. If you aspirate asbestos fibers from old asbestos roofing felt, you are at a serious risk of developing asbestos-related illnesses and diseases. Each year in the United States, ten thousand innocent workers, parents, and children die as a result of similar exposures.

Exposure to asbestos and asbestos-containing materials can cause a number of deadly illnesses, including lung cancer and mesothelioma, a painful, fatal cancer of the internal tissues. These asbestos-related illnesses often take many years to present symptoms, by which time it may be too late to take action. Medical treatment and claims need to be addressed as soon as possible. Those who have been exposed need to assure the safety and security of themselves and their loved ones. Workers who have installed asbestos-containing roofing felt or who worked in the roofing industry before 1970 should take action now. Don't wait until mesothelioma rears its ugly, harmful head. Contact a lawyer. Family members who live, work, or go to school in a building roofed with asbestos roofing felt should contact a lawyer today. Contacting an experienced lawyer, one who understands the asbestos-related claims process, can make all the difference. Seek the advice of a mesothelioma attorney, and make sure that asbestos crimes don't go unpunished.

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