Conrad Industries - Overview
If you have ever wanted a ship built, a marine vessel repaired or refurbished, and you got washed ashore in Louisiana, chances are you would have ended up in one of Conrad Industries' dry dock facilities. Founded in 1948 in Morgan City, Louisiana, Conrad Industries is one of several Louisiana shipyards that specialized in the building, repair, and conversion of maritime vessels. Aside from commercial small and medium craft works, it was also commissioned by the US government during the last world war for the production and repair of warships.
Conrad Industries presently has 12 sites with facilities ready for ship building and repair. Employing thousands of employees and shipyard workers, Conrad Industries continue to service government and private commerce requirements for shipyard facilities for building and repair.
Is there cause for concern at Conrad Industries?
There should be some cause for concern because as a shipbuilding facility, Conrad Industries is one of the usual suspects when it comes to asbestos exposure. Its workers spend their time round the clock in asbestos-laden environments, what with shipbuilding inherently reliant on asbestos products and materials for the ships' fire-proofing and sound-proofing requirements. Asbestos is commonly used as an insulator and as fire-retardant so that layerings and coatings for walls, floors, cabins and passages of ships is more often than not lined in asbestos. Acoustic ceilings and passage sealers and tube and valve gaskets and fittings are mostly asbestos-based.
What if shipbuilding is asbestos-heavy?
Asbestos has been linked recently to a number of afflictions, respiratory and otherwise, that have been proven specially debilitating and even fatal for humans. As this material is fibrous, its deterioration or mishandling can cause accidental ingestion or inhaling by the workers. The most prevalent affliction that asbestos exposure brings are mesothelioma and asbestosis.
Mesothelioma is serious as it is cancerous; in fact, the clinical term is malignant mesothelioma for the more invasive type. Asbestos being ingested affects the mesothelial cells and disrupts the production of mesothelium tissues. These cells and tissues are responsible for maintaining the healthy harmony of vital organs functioning. They form the protective and lubricating covers of the cardiac, lung, and abdominal cavities. A cancer or tumor of any of those three cavities is, you guessed right, some cause for concern indeed.
Fallback positions
If you have worked or are still working at Conrad Industries in any of its several sites, or for that matter have worked in any other industrial or shipbuilding facility, re-assess your situation. Are you having respiratory problems? Are there any adverse symptoms that you cannot exactly put your finger on? You may have been unnecessarily exposed for prolonged periods to asbestos and your risks for mesothelioma affliction are high.
Call a lawyer with specific knowledge about environmental and safety in the workplace regulations. Go farther and get one especially knowledgeable about asbestos laws. Seek the advice of a mesothelioma lawyer and other groups or associations that focus on this and other environmental and workplace hazards. They can assist you in getting the financial and medical assistance for your affliction.
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