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Michigan Asbestos Exposure

Asbestos & Mesothelioma in Michigan

Michigan Mesothelioma AttorneysAs part of America’s rust belt, Michigan has a long history of industry and manufacturing. The number one industry in Michigan is auto-manufacturing—in fact, Detroit, Michigan is known as the car capital of the world, where Ford Motor Company was originally founded. For many decades, asbestos was frequently used in building materials and equipment in Michigan industries, including car manufacturing. As a result, Michigan ranks in the top 10 states for mesothelioma deaths, a cancer caused by asbestos exposure.

The experienced attorneys at MesoLawyersCare have recovered significant money for Michigan workers and their families who have been injured (often leading to premature deaths) by worksite exposure statewide. The following worksites are examples of some that have the most elevated risks for asbestos exposure to workers and their families in Michigan.

1. General Motors Ternstedt Plant – Flint, MI

In 1917, Ternstedt Manufacturing Company, named after its founder Alvar K. Ternstedt, was incorporated. Ternstedt died a few years later, and the corporation was acquired by General Motors in 1926. The Ternstedt division manufactured several automotive hardware items including fenders, radiator shells, door panels, window regulators, handles, and locks. By the 1930s it was one of the largest manufacturers of automobile body hardware in the world. Working in an auto manufacturing plant often involved the use of asbestos. Employees at the Ternstedt plant were exposed to asbestos from insulation in pipes, as wells as while working with different auto parts such as brakes and clutch plates that were made from asbestos. Workers who inhaled asbestos fibers are at risk for serious illnesses. While General Motors stopped using the Ternstedt site by the late 1980s, some of the workers are just now being diagnosed with mesothelioma, a harmful cancer caused by asbestos exposure.

2. Ford River Rouge Complex – Dearborn, MI

Arguably the most famous auto plant in the world, the Ford River Rouge Complex was built in 1915 (completed in 1928) by Henry Ford on the banks of the Rouge River. Ford used the 2,000 acre complex to complete practically every step necessary to produce a car—the complex was equipped with blast furnaces, an open hearth mill, a steel rolling mill, a glass plant, a power plant and, most famously, Ford’s assembly line. Presently, Ford still uses the complex for truck production and employs approximately 6,000 workers. Throughout the 20th century, workers at Ford were exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos while assembling automobiles. The plant also used high-heat equipment in the manufacturing process that resulted in asbestos exposure.  Workers were often exposed to asbestos from brake and clutch materials used on vehicles. In manufacturing plants like the Ford River Rouge Complex, asbestos material often became airborne, endangering workers and their family members.

3. Chrysler Chemical Plant – Trenton, MI

The Chrysler Chemical Plant was a large chemical plant that operated in Trenton, Michigan from 1946 to 1990. The Trenton facility manufactured paints, sealers, adhesives and its own brand of Chrysler brake linings. Employees at the Chrysler Chemical Plant were specifically exposed to asbestos while producing these brake linings as the linings were often made with about 50% asbestos. Additionally, other asbestos-containing products were purchased and packaged at the plant. Without being warned by Chrysler of the dangers of asbestos, many of the Chrysler Chemical plant workers and family members have been put at risk for developing mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases because of this exposure.

4. Hooker Electrochemical Co. – Montague, MI

Hooker Electrochemical Company produced a large number of chemicals, including chlorine and sodium chlorate. The company was eventually purchased by Occidental Petroleum Corporation in 1968. Hooker Electrochemical has long been criticized for their improper handling of chemical waste, including asbestos wastes. As a large chemical manufacturing facility, Hooker Electric regularly used asbestos in the company plants. Because chemical production requires large amounts of energy and high-temperature equipment, asbestos was used to insulate and seal tanks, pipes, valves, pumps, and boilers. As the insulation, and other asbesetos material, became old or was disrupted, it became airborne and inhaled by many Hooker Electrochemical employees. Hooker Electrochemical (and the suppliers of the asbestos-containing materials) failed to adequately warn workers about the life-threatening dangers of asbestos so the workplace could be kept safe.

5. River Rouge Power Plant – River Rouge, MI (Detroit Edison)

River Rouge Power Plant is a coal-fired power station. The plant is currently owned and operated by DTE Energy on the shore of the Detroit River. Built in 1957, The plant has two coal-fired units. One of the units was retired in November 2015, and the city has the other unit planned for retirement in 2023 because the plant is old and too costly to maintain. Like many other power plants built and operated before the 1980s, the River Rouge Power Plant used asbestos and asbestos-containing products in their buildings and equipment.  Sometimes asbestos was used as part of employee protective clothing. The fire-resistant characteristic of asbestos made the material useful in the power making process that involved coal, water, and steam heated to extremely high temperatures. Any River Rogue power plant employee who worked around asbestos containing equipment or wore asbestos-containing protective clothing or gloves is at risk of deadly asbestos related illnesses.

Our attorneys from MesoLawyersCare have recovered more than $10 billion dollars for people diagnosed with mesothelioma. Our firm has successfully represented workers exposed to asbestos in Michigan and throughout the country. For more information or a free consultation, fill out the form on this page, have a live chat now with one of our representatives, or call us.
 

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Did You Know?

  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    The highest award of compensatory damages ever upheld on appeal in a mesothelioma case is $30.3 million.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    The largest punitive damages verdict ever upheld on appeal in a mesothelioma case is $18 million.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    There are over $30 billion in asbestos trust funds to compensate victims of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    There are more than 50 bankruptcy trusts accepting claims to compensate victims of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    There are many “asbestos dockets” that permit living mesothelioma patients to obtain a jury verdict in less than 1 year.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    In 2015, more than 2000 mesothelioma cases were filed in the United States.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    In some mesothelioma cases, settlements can be obtained in less than 1 year.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    Thousands of different companies have been defendants in mesothelioma cases over the past 40 years.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    According to a 2015 study of 77 peritoneal mesothelioma cases, the average life expectancy (median survival period) was 75.7 months, or over 6 years.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    According to a 2015 study of 77 peritoneal mesothelioma patients, 73.8% were living after 3 years, and 65.3% were living after 5 years.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    According to a 2015 study of 77 peritoneal mesothelioma patients, 64% were treated with HIPEC and cytoreductive surgery.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    According to a 2015 study of 303 pleural mesothelioma patients, the average life expectancy (median survival period) was 18.4 months.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    According to a 2015 study of pleural mesothelioma patients, 73.1% were still living after 1 year, and 22.9% were still living after 3 years.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    In 2015, the largest number of mesothelioma cases were filed in the following 10 courts: (1) Madison County, IL; (2) Cook County, IL; (3) St. Louis, MO; (4) Los Angeles, CA; (5) New York, NY; (6) Philadelphia, PA; (7) New Castle County, DE; (8) Middlesex County, MA; (9)Middlesex County, NJ; (10) Kanawha County, WV.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    The states with the largest number of diagnosed mesothelioma cases are: New York, New Jersey, California, Washington, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Virginia, Florida, Texas, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    There are about 3000 mesothelioma cases diagnosed in the United States each year.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    About 1 in 100,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with mesothelioma each year in the United States.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    More than 80% of all mesothelioma cases occur in the pleura (pleural mesothelioma).
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    Less than 20% of all mesothelioma cases occur in the peritoneum (peritoneal mesothelioma).
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    About 22% of all mesothelioma cases occur in women.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    A history of asbestos exposure can be found in more than 80% of mesothelioma cases.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    More than 30% of all mesothelioma patients in the United States were exposed to asbestos in the military.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma can be caused by laundering, or other household contact with, work clothing contaminated with asbestos.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma can be caused by work with (direct exposure) or around (bystander exposure) asbestos-containing products.
  • Mesothelioma Facts
    Mesothelioma Facts
    The average time between a person’s first exposure to asbestos and the development of mesothelioma (latency period) is more than 40 years.
 

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Contact MesoLawyersCare Now

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, please contact us to see if we can help you get the compensation you deserve from the billions of dollars in asbestos trust funds available now for qualified asbestos victims. With just one call, you can put all our experience and success to work for you.

We have represented thousands of victims of mesothelioma and their families in virtually every State in the country and in decades of work have recovered billions of dollars in financial compensation for our clients.

Call us now at 1-888-568-1177, fill out the form on this page or chat with a live person. The consultation is free and it costs nothing upfront to hire the lawyers behind MesoLawyersCare. We only get paid if you collect a settlement or verdict and you will never receive a bill from us.

 

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