News Coverage
Study: South Carolina ranks 22nd in asbestos-related deaths
Published March 6, 2004
CHARLESTON, S.C. A new report has found that the Charleston area leads the state in deaths attributed to asbestos, largely because of the once-widespread use of asbestos at the old Charleston Naval Shipyard. Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties account for more than one-third of South Carolina's asbestos-related deaths, according to a national study by the nonprofit Environmental Working Group of Washington, D.C. The report analyzed government data on two asbestos-related diseases: mesothelioma and asbestosis.
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At least 628 people in South Carolina died from asbestos-related diseases between 1979 and 2001, ranking the state 22nd in the country, the report found. The trio of Lowcountry counties recorded at least 246 of those deaths. Only 42 counties in the nation recorded more asbestos deaths than Charleston, which had at least 180 deaths, according to the report.
"The deaths you're seeing are from exposure decades ago," said Richard Wiles, senior vice president with the EWG. "But they haven't reached their peak. You'll see more people dying from asbestos-related exposure in Charleston and all across South Carolina."
The study was released as U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee is trying to rekindle an effort to end asbestos lawsuits and let injured parties get a slice of a victims' fund supported by asbestos companies and insurers.
Supporters say the bill would keep companies in business after facing large liability judgments.
The Environmental Working Group opposes Frist's proposal, as does the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, which paid about half the cost of the study with a $176,000 grant. Both say victims would lose their right to seek damages.
Asbestos, a mineral, was one of the more common materials found at the Charleston shipyard during its peak years of operation, which started during World War II and ended when the facility was ordered closed in 1993. During that time, asbestos was widely used as a coating to insulate pipes and fireproof bulkheads.
The mineral is a silent killer for some workers who inhaled bits of fibers before the danger of cancer and other diseases was known. Thousands of workers were employed at the yard during its lifetime, and many retired locally.
Mount Pleasant attorney Joe Rice, who drew attention in the early 1990s for negotiating a series of billion-dollar asbestos settlements, said there have been more asbestos-related health claims out of the shipyard than from any commercial business in Charleston. Asbestos exposure has been devastating for former shipyard workers, many of whom "felt abandoned" when the facility closed, Rice said.
Statewide, more than 3,000 people have filed suit for asbestos-related injuries.