Navy Ratings With Heaviest Exposure

Sailors who ran and repaired a ship's propulsion plant spent much of their time in engine and boiler rooms. Machinist's mates maintained turbines, pumps and piping. Boiler technicians and boilermen tended boilers and their insulation. These spaces were hot, cramped and packed with lagged pipes, gaskets and packing. Routine tasks such as replacing a gasket, repacking a valve or removing damaged insulation could release fibers directly into the air they breathed. Because they worked there day after day, often for long deployments, these ratings are frequently cited in discussions of shipboard asbestos exposure.

Pipefitters, hull technicians and damage controlmen repaired and modified shipboard systems, which often meant cutting into insulated piping or bulkheads. Electricians and electronics technicians ran cable through spaces lined with insulation and worked on equipment that could contain asbestos components. Even when they were not the ones removing insulation, they often worked alongside others who were. That kind of bystander exposure still counts. When describing your service, explain not just your title but the tasks you did, the spaces you worked in, and what other crews were doing around you at the same time.

Your rating appears in your service record, and the VA and trusts may consider it when judging how likely exposure was. The VA has guidance that lists certain military jobs as having higher probabilities of asbestos exposure, which can support a claim. Ship assignments, deck logs and records of shipyard periods can add detail. Statements from shipmates who worked beside you are also valuable. If your rating is not typically listed as high-exposure, the claim can still succeed with a clear description of your actual duties and the conditions where you worked.

1. 1

   Find your rating and any rate changes in your service record and list the dates for each.

2. 2

   Describe in writing the spaces you worked in and the specific tasks you performed aboard ship.

3. 3

   Contact shipmates who can confirm your duties and the conditions in engineering spaces.

4. 4

   Ask your veterans service officer how your rating is treated in VA exposure guidance.