South Carolina Mesothelioma Lawyer

South Carolina sent more than 8,700 tons of asbestos through its shipyards, power plants, steel mills, textile facilities and construction sites during the 20th century. That industrial footprint created exposure sites in nearly every county in the state.

South Carolina also holds a distinction few other states share. The state ranks as the largest producer of vermiculite in the country. Vermiculite often contains asbestos contamination. Workers at South Carolina’s vermiculite mines, processing facilities and other industrial sectors all encountered asbestos on jobsites.

South Carolina Asbestos Exposure Sites

• Braswell Services Group, Charleston: This Charleston shipyard provided marine services for commercial and military vessels throughout most of the 20th century. It employed thousands of workers who regularly encountered asbestos in ship construction and repair operations.
• Charleston Naval Shipyard, North Charleston: One of South Carolina’s most significant asbestos exposure sites, this shipyard employed nearly 26,000 workers at its World War II peak. It exposed military personnel and civilians to asbestos in cramped, poorly ventilated spaces throughout ship construction and overhaul operations.
• Daniel International Corp., Greenville: This major industrial construction contractor operated across South Carolina and the Southeast. The corporation exposed pipefitters, insulators and construction workers to asbestos across multiple job sites throughout the region.
• Detyens Shipyards, North Charleston: This active Charleston-area shipyard exposed workers across multiple trades to asbestos during ship repair and retrofitting operations along the Wando River.
• Duke Power Company, Oconee Nuclear Plant, Seneca: Power generation facilities across South Carolina used asbestos extensively in turbines, boilers and insulation. Workers at Duke Power facilities throughout the state faced occupational exposure throughout the mid-20th century.
• J.P. Stevens Textile Mill, statewide locations: South Carolina’s textile industry ranked as the center of the world’s textile manufacturing in the early 1980s. Mills across Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson and Rock Hill used asbestos in machinery, insulation, textile dryers, steam pipes and boilers. This put maintenance workers and mill employees at risk.
• Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island: Military personnel at Parris Island and other South Carolina installations encountered asbestos in barracks, vehicles and base facilities throughout the mid-20th century. Many Marines and civilian workers developed mesothelioma decades after their service.
• Patterson Vermiculite Company and W.R. Grace, Enoree: South Carolina’s vermiculite mining operations exposed workers to asbestos-contaminated ore. The state received additional shipments of heavily contaminated vermiculite from Libby, Montana, increasing the exposure risk for workers at processing facilities across the state.
• Raybestos-Manhattan, North Charleston: This asbestos textile and brake manufacturing plant began operations in 1925. By the 1970s, air tests found asbestos fiber concentrations 16 times higher than today’s acceptable workplace maximum, putting workers in spinning and weaving operations at risk.
• South Carolina Electric & Gas Company, statewide facilities: SCE&G operated power generation and distribution facilities across South Carolina. Workers in the company’s electrical and maintenance trades encountered asbestos in equipment insulation throughout the mid-20th century.
• Wateree Steam Plant, Wateree: This major South Carolina power facility exposed insulators, maintenance workers and operators to asbestos in boilers, pipes and mechanical systems throughout its operational history.

South Carolina’s asbestos history runs from the Atlantic coast to the Appalachian foothills. Workers in shipbuilding, textile manufacturing, power generation, chemical processing and mining all faced exposure risks. Many family members also experienced secondary exposure from asbestos brought home from jobsites.

South Carolina public schools and universities are also exposure sites. Many older school buildings across South Carolina used asbestos in floor tiles, ceiling materials, pipe insulation and boiler rooms. Teachers, custodians and maintenance workers who spent careers in these buildings faced regular exposure risks. A 2022 federal case confirmed that an asbestos abatement contractor falsified records about asbestos in Anderson University buildings, showing that institutional asbestos exposure remains an ongoing issue across the state