Asbestos Exposure at the Brooklyn Navy Yard

By David Meldofsky, California-licensed attorney · Founder, Lawsuit Informer

Last updated: June 6, 2026

The Brooklyn Navy Yard is one of the most significant asbestos exposure sites in the country's history. For generations, the people who built and repaired ships there worked around asbestos every day, often without knowing it. This page explains, in plain terms, how and where exposure happened at the yard, who was affected, the illnesses linked to it, and why that history can still matter today.

About the Brooklyn Navy Yard

Established in 1801 on Wallabout Bay in Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Navy Yard — formally the New York Naval Shipyard — operated as a U.S. Navy shipbuilding and repair facility for about 165 years, until it was decommissioned in 1966 and sold to the City of New York. At its peak during World War II it employed roughly 70,000 people working around the clock, making it one of New York City's largest single industrial employers.

Over its history the yard built scores of vessels, including the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor and the battleships USS Arizona, launched in 1915, and USS Missouri, launched in 1944 and later the site of Japan's surrender ending World War II. Through the decades when the yard was most active, asbestos was a standard shipbuilding material — which is why so many of the people who worked there were exposed.

Why Asbestos Was Present

Asbestos resists heat and fire and was inexpensive, so it was used heavily throughout shipbuilding and ship repair. At a yard like Brooklyn's, it appeared as insulation on boilers, steam lines, turbines, and piping; in gaskets and valve packing; in insulating block and cement; and in materials lining hulls and enclosed compartments. For a fuller explanation of why ships were saturated with these materials, see asbestos exposure in shipyards and naval service.

Where Exposure May Have Happened

Exposure was not limited to one task or one part of the yard. Fibers could be released whenever asbestos materials were cut, mixed, applied, removed, or disturbed — during new construction, overhauls, and routine maintenance alike. Common settings included:

• Engine and boiler rooms, where insulation covered boilers, turbines, and high-pressure steam lines
• Pipe runs throughout vessels, where insulation and lagging were applied and torn out
• Work installing or replacing gaskets and valve packing
• Mixing and applying insulating cements and block insulation
• Enclosed below-deck compartments where dust concentrated and lingered
• Repair and overhaul work that disturbed older, already-installed asbestos materials

Because much of the work happened in tight, poorly ventilated spaces, even workers who did not handle asbestos directly could breathe fibers released by others nearby.

Who May Have Been Exposed

Many trades worked in and around asbestos at the yard, including:

• Insulators who applied and removed insulation
• Boilermakers and pipefitters and steamfitters
• Shipfitters, welders, machinists, and electricians
• Laborers and cleanup crews who handled debris

Exposure also reached beyond the yard's own workforce. Navy personnel who served aboard ships built or repaired there encountered the same materials, and family members were sometimes exposed to fibers carried home on work clothing — a pattern often called take-home or secondary exposure.

Illnesses Linked to the Exposure

The diseases associated with asbestos exposure can take decades to appear after the exposure itself. They include mesothelioma (including pleural and peritoneal forms), asbestos-related lung cancer, and asbestosis. Because of this long delay, a diagnosis today can trace back to work done at the yard many years ago.

Why This History Can Matter in a Claim

The Brooklyn Navy Yard has long been recognized in asbestos litigation as a significant exposure site, and New York is one of the most active asbestos-litigation venues in the country. A documented history of work or service connected to the yard can be an important part of reconstructing where and when exposure happened — which is often central to these claims.

Because asbestos illnesses surface so long after exposure, the time to bring a claim is generally measured from diagnosis rather than from the original exposure, and the applicable deadline varies by state. If you are researching on behalf of yourself or a family member, our companion directory can connect you with New York asbestos lawyers who handle these matters, and you can also see who may qualify for an asbestos claim.

Records That Can Help

A complete file is rarely available at the start, and that is normal. Even partial information can help establish a connection to the yard. Useful records and details include employment or union records, Navy or merchant marine service documents, job titles and dates, the trades performed, the ships or shops worked on, and the names of coworkers who can describe the conditions. For more, see records that help support an asbestos claim.

Common Questions

Why was asbestos used at the Brooklyn Navy Yard?

Because it resists heat and fire, asbestos was a standard material in shipbuilding — used for insulation on boilers, steam pipes, turbines, and hulls, and in gaskets, packing, and insulating cement. The yard built and repaired ships through decades when this use was routine.

Who may have been exposed there?

Insulators, boilermakers, pipefitters, shipfitters, welders, electricians, and machinists worked directly around asbestos, and others nearby could be exposed in shared, enclosed spaces. Navy personnel aboard yard-built or yard-repaired ships, and family members exposed through take-home dust, are also part of the pattern.

I worked there decades ago. Could it still matter?

Possibly. Asbestos illnesses often appear decades later, and the time to file is generally measured from diagnosis rather than exposure. A documented history at a known exposure site like the Brooklyn Navy Yard can be relevant. Deadlines vary by state and are best confirmed with a licensed attorney.

Related Pages

About the Author

David Meldofsky is a California-licensed attorney and the founder of Lawsuit Informer, an educational platform focused on helping people understand lawsuits, consumer safety issues, and legal rights related to defective products and toxic exposures.

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Last Updated: June 6, 2026

Educational information only. Not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is formed.