Northern California Asphalt Fumes Lawyers
Asphalt Fumes
Many construction workers can be exposed to asphalt fumes, but workers that are employed in the roofing and paving industries are at high risk for developing health problems associated with exposure to asphalt fumes. Within the roofing and paving industries, asphalt is widely used in several capacities to complete a job and workers can be exposed to asphalt fumes for hours at a time and on a daily basis. In the roofing industry, asphalt is frequently heated into a liquid so that it can be mopped onto the floor of a roof. In the paving industry, asphalt is mixed with concrete to create road surfaces. Long term exposure to asphalt fumes can create severe health effects for a construction worker that if not treated properly, may lead to death.
If you have suffered serious medical complications from exposure to asphalt fumes or have a loved one that has died because of exposure to asphalt fumes, it is important that you speak with a northern California construction accident lawyer at Estey Bomberger. We have successfully represented victims and their families in personal injury or wrongful death claims involving asphalt fume exposure and have recovered compensation for our clients’ medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
What are Asphalt Fumes?
Asphalt consists of refined petroleum crude oils that when heated to a high temperature releases a vapor. These vapors form into a cloud of miniscule droplets, or fume, which consists of the most volatile chemicals found in asphalt, including benzene. Benzene is a quickly evaporating chemical that is colorless, highly flammable and has a sweet odor. Asphalt is usually kept and used at high temperatures in the construction industry, meaning that benzene fumes are constantly being released into the air. A construction employee who works closely with hot asphalt is constantly breathing in high concentrations of benzene fumes.
Health Effects of Asphalt Fumes
Construction workers, whose trade requires them to constantly be around asphalt, may experience short and long term effects from breathing in asphalt fumes. Within minutes to several hours after exposure to asphalt fumes, construction workers may develop various signs and symptoms, including drowsiness, irregular heartbeat, headaches, tremors, unconsciousness, confusion and if exposed to very high levels of asphalt fumes, death. Long term asphalt fume exposure (exposure of a year or more) can harm bone marrow cells, which may lead to a construction worker developing anemia (ability of the blood to transport oxygen is decreased) or low white blood cell count (decreased ability to fight infections). In some cases, women who have been exposed to high levels of asphalt fumes over a long period of time have seen a decrease in the size of their ovaries and experienced irregular menstrual cycles. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has determined that long term exposure to asphalt fumes can cause cancer.
Contact an Experienced Northern California Personal Injury Attorney
The northern California construction injury attorneys at Estey Bomberger are here to talk to you about your potential asphalt fume case any time of the day or night, seven days a week at (800) 890-6722. We are proud to have been designated Super Lawyers three years in a row and chosen for Martindale-Hubbell Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers™ (Less than 5% of U.S. attorneys). Your decision to work with a highly respected law firm can result in you recovering far more compensation than what was originally offered by an insurance company. Contact us today to discuss your case. All consultations are free, and we are only paid if we recover money for you.