Seattle built its prosperity on shipbuilding, aerospace, and heavy manufacturing, and for decades those same industries exposed workers to asbestos every day. The mineral was prized for resisting heat and fire, so it filled the boilers, pipes, and machinery that ran King County’s waterfront and factories. Many of the workers who handled it are only now learning that the cause of a mesothelioma diagnosis can be traced to a specific Seattle job site they left years ago.
We are Throneberry Law Group, and we help Seattle and King County families connect a diagnosis to the places where asbestos exposure occurred. Principal attorney Michael Throneberry lost his father-in-law to mesothelioma, and he trained as a civil and environmental engineer, including service with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, before turning that technical eye toward asbestos cases. Identifying where and how exposure happened is the foundation of pursuing the compensation a family deserves, and we put detailed jobsite and product research behind every claim.
Shipyards on Harbor Island and the Duwamish
Harbor Island and the Duwamish Waterway formed the center of Seattle’s shipbuilding industry, and they remain the region’s most significant sources of asbestos exposure. Todd Pacific Shipyards operated on Harbor Island for generations, insulating ships with asbestos from the 1940s through the 1970s. The former Lockheed Shipbuilding yards nearby relied on the same materials to build and repair vessels.
The scale of contamination at these sites is well documented. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the 40-acre Lockheed West Seattle shipyard became a Superfund site, and a cleanup that finished in March 2020 removed more than 100,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment. The Duwamish Shipyard and Lake Union Drydock added to the asbestos burden carried by the area’s shipyard and Navy workers. Many King County residents also worked at or served aboard ships repaired at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, where asbestos filled insulation, gaskets, valves, and pumps for decades.
Manufacturing and Aerospace Plants
Beyond the waterfront, King County’s factories placed thousands more workers near asbestos. The Boeing plants in Seattle and the surrounding county used asbestos insulation and components for heat protection in their aircraft production and facilities. Truck and machinery manufacturers across the region exposed assemblers, welders, and machinists to asbestos-containing parts.
These workplaces share a common pattern of occupational exposure. Asbestos was woven into gaskets, brake components, insulation board, and protective gear, and the people who cut, installed, or replaced those materials breathed in the fibers released into the air around them. Workers rarely received warnings or protective equipment in those years, which made daily exposure almost unavoidable for the trades that kept these plants running.
Power Plants, Cement, and the Building Trades
King County’s energy and construction history created another layer of risk. Older steam and power facilities, including the historic Georgetown Steam Plant and the district steam system that heated downtown Seattle, used heavy asbestos insulation on their boilers and lines. Cement and building-material operations added to the exposure across the county.
The construction trades carried the danger into nearly every Seattle neighborhood. Insulators, pipefitters, drywall finishers, roofers, and demolition crews handled asbestos materials in homes, schools, and commercial buildings for much of the 20th century. Washington carries one of the highest mesothelioma death rates in the nation, and King County records more mesothelioma cases than any other county in the state year after year.
Common Sources of Asbestos Exposure in King County
Asbestos exposure in the Seattle area tended to concentrate in a handful of industries and settings. The list below highlights where King County workers most often encountered it.
- Shipyards: Todd Pacific, Lockheed Shipbuilding, Duwamish Shipyard, and Lake Union Drydock
- Aerospace and manufacturing: Boeing facilities and regional truck and machinery plants
- Power and steam: Georgetown Steam Plant and Seattle’s downtown district steam system
- Construction trades: Insulation, drywall, roofing, and demolition work across the county
- Secondhand exposure: Fibers carried home on the clothing of industrial and trade workers
If your history includes any of these settings, our firm can investigate the specific products and companies involved at no cost to you.
Connecting Exposure to a Strong Legal Claim
Pinning down the source of exposure is what makes a mesothelioma case work, because the lawsuit targets the manufacturers of the asbestos products rather than the employer or the job site itself. Our firm gathers employment records, product data, and witness accounts to show exactly which companies are responsible, and many of those companies set up trust funds that still pay claims today.
Seattle and King County families do not have to assemble this proof alone. We serve clients across the region on a contingency basis, we travel to you, and we work with Spanish-speaking families, building each case alongside our broader Seattle and Washington practice.
Frequently Asked Questions About Seattle Asbestos Exposure Sites
What were the largest asbestos exposure sites in King County?
The Harbor Island and Duwamish shipyards were among the most significant, including Todd Pacific Shipyards and the former Lockheed yards. The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton also exposed many King County residents who commuted to naval work. Beyond the waterfront, Boeing facilities, the Georgetown Steam Plant, and the regional construction trades all contributed to the area's high mesothelioma rate. Our firm investigates the specific sites and products involved in every case we accept, and that investigation starts with a free review of your work history.
I do not remember exactly where I was exposed. Can you still help?
Yes. Forgetting the details does not disqualify a claim. Our firm reconstructs a full work history using employment and union records, Social Security earnings data, and the industrial histories of the facilities that operated in King County. We know which products were used at which sites and during which years, and that knowledge often fills in what a client cannot recall. Start with a free, no-obligation conversation and we will take it from there.
Who is responsible for my asbestos exposure, the employer or the manufacturer?
In most cases, the lawsuit targets the companies that made or sold the asbestos products, not the employer or the job site itself. Manufacturers had a duty to warn workers about the dangers of their products, and many failed to do so for decades. Employers may also carry some liability in specific circumstances, but product liability claims against manufacturers are the most direct path to recovery for most Seattle and King County families. A free case review can map the likely defendants based on your specific history.
Can family members exposed secondhand file a claim?
Yes. Asbestos fibers traveled home on the clothing, hair, and tools of shipyard and industrial workers, and spouses and children who washed those clothes or shared the same living space were exposed without ever setting foot on a job site. Washington law recognizes these secondary exposure claims, and they follow the same legal process as direct occupational claims. If you spent years in a household with a shipyard or industrial worker, a free review of your situation can clarify whether you have a viable claim.
Seattle Asbestos Attorneys at Throneberry Law Group
The places that powered Seattle’s growth left a long shadow of asbestos disease, and the families living with that legacy deserve answers about where it came from. Our firm combines careful jobsite investigation with the personal commitment of an attorney who has felt this loss in his own family, and we put that work into every King County case.
Attorney Michael Throneberry and our team will trace your exposure, identify the responsible manufacturers, and pursue the recovery your family is owed, with no fee unless we win. Start your free, no-obligation case review today through our online contact form.