Mobile Exposure Map
Documented Exposure Sites
| # | Facility | Area | Industry | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama Dry Dock & Shipbuilding (ADDSCO) | Pinto Island / Mobile | Shipbuilding | Critical |
| 2 | Gulf Shipbuilding Corporation | Chickasaw | Shipbuilding | Critical |
| 3 | Waterman Steamship Corporation | Mobile | Shipping / Maritime | High |
| 4 | International Paper (Mobile Mill) | Mobile | Paper / Pulp | High |
| 5 | Alabama Power McDuffie Plant | Theodore | Power Generation | High |
| 6 | Boise Cascade Mobile | Mobile | Paper / Pulp | Moderate |
| 7 | Scott Paper (Kimberly-Clark) | Mobile | Paper Manufacturing | Moderate |
ADDSCO: Alabama’s Largest WWII Employer
Alabama Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Company began operations on Pinto Island in Mobile Bay in the 1920s. When the United States entered World War II, ADDSCO became one of the South’s critical shipbuilding facilities, receiving emergency wartime contracts to build and repair Liberty ships, tankers, and military vessels for the Allied effort.
At its 1943 peak, ADDSCO employed 75,000 workers — a figure larger than the entire pre-war population of Mobile. These workers built vessels using asbestos pipe insulation, boiler lagging, and fireproofing applied throughout the ship. Workers who insulated the engine rooms and boiler spaces received the most concentrated exposures, often working in confined spaces where asbestos dust had no way to dissipate.
Gulf Shipbuilding in Chickasaw operated simultaneously, adding another major exposure site to the Mobile Bay shipbuilding complex. Together, these two yards made Mobile one of the most asbestos-exposed industrial communities in the American South.
Yes — extensively. ADDSCO (Alabama Dry Dock and Shipbuilding) was one of the most heavily asbestos-exposed shipyards in the South. Workers built Liberty ships and military vessels using asbestos pipe insulation, boiler lagging, and fireproofing from 1940 through the 1960s. Alabama’s 2-year statute of limitations (Ala. Code § 6-2-38) begins on the date of confirmed mesothelioma diagnosis. With one of the shortest deadlines in the country, it is critical to contact an attorney promptly after diagnosis.