Groton Asbestos Exposure & Mesothelioma

General Dynamics’ Electric Boat shipyard has built submarines for the US Navy continuously since 1899, earning Groton the nickname “Submarine Capital of the World.” Asbestos was used throughout submarine construction for hull insulation, pipe lagging, and electrical insulation in the confined spaces of every vessel built here through the 1970s.

4+Major exposure sites

125+ yearsContinuous submarine construction

3 YearsConnecticut statute of limitations

$0Upfront legal costs

Groton Exposure Map

Documented Exposure Sites

#	Facility	Area	Industry	Risk
1	General Dynamics Electric Boat	Groton Waterfront	Naval Shipbuilding / Submarines	Critical
2	Naval Submarine Base New London	Groton	Naval Base	High
3	Pfizer Groton Research & Manufacturing	Groton	Chemical / Pharmaceutical	Moderate
4	Groton Utilities Power Plant	Groton	Power Generation	Moderate

Electric Boat: A Century of Submarine Construction

Electric Boat has built the majority of the US Navy’s submarine fleet since 1899, including diesel-electric boats through WWII and the nuclear submarines that followed. Submarine construction required extensive asbestos insulation packed into every available space within the pressure hull — wrapped around pipes, layered into bulkheads, and used in electrical wiring insulation — to manage heat and fire risk in an extremely confined environment.

Pipefitters, electricians, and insulators (laggers) who worked inside partially completed submarine hulls faced some of the most concentrated asbestos exposure of any shipyard trade in the country, given how little ventilation existed inside a submarine under construction. Welders and shipfitters working nearby were also exposed to ambient asbestos dust.

Electric Boat continues to build submarines today, including the Virginia-class and Columbia-class programs. Workers employed at the yard from the 1940s through the 1970s — before asbestos regulations tightened — represent the population at highest risk for mesothelioma from Groton exposure.

Were Electric Boat workers in Groton exposed to asbestos?▼

Yes — extensively. Electric Boat has built submarines continuously since 1899, using asbestos throughout submarine hulls for pipe insulation, hull lagging, and electrical insulation through the 1970s. Connecticut’s 3-year statute of limitations (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-577a) runs from the date of mesothelioma diagnosis.