csx transportation reactive airway Disease Transportation Workers Have Suffered From Serious Toxic Exposures
CSX Transportation is one of the largest transportation companies in the United States. CSX workers have suffered from severe exposure to toxic substances, including diesel exhaust cancer and occupational lung diseases. CSX shop workers, such as machinists, have also been exposed toxic substances like solvents and degreasers. Workers have developed many illnesses including mesothelioma as well as other cancers.
Exposure to Diesel Exhaust
After World War II the rail industry switched to diesel engines, exposing railroad employees to the harmful gas mixture and particulates. The lungs are particularly vulnerable to these chemical compounds that can cause a variety of lung ailments and cancer. This includes silicosis as well as lung fibrosis and asbestosis. Diesel exposure can also cause chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This condition is characterised by breathing problems due to an obstruction in the lungs’ airways. COPD is a chronic disease that can lead to chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
Researchers found that the likelihood of dying from COPD increased with each year of exposure diesel exhaust fumes. The risk of death increased even after taking into consideration the smoking history of a person. The study was conducted on people who started work as railroad workers prior and after the switch to diesel locomotives.
Exposure to diesel exhaust fumes may cause mesothelioma, which is a form of cancer. Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that is a threat to the protective membrane around a person’s organs and other tissues. It is a form of cancer that may occur because of exposure to toxic substances like asbestos, silica or diesel exhaust. CSX railroad employees who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, or other lung diseases that could be related to diesel exhaust may be eligible for compensation under the Federal Employers Liability Act.
Exposure to Asbestos
Asbestos was utilized as an insulation material in trains. Asbestos’s danger is only when inhaled or airborne. Railroad workers who worked on train engines, carriages and other equipment that were constructed with asbestos were subjected to the dangers of this toxic material every day. Railroad workers used tools such as saws and drills to release microscopic asbestos into the atmosphere when the components were repaired or replaced. The inhalation of these asbestos particles caused a myriad of serious health issues, including lung diseases such as mesothelioma, and other lung diseases like fibrosis, pleural plaques, asbestosis, chronic obstructive respiratory disease (COPD), and blood cancers, such as acute myeloid leukemia, multi myeloma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Railroad workers are exposed other harmful substances, like diesel exhaust fumes and welding fumes. These substances include coal dust and vapors, diesel powered track equipment (ballast regulators, tampers, and sweepers) which disturb ballast rock, harsh cleaning solvents and the use of weed killers near tracks and railroad ties treated with creosote.
Asbestos exposure may cause range of ailments, including mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a kind of cancer that affects the lining of the lungs and organs, is one form. It is also connected to other autoimmune diseases, such as asbestosis, peritoneal mesothelioma, pleural effusion, fibrosis, Emphysema and diffuse pleural thickening.
Exposure to welding fumes
The welding process produces fumes which contain metal particles, gases and gases. Based on the rods employed and the type of steel welded iron, csx Transportation reactive Airway disease cadmium zinc, lead, chromium and copper, silicates, and nickel can be present in the fumes. These chemicals can cause irritation to the lungs and lead to obstructive respiratory illness. The fumes from welding have also been associated with a condition dubbed Siderosis, in which iron particles form scars in the lungs that obstruct gas exchange. Siderosis can cause lung cancer, as well as other serious health issues. Welding fumes can also contain carcinogens for the lung, like the nitrogen peroxide or ozone.
Welding is a process used in railroad operations wherever metal parts need to be welded or cracks must be repaired. Welding is required for the trucks and bolsters, as well as the equalizer bars on railroad cars and locomotives. The fumes that are produced by welding can cause a number of symptoms such as chest pain, cough, and fatigue. It is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, blood disorders like myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia.
In addition to diesel exhaust and welding fumes, rail shop workers are exposed to a variety of toxins in solvents, degreasers and fluids. For a worker to qualify as a FELA claimant their job must «directly and substantially affect interstate commerce.» A claim for a work-related traumatic injury must include proof that the claimant’s health condition was caused by exposure to these substances.