History of Asbestos in Nevada
Unlike a number of other states with a long mining history, Nevada has not been subject to asbestos exposure via natural deposits of the mineral in the state. Instead, the deadly substance was purposely imported into the Nevada.
The state's largest city, Las Vegas, began to boom in the 1950s, when asbestos was commonly used in numerous construction products, such as plaster and insulation. All of the major hotels built in the city up until the early 1980s are believed to have contained asbestos.
The city also has a hunger for power, specifically electricity, to fuel all of those neon billboards, slot machines, and towering hotels. As a result, the state has numerous power stations. In the early days, most hotels had their own power stations. All of these, as well as the rest of the power plants in the state, are believed to currently contain asbestos or to have contained asbestos at some point.
For decades, Nevada has been a prime training area for the Air Force and there are a number of Air Force and other military installations in the state. The military is known to have heavily used asbestos in buildings, barracks, vehicles, planes, and power stations located on site, among other places. As a result, service men and women, along with civilians that frequented the bases, may have been exposed to asbestos.
Companies with Possible Asbestos Exposure
These companies, power stations, hotels, military bases and other locations, as well as numerous others, are either known to have exposed people to asbestos, or are believed to be locations where asbestos exposure may have occurred:
- Bell Telephone
- Brady Power Plant
- Caithness Power Plant
- Clark County Power House
- Clark Station
- Desert Peak Power Plant
- Dixie Valley Power Plant, Soda Lake I and II
- Foreland Refining
- Fort Churchill Generating Station
- Indian Springs Air Force Base
- International Hotel
- Las Vegas Van & Transfer Siding
- Laughlin Air Force Base
- Lofton Power Plant
- MGM Hotel
- Nellis Air Force Base
- Nevada Power Company, Reid Gardner Station
- Nevada Power Plant
- North Las Vegas Shopping Center
- Pinon Pine Power Project
- Proctor Hug High School
- Reid Gardner Station
- Reno Convention Center
- Reno Feed and Seed
- Sahara Hotel
- Sierra Pacific Power Co.
- Southern California Edison
- Southern Nevada Public Services
- State Printing Office
- Stauffer Chemical Plant
- Steamboat Power Plant
- Sunrise Station
- The Beowave Power Plant
- The Empire Farms Power Plant
- The Harry Allen Station
- Titanium Chemical Co.
- Tracy Generating Station
- University of Nevada Las Vegas
- Valmy Generating Station
- Wabuska Generating Station
- Wells Fargo Dock
Asbestos-related Deaths in Nevada
In the years between 1979 and 2001, more than 198 people in Nevada died from asbestos diseases such as mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis. This number is believed to be less than the actual number, due to a lack of strict rules regulating mesothelioma as a cause of death on death certificates. More stringent regulations have since been passed and the numbers have increased significantly.
Where to Find Help in Nevada
Mesothelioma Treatment Centers in Nevada
Most of Nevada is rural, and there are few major cancer centers in the state and none of them specialize in mesothelioma. However, they may be able to provide the treatments your physician recommends. If you are in doubt, we highly recommend you seek a second opinion from a physician that specializes in treating mesothelioma.
Nevada Cancer Institute – multiple locations throughout the state
Research and Patient Care Campus
One Breakthrough Way
Las Vegas, NV 89135
Phone: (702) 822-LIFE, (866) 621-NVCI
Southern Nevada Cancer Research Foundation (CCOP)
601 S. Rancho Dr., C-26
Las Vegas, Nevada 89106
Phone: 702-384-0013
Two cancer centers in California do have physicians specialized in the treatment of mesothelioma:
USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of Southern California
1441 Eastlake Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90089
Phone: 323-865-0816
UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of California San Francisco
2340 Sutter Street, Box 0128
San Francisco, California 94115-0128
Phone: 415-502-1710
Nevada law has established that the companies that exposed you to asbestos knew or should have known that asbestos was deadly and should have taken steps to warn and protect you from exposure. Because of this legal finding, those that were exposed to asbestos while living or working in Nevada and now have mesothelioma, or those with mesothelioma now living in Nevada (but exposed in another state) should review their legal options with a Nevada mesothelioma attorney.
If you are seeking a mesothelioma lawyer in Nevada, contact us today to learn your legal options. 866-632-7574.