Hunters Point Naval Shipyard — located on the southeastern San Francisco waterfront — was the United States Navy’s major Bay Area ship construction and overhaul facility, operating from the 1940s through its closure in 1974. Hunters Point Naval Shipyard built and overhauled Navy vessels throughout World War II and the Cold War period, with its engineering spaces and construction facilities insulated throughout with asbestos-containing materials. The shipyard was one of the primary recipients of asbestos insulation products from Bay Area asbestos distributors — particularly Western Asbestos Company, a major regional asbestos product distributor — whose products were delivered directly to the Hunters Point facility. Hunters Point Naval Shipyard workers — including pipefitters, insulation workers, Machinist’s Mates, and shipyard construction trades — were exposed to asbestos from the products installed throughout the vessels built and overhauled at the facility. Publicly filed asbestos litigation records document Hunters Point Naval Shipyard with particular specificity: formal documentation of asbestos product sales to Hunters Point, asbestos insulation product delivery records, testimony about asbestos conditions at the facility, and Western Asbestos Company’s documented sales to Hunters Point.

Documented Asbestos — Hunters Point Naval Shipyard in Litigation

Asbestos Product Sales — Directly to Hunters Point

Testimony — Hunters Point Naval Shipyard

Western Asbestos — Sales to Hunters Point

Asbestos at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard

World War II construction and repair: Hunters Point Naval Shipyard performed intensive wartime ship construction and battle damage repair during World War II — with asbestos-containing materials installed throughout every vessel under construction in the wartime production environment.

Western Asbestos supply chain: Western Asbestos Company — a Bay Area asbestos product distributor — supplied asbestos insulation products to Hunters Point Naval Shipyard throughout the active construction and overhaul period. Western Asbestos products, delivered directly to Hunters Point, became the materials installed by the shipyard’s insulation workforce.

Engineering space insulation: Every vessel overhauled at Hunters Point received asbestos pipe covering, block insulation, and fitting covers throughout its engineering spaces — work performed by shipyard insulation workers and naval Pipefitters in the confined spaces of drydocked and pier-side vessels.

Environmental legacy: Hunters Point Naval Shipyard’s asbestos legacy extends beyond the occupational exposure of its workers — the site’s closure left a contaminated industrial facility that continued to affect the surrounding community, reflecting the scale of asbestos product use during the shipyard’s active years.

VA Claims and Legal Options — Hunters Point Naval Shipyard Workers

Navy veterans whose ships were overhauled at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, civilian workers employed at Hunters Point in any construction or maintenance trade, and workers for Western Asbestos or other distributors who delivered asbestos products to Hunters Point — who subsequently developed mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease — may qualify for:

  • VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) for veterans with documented duty aboard vessels overhauled at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard
  • Civil claims against asbestos product manufacturers and distributors (including Western Asbestos Company successors) based on documented asbestos product delivery and installation at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard

Key documents:

  • DD-214 or service records — documenting service aboard vessels built or overhauled at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard
  • Employment records — Hunters Point Naval Shipyard employment in any trade, or Western Asbestos Company employment
  • Diagnosis — mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease

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Documented asbestos exposure information derived from publicly filed asbestos litigation records. This does not constitute legal or medical advice.