The Green River Station’s Asbestos Sickened and Killed Workers
The Green River Generating Station was an important coal-burning power plant for post-World War II Kentucky. It began operation in 1950, a time when asbestos use in power plants was common and workers weren’t aware of its cancer-causing potential. If you worked at the Green River Station as a contractor or utility employee and are diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, you may be entitled to compensation.
Satterley & Kelley, PLLC attorneys in Louisville have more than 25 years of experience obtaining compensation for those in Kentucky and other states who have asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma. If you’re in this situation and want to learn more, call us at 855-385-9532.
What is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a group of six natural silicate mineral fibers. They were widely used for centuries in thousands of products because of the following qualities:
- They can survive extremely high temperatures without breaking down
- Asbestos doesn’t burn
- Asbestos fibers are incredibly strong and durable
- Asbestos doesn’t react with most chemicals
- It doesn’t conduct electricity
- Asbestos was relatively inexpensive to mine, process, and incorporate into products during its peak use
Asbestos fibers are much thinner than a human hair and can easily become airborne when asbestos-containing materials are installed, disturbed, or removed.
Why is Asbestos Dangerous?
Asbestos fibers create a slow-motion catastrophe that your body can’t stop. How the body responds to them causes the damage.
Asbestos is toxic because of its unique physical and chemical structure and how the human body reacts to it. Asbestos fibers are incredibly thin and durable, and some are needle-like.
When asbestos-containing materials are installed, disturbed, age or are removed, these microscopic fibers can become airborne and be inhaled or swallowed. After they’re in the body, they become particularly dangerous:
- Unlike most natural substances, asbestos fibers won’t break down or get cleared away by your body’s immune system. They can remain in you indefinitely
- Your immune system recognizes asbestos fibers as foreign and continuously, but unsuccessfully, tries to destroy them. This creates a cycle of inflammation and cellular damage that may last for decades
- This process damages cells directly and harms their DNA (the cell’s instructions). Over time, this repeated injury and attempts to heal can lead to mutations that cause cancer
Asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma, lung cancer, and colon cancer can take 20 to 40 years after exposure to appear.
What was the Green River Station?
This coal-fired power plant in Central City, Kentucky, began operations in 1950. It had four units burning fuel and generating electricity, and the older two were shut down in 2004. The last two were retired in 2015, according to its owners, Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities, which PPL Corporation owns.
At its peak, the Green River Station generated 250 megawatts of power for Western Kentucky, roughly enough to power about 10,000 homes. When it was shut down, 36 people worked there.
Why was Asbestos Used in Power Plants?
Given the high heat, fire risk, and the presence of electrical equipment, power plants contained substantial amounts of asbestos-containing materials for decades. This power plant was first constructed in the late 1940s. Asbestos was widely used until the early 1980s.
Power plants burned fuel (in this case, coal) to generate steam, which turned turbines that generated electricity. Boilers creating steam, pipes transporting it, and turbines using it to create electricity all needed to be insulated. Electrical equipment was also insulated with asbestos.
If I Worked at the Green River Station and Have an Asbestos-Related Disease, What are My Legal Rights to Compensation?
If you worked at the Green River Station as a utility employee or contractor and are diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, Kentucky workers’ compensation law generally prevents lawsuits directly against your employer. However, you may be able to file a workers’ compensation claim against them.
Depending on your situation, you may also be able to file legal claims against the following:
- Manufacturers and distributors of asbestos-containing products used at the facility
- The contractors who installed, removed, or repaired asbestos materials
If you were a contractor employee, you may also be able to pursue claims directly against the power plant’s owner. Each case is unique, and determining the best legal strategy requires analyzing your work and asbestos exposure histories.
If the Green River Stationwasn’t the only place you were exposed to asbestos, you may be able to maintain legal actions against the parties responsible for exposure at those locations as well. Many companies that made up America’s asbestos industry are bankrupt, but the trust funds they established pay claims by those injured by their cancer-causing fibers.
How Much Time Do I Have to File a Legal Claim?
Kentucky law limits the time you have to file an asbestos-related lawsuit. Generally, you have one year from the date you knew, or should have known, of your diagnosis and its cause to file a claim. This statute of limitations is absolute. If you miss this deadline, your case will be dismissed, no matter how strong your case or how much harm you suffer.
The one-year timeline can seem long, but it passes quickly. Mesothelioma and other cancers are aggressive diseases with limited life expectancies. Patients and families are focused on medical treatment, second opinions, and spending limited time together. Legal matters may take a backseat to these more immediate concerns.
Don’t let your legal rights slip through your hands. Contact Satterley & Kelley, PLLC so we can begin the critical work of building your case.
Contact Satterley & Kelley Today
Satterley & Kelley, PLLC attorneys have extensive experience representing clients exposed to asbestos at the Green River Station and other Kentucky facilities. We understand the challenges these cases present and have the knowledge, resources, and dedication to pursue the maximum compensation for you and your family.
Don’t allow the statute of limitations to end your rights to compensation. Call our Louisville office at 855-385-9532, locally at 502-589-5600, or reach us online to learn more about how we can help you and your family.