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Toxic Chemical Exposure on the Job: What Maritime Workers Should Know
Maritime workers regularly face dangerous conditions, especially when dealing with paints, fuel, solvents, or noxious fumes. Over time, exposure to these toxic substances can lead to serious health issues, from respiratory problems to long-term illness.
At the Shlosman Law Firm in New Orleans, we’ve represented deckhands, rig operators, and other marine workers harmed by unsafe work environments.
In this article, we’ll break down the risks of chemical exposure on the job, what symptoms to watch for, and how you can protect your rights if your health has been affected.
Common Chemical Exposure Risks for Maritime Workers
Across ports, vessels, and offshore facilities, maritime crews can encounter chemical products in many forms. Some products arrive as cargo while others are used for cleaning or vessel maintenance. In all these settings, repeated contact or accidental release can pose major risks.
Workers may come in contact with chemicals through inhalation, skin absorption, or swallowing small droplets. Even routine tasks—like cleaning fuel tanks or using solvents—can bring these threats to the forefront. Over time, these exposures can lead to serious complications, including damage to the lungs, nervous system, or other organs.
Examples of Hazardous Chemicals
Many substances in the maritime world can harm your health. Below are a few examples:
- Paints, varnishes, and cleaning agents
- Acids, ammonia, and chlorine
- Degreasers, caustic substances, and detergents
- Benzene in petroleum cargos such as gasoline or crude oil
- Insulation materials and refrigerant gases
- Toxic metals like arsenic, chromium, and lead
- Pesticides, herbicides, and liquefied petroleum gas
Benzene frequently appears in products such as gasoline and naphtha. It has been linked to issues like immune system damage and certain types of cancer, especially when people breathe its vapors over extended periods.
Situations Leading to Exposure
These threats can emerge from everyday occurrences. It might be a sudden equipment breakdown that releases harmful fumes, a packaging error that leads to a spill, or a storm at sea that ruptures containers holding corrosive chemicals. Natural events or human oversights can greatly increase a worker’s chance of coming into contact with toxins.
Health Hazards and Injuries Resulting from Chemical Exposure
Physical dangers—like combustible chemicals—often draw concern, but health hazards can be just as serious. Crew members might experience breathing trouble from toxic vapors or receive burns caused by corrosive liquids. Simple mishaps, such as a punctured drum or an unsealed container, can have lasting consequences.
Injuries may happen via inhalation, skin contact, or by ingesting trace amounts of a dangerous compound. Some harm appears quickly, but others can develop gradually and show up years later.
Short-Term vs. Long-Term Health Effects
Short-term injuries include skin burns, breathing irritation, dizziness, or sudden neurological signs. Crew members might deal with headaches, coughing, or eye redness soon after exposure.
Long-term effects sometimes reveal themselves later. Over time, workers may face chronic lung disease, cancer, anemia, immune system damage, and organ malfunction. Individuals exposed to asbestos or benzene can develop mesothelioma or leukemia, both of which may not appear until years after the initial incident.
Chemical hazards also have the potential to impact fertility and normal body functions. For instance, repeated exposure to certain solvents has been connected to chronic ailments and reproductive difficulties.
Symptoms of Chemical Exposure
Signs can vary, but watch for the following:
- Burning in the eyes, nose, or throat
- Chest pains or coughing
- Sudden headaches or dizziness
- Fatigue and muscle aches
- Nausea or vomiting
- Visible burns or rashes on the skin
- Difficulty breathing or blood in the mucus
- Liver, kidney, or lung complications
- Nervous system disruptions
- Birth defects in children of exposed workers
Anyone noticing these patterns after coming into contact with suspicious substances should seek prompt medical attention and keep detailed records of the symptoms.
| Chemical | Location/Use | Potential Harm |
| Benzene | Fuels (gasoline, crude oil cargo) | Respiratory problems, leukemia risk |
| Chlorine | Disinfecting agents | Burns, breathing irritation |
| Toxic Metals (lead, etc.) | Paints, older equipment | Organ damage, neurological issues |
| Ammonia | Cooling systems | Severe respiratory distress |
| Caustics (Acids, Bases) | Cleaning tasks | Skin burns, and blindness when splashed |
Legal Rights and Compensation for Injured Maritime Workers
After exposure, some workers wonder if they have any protection at all. The Jones Act offers a path for “seamen” who have been harmed while working aboard a qualifying vessel. Under this law, you might seek compensation if you are considered a seaman and can show that negligence by your employer contributed to your injuries.
This protection can apply to deckhands, engineers, oilers, cooks, or anyone else on a vessel that operates on public waterways. If you spend at least 30 percent of your time in command of a vessel, you could meet the seaman classification. If you qualify, you may file a claim to recover costs like medical bills or lost wages.
Employer Responsibilities and Legal Recourse
Employers must maintain vessels in safe working order, supply protective gear, and deliver proper training. They must also post hazard guidelines and keep updated Safety Data Sheets so that employees know a product’s risks. If a company overlooks these steps, it might open the door for a Jones Act claim or similar legal action.
When an employer disregards these responsibilities, injured workers can pursue legal remedies. Lawsuits often focus on unsafe practices, malfunctioning gear, or inadequate warnings. Courts also look at whether the vessel was “unseaworthy,” meaning it lacked the basic conditions required to safeguard workers.
Types of Compensation Available
Financial compensation often covers:
- Medical care and treatment expenses
- Lost wages or reduced earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Long-term rehabilitation or home care
- Possible punitive damages for extreme employer wrongdoing
Keeping careful documentation can make a big difference in a legal claim. Log any leak, accident, or suspicious odor at your worksite, and note symptoms right away. Consult a doctor and save copies of every diagnosis, lab test, and prescription. These details can help form a timeline of exposure and injury.
Steps to Take Following Chemical Exposure
Person-to-person experiences differ, but there are some practical measures you can consider if you think you have been exposed to toxic chemicals on the job:
- Seek immediate medical care to address symptoms and document every step in your treatment.
- Notify your supervisor or safety officer of the event, and be clear about where and when it happened.
- Ask for copies of any incident reports, exposure logs, or test results.
- Keep your own written notes about any pains, diagnoses, or ongoing health issues that arise afterward.
- Wait to sign the settlement paperwork until you have sought legal counsel.
Bringing these actions together can help you move forward. You are not alone, and timely documentation can aid you if you proceed with a claim.
Get the Help You Need: Contact Shlosman Law Firm
Our team at Shlosman Law Firm has years of hands-on experience with maritime injury cases in New Orleans. We take pride in assisting seamen and other maritime employees who have been harmed by chemical exposure. If you want to discuss your claim or learn more about your rights, please reach out. Call us at 504-826-9427 or send an email to info@shlosmanlaw.com. You can also visit our Contact Us page to share your details. We are ready to help you seek fair compensation and recover the stability you deserve.