Phelps Dodge, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, was one of the United States’ major copper producers and a significant manufacturer of electrical wire and cable for industrial, commercial, and marine applications. Phelps Dodge electrical cable and wire products were used in US Navy vessel electrical distribution systems — the shipboard wiring running through engineering spaces, accommodation spaces, and throughout the ship’s electrical distribution network. Phelps Dodge and other cable manufacturers produced shipboard electrical cable with asbestos-containing insulation materials in the WWII and early Cold War period when asbestos was the preferred insulation material for high-temperature and fire-resistant shipboard cable applications.

Asbestos in Shipboard Electrical Cable

Navy shipboard electrical cable used asbestos-containing insulation in the period before the asbestos phase-down:

  • Asbestos-insulated cable sheathing — electrical cable installed in Navy ships’ engineering spaces and throughout the ship’s electrical distribution system used asbestos-containing cable insulation in the sheathing material in WWII-era and early Cold War ship construction. Asbestos provided fire resistance and high-temperature performance required for electrical cable in the elevated temperature environment of Navy engineering spaces
  • Engineering space wiring — electrical cables running through firerooms, enginerooms, and auxiliary machinery spaces in steam-powered surface ships used asbestos-insulated cable sheathing appropriate for the high ambient temperatures of the engineering spaces. IC (Interior Communications), EM (Electrician’s Mate), and ET (Electronics Technician) ratings working with this wiring during maintenance encountered asbestos-containing cable insulation
  • High-temperature cable applications — special-purpose electrical cable for boiler control wiring, motor starting circuits, and high-temperature machinery areas used asbestos-containing cable insulation specifically selected for thermal performance in high-heat environments

Electrical Maintenance and Asbestos Exposure

EM and IC ratings performing electrical maintenance on asbestos-insulated cable systems:

  • Cable splicing and termination — cutting, splicing, and terminating older asbestos-insulated electrical cable during electrical system maintenance generated asbestos dust from the cable sheathing material at each cable splice and termination operation
  • Cable tray and raceway maintenance — cable trays and raceways carrying asbestos-insulated cable bundles throughout engineering spaces required periodic clearing and maintenance that disturbed settled asbestos fiber from deteriorated cable insulation

VA Claims

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from electrical cable insulation maintenance in Navy service. Electrician’s Mate and Interior Communications Electrician ratings who performed maintenance on asbestos-insulated electrical systems in Navy ships and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.