The Boatswain’s Mate (BM) rating supervised deck operations — seamanship, rigging, mooring, underway replenishment, and boat operations. While BMs worked primarily topside, the publicly filed asbestos litigation record documents BM exposure from asbestos-containing deck materials, below-deck watch standing in asbestos-containing spaces, and maintenance operations that disturbed asbestos in both topside and below-deck environments.

BMs occupied a unique exposure position: as the watch supervisors for the deck division, they moved throughout the ship — below deck for watch standing and maintenance — in addition to their primary topside duties.

Documented Exposure Sources

Topside Asbestos-Containing Materials

Below-Deck Watch Standing

BMs stood watches throughout the ship — including below-deck spaces as officer of the deck, petty officer of the watch, and damage control assistant. This below-deck watch standing placed BMs in engineering spaces and machinery compartments with deteriorating asbestos-containing overhead insulation.

Rigging Operations Adjacent to Asbestos

Vessel Maintenance — Sweeping and Cleaning

Boatswain’s Mate and the Deck Division

Service Period Documentation

The Boatswain’s Mate rating qualifies for VA service connection under VA asbestos-claim guidance based on documented below-deck watch standing in asbestos-containing spaces, topside exposure to asbestos-containing deck materials, and maintenance work in asbestos-containing environments during vessel maintenance and overhaul periods.

The BM’s exposure profile — combining topside deck work with below-deck watch standing and maintenance supervision — produced exposure across a wider range of ship spaces than ratings confined to a single work area. Veterans who served as BMs on pre-1980 vessels have documented asbestos exposure from multiple pathways.

Key documents for a BM claim:

  • DD-214 Block 11 — primary specialty showing BM rate
  • Ship assignments — duty stations from DD-214 or NARA muster rolls; oiler, replenishment ship, and amphibious vessel assignments are documented in the BM asbestos exposure record
  • Diagnosis — mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, or pleural disease

Civil claims may run against manufacturers of asbestos-containing deck materials (vinyl asbestos tile, asbestos-containing deck coatings), and against the manufacturers of asbestos-containing insulation in the below-deck spaces where BMs stood watch.

Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 936-2956

All consultations are free. No fee unless a financial recovery is made on your behalf.

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