Tri Star Metals

Carol Stream, Illinois is the home of Tri Star Metals. The company was founded in the early 1900's as a manufacturer of steel wire, bars and other related products.

When Tri Star Metals became successful, a large number of workers were hired on to keep the steel mill running efficiently and meet the demands of all their customers. These employees understood that the industry they were getting into came with certain risks. Working in an industrial setting can be dangerous, but these workers also faced a hidden and unexpected threat. They spent their shifts working around products such as insulation and protective fire-retardant clothing that contained asbestos.

These days most people know about the dangers of asbestos. The naturally occurring mineral is poisonous, and simply being around it is very risky. Although it is very strong and durable, microscopic bits of asbestos dust can easily break apart and get into the air, where they may be breathed in by anyone who gets too close. Those who do inhale the toxic substance usually don't realize it until many years later, when they have developed symptoms of a serious illness.

When asbestos dust or fibers are inhaled, it will adhere to the lining of the respiratory systems. It can cause large amounts of destruction over a period of time that is sometimes more than two decades long. Although the fiber’s damage may be slow in developing, it can eventually lead to chronic breathing disorders and life threatening diseases such as the cancerous mesothelioma.

Steel mills like the Carol Stream based facility often had large amounts of asbestos on the premises. Prior to the 1970's, it was not widely recognized as a harmful substance, and was used in great abundance to produce hundreds of different products. Because the mineral was strong, pliable, inexpensive to mine and able to withstand intense heat, it was considered to be one of the greatest natural resources ever discovered in the United States. Mining companies gather as much of it as they could and always had a plethora of manufacturing companies waiting to buy it.

Eventually the use of asbestos became strictly regulated by government agencies to ensure that every product that contains it is completely safe. People who worked at facilities such as Tri Star Metals spent time around asbestos based products before these security measures were in place, and many were put at risk as a result. If you or someone you know spent time around asbestos, notify your doctor about it immediately.

While mesothelioma survival rate is known to be discouraging, early diagnosis and treatments such as mesothelioma radiation may help improve the prognosis for this disease.