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Mesothelioma and Asbestos Exposure in Oklahoma

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If you have worked and lived in Oklahoma for a significant amount of time, there is a chance that you were exposed to asbestos at home or in the workplace. Prolonged exposure to asbestos can lead to serious health problems including pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma and asbestos-related lung cancer. As a service to people who live in Oklahoma, we have compiled the following information about asbestos and mesothelioma in Oklahoma. Below you will find recent statistics about asbestos exposure and mesothelioma in Oklahoma.


01. Statistics

Mesothelioma and Asbestos Statistics in Oklahoma

  • From 1999-2015, approximately 393 Oklahoma residents died from mesothelioma
  • The mesothelioma death rate of 6.3 people per million in Oklahoma is significantly below the national average (Source: CDC)
  • Oklahoma has no known asbestos deposits or mines (Source: USGS)
  • Counties along the southern border of Oklahoma have a slightly higher mesothelioma mortality rate than elsewhere in the state (Source: Journal of the American Medical Association)
02. Asbestos in Workplaces

Asbestos Use in Oklahoma Work Environments

Agriculture and natural gas production are Oklahoma’s industrial claims to fame, and both of these industries have historically had problems with asbestos exposure.

Oil and Natural Gas:

The first commercial oil well in Oklahoma was built in 1897, as companies began to rush into the Indian Territory to capitalize on the expansion of the U.S. frontier. My 1901, Tulsa was the “Oil Capital of the World,” and a few years later natural gas became the state’s second-favorite natural resource when a lightning strike ignited a natural gas well near Caney, creating a flame visible for 35 miles around. Over the next several decades, Oklahoma competed with California for the title of the number one oil producer in the U.S., and more than 70 of the state’s 77 counties still have oil-producing wells. Unfortunately, many of the workers at those wells have experienced asbestos exposure, given that the material was used to help prevent fires. Some of the major oil companies to operate in Oklahoma include Texaco, Sinclair Oil, Sun Oil, Conoco, Phillips Petroleum, and Champlin Oil & Refining.

Agriculture:

Oklahoma relies heavily on agriculture to sustain its economy, almost as much as it relies on oil and gas. Farmland Industries, at one time the largest agricultural cooperative in the U.S., included farmlands in Oklahoma, and was also responsible for asbestos exposure for many of its members. Asbestos is also a problem when it comes to processing the harvested crops, since many mills and food factories used asbestos in their machinery, such as Acme Flour Mills in Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College in Stillwater, OK, also is known to have had asbestos exposure problems.

Power Plants:

The power needs of Oklahoma industry and residents throughout the state are provided by a number of different power companies. Many of these energy corporations have used asbestos as an insulation material for the electricity and heat generated during the power-production process, exposing many workers to the cancer-causing material. Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company, Ponca City Municipal Electric System, and the Garson Light & Power Company are just three Oklahoma power plants known to have exposed employees to asbestos, eventually leading to mesothelioma.

Military:

All branches of the U.S. military have a long and complex history with asbestos, which was used heavily in military ships, aircraft, and land vehicles for various purposes. Three military installations in Oklahoma that exposed military personnel, family members, and civilian workers include Fort Sill Army Base in Lawton, Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, and the U.S. Naval Ammunition Depot in McAlester. The Veteran’s Hospital in Muskogee, OK, also has had problems with asbestos exposure over the years.

03. Superfund Sites

Asbestos Superfund Sites in Oklahoma

The EPA has placed more than a dozen locations in Oklahoma on its Superfund list, mostly in relation to oil and natural gas activities, though some of those have required asbestos cleanup as well.

Hudson Refinery

Located in Cushing, OK, the 200-acre Hudson Refinery site was primarily added to the Superfund list because of its oil-contaminated soil. However, EPA documents from the most recent 5-year report show that “loose and friable asbestos containing material” also was a major contaminant of concern on the property. This is no surprise, given that the refinery operated from 1922 – 1982, during the height of asbestos use in facilities like the ones located on the refinery lands. The EPA and the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality cooperated in a 16-year cleanup effort starting in 1999, with completion in 2015.

Fourth Street Abandoned Refinery

Another oil refinery located in Oklahoma City, this site operated during the 1940s – 1960s, contaminating the soil and groundwater with oil and various chemicals used in the refining process. An assessment by the EPA in 1994 led to the further discovery of asbestos insulation, which required abatement and remedy construction. The abandoned refinery remained on the EPA’s Superfund list for 14 years while cleanup activities continued, and it was taken off the list in 2008 when the cleanup efforts were deemed successful.

Oklahoma Refining Company

A 160-acre oil refinery located in Cyril, OK, this Superfund site also contained plenty of oil contamination in the ground, as well as other contaminants. As part of the emergency response efforts in 2003, the EPA demolished a number of buildings and other structures on the site, which included a wide array of asbestos-containing materials, including pipes and oil storage vessels. The cleanup efforts were completed in 2006, although reporting on the site continued as late as 2017.

04. Exposure in Cities

Oklahoma Cities with Asbestos Problems

Read more about large jobsites where asbestos exposure occurred in the major cities of Oklahoma. If you or a loved one worked at any of these sites in Oklahoma, you may be at risk to develop malignant mesothelioma. Click on any link below to view a complete list of work sites in that city where employees were exposed to asbestos.

05. Other Work Sites

Asbestos Exposure at Smaller Oklahoma Sites

Asbestos exposure is also a problem if you look beyond the major cities and towns in Oklahoma. Select a town to see the list of its job sites where asbestos exposure occurred. Asbestos exposure at any one of the work sites revealed could put a worker at risk to develop mesothelioma cancer.

, Oklahoma Jobsites Where Asbestos Exposure Occurred

  • A.C.C. Machine Tool Company
  • Abundant Life Building
  • Acme Flour Mills Company
  • Airport Heights Park/Lillard Park
  • Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building
  • Alliance America
  • Altus Air Force Base
  • American Airlines
  • American Public Service Company
  • APCO Oil Corporation
  • Applied Thermal Systems, Inc.
  • Ardmore Development Authority
  • Armco Steel Plant
  • Armstrong Contracting & Supply Corporation (ACandS, Inc.)
  • Armstrong Contracting & Supply Corporation (ACandS, Inc.)
  • Armstrong Cork Company
  • Automatic Digital Network (AUTODIN) Facilities
  • Baptist Hospital
  • Bareco Oil Company
  • Bareco Oil Company
  • Bareco Wax Company
  • Barnsdale Refineries Inc.
  • Barnsdall Refineries Inc.
  • Bartlesville – Interurban Railway Company
  • Bass Memorial Hospital
  • Belle Isle School
  • Ben Franklin Refining Company
  • Black Gold Refining Company
  • Black Sivalls & Bryson, Inc.
  • Blackwell Oil & Gas Company
  • Boardman LLC
  • Bryant Refractory Company
  • Cain’s Coffee Company
  • Calery Chemical Plant
  • Callery Chemical Company
  • Carpenters Local Union 943
  • Carter Oil Company
  • Ceiling Systems, Inc.
  • Central Library
  • Central Oklahoma State Hospital
  • Central State Griffin Memorial Hospital
  • Champlin Oil & Refining Company
  • Champlin Reference Company
  • Champlin Refining Company
  • Chas. R. Baum
  • Cherokee Nitrogen Plant
  • Cherokee Power House
  • Choctaw Railway and Lighting Company
  • Chostaw Power and Light Company
  • Cinerama Theatre
  • CITGO
  • Cities Service Helex, Inc.
  • Cities Service Oil Company
  • Cities Service Oil Company
  • Cities Service Oil Company
  • Cities Service Petroleum Company
  • City Hospital
  • City Metal & Plastic Fabricators
  • City Services Oil Company
  • Civic Center
  • Condea Vista Company
  • Conoco Chemicals Company
  • Conoco Oil Refinery
  • Conoco Oklahoma
  • Consolidated Insulation, Inc.
  • Continental Carbon Company
  • Continental Oil Company
  • Continental Oil Refinery
  • D-X Sunray Oil Company
  • Dayton Tire and Rubber Company
  • Deep Rock Oil Corporation
  • Douglas Aircraft Company
  • Duncan Oil Refinery
  • E.I. Du Pont De Nemours
  • Econo-Therm Corporation
  • Edison Preparatory School
  • Empire and Gas Fuel Company
  • Empire Gas and Fuel Company
  • Empire Oil and Refining Company
  • Empire Refineries Corp
  • Empire Roofing & Insulation Company
  • Enid Asbestos Company
  • Enid Electric and Gas Company
  • Enid State School
  • Enterprise Building
  • Envirotech Systems Inc
  • Farmland Industries
  • Federal Courthouse
  • Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
  • First Baptist Tulsa
  • First National Bank of Oklahoma
  • First National Building Corporation
  • First Presbyterian Church
  • Flintco LLC
  • Fort Howard Paper Mill
  • Fort James Corp
  • Fort Sill Army Base
  • G.C. Broach Company
  • Garson Light & Power Company
  • General Electric Company (GE)
  • Getty Oil Company
  • Goodyear Tire and Rubber Oc.
  • Grand River Dam Authority
  • Griffen Grocery Company
  • Gulf Oil Corporation
  • Gulf Pipe Line Company
  • Hackney Iron & Steel
  • Harley Sales Company of Oklahoma, Inc.
  • Health Center
  • Hillcrest Manor Nursing Home
  • Hillcrest Medical Center
  • Horseshoe Lake Station
  • Hudgens Construction Company
  • Humble Oil and Refining Co.
  • Ice and Packing Company
  • Illinois Oil Company
  • IMC Drilling Mud, Inc.
  • Industrial Insulators, Inc.
  • Insulation Services, Inc.
  • Insulations, Inc.
  • Johns-Manville
  • Jones & Laughlin Steel Company
  • Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation
  • Kaiser Chemical
  • Kanawha Fittings
  • Keener Oil & Gas Company
  • Kennedy Building
  • Kerr Glass Manufacturing Corp
  • Kerr Mcgee Oil Industries, Inc.
  • Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation
  • Kerr-Mcgee Gas & Oil Refinery
  • Kerr-McGee Oil Refinery
  • Kerr-Mcgee Refinery
  • L. A. King, Inc.
  • L.A. King Company
  • Lawton Generating Plant
  • Lobar Oil Company, Inc.
  • Lone Star Pressure Precision Company
  • Lucent Technologies, Inc.
  • M.W. Kellogg Company
  • M.W. Kellogg Company
  • Maloney-Crawford Tank Corporation
  • Mark Blodgett Insulation Company
  • Martin Marietta Materials, Inc.
  • Mayo Hotel
  • McClelland Store
  • McLain High School for Science and Technology
  • Mid Continent Petroleum
  • Mid-Continent Petroleum Corporation
  • Middle West Utilities Company of Illinois
  • Midland Cooperatives, Inc.
  • Midwest Insulation & Material Company
  • Mo., Kansas and Texas Railway
  • Mohawk Water Treatment Plant
  • Moorlane Sutton Supply, Inc.
  • Muskogee Gas and Electric Company
  • Muskogee Generating Station
  • Muskogee High School
  • Muskogee Iron Works
  • National Tank Company
  • National Tank Company
  • National Zink Company
  • Naval Air Station
  • Naval Ammunition Depot
  • Navy Base
  • Northeastern Station
  • Offices of Dr. Andrew Potter
  • Ogande Horseshoe Lake
  • Ogande Muskogee Gen
  • Ogande Seminole Gen
  • Oil Refineries
  • Okalhoma Agricultural and Mechanical College
  • Oklahoma Cement Company
  • Oklahoma City Municipal Improvement Authority (OCMIA)
  • Oklahoma Electric & Water Company
  • Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas & Electric Mustang Station
  • Oklahoma Gas & Electric Power Plant
  • Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Gas Electric Company
  • Oklahoma Power Company
  • Oklahoma Railway Company
  • Oklahoma State Penitentiary
  • Oklahoma State Tech Dorms
  • Oklahoma State University
  • Oklahoma State University
  • Okmulgee Hospital
  • Oologah Power Station
  • Oral Roberts University
  • Owens-Corning Fiberglas
  • Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation
  • Owens-Corning Supply Corporation
  • Ozark Steel
  • Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line Company
  • Peerless International Corporation
  • Petrolite Corporation
  • Petty-Badger Company
  • Philcade Building
  • Phillips 66 Proving Ground Project
  • Phillips Petroleum Company
  • Phillips Petroleum Company
  • Phillips Refinery
  • Phillips Research Center
  • Philtower Building
  • Piping Engineering Company, Inc.
  • Ponca City Mun Water and Light
  • Ponca City Municipal Electric System
  • Ponca City Utility Authority
  • Producers & Refiners Corporation
  • Pso Ne Gen Station
  • Pso Riverside Gen Sta
  • Pso Sw Gen Station
  • Public Service Company of Okla
  • Public Service Company of Oklahoma
  • Public Service Company of Oklahoma
  • Public Service Company of Oklahoma
  • Public Service Company of Oklahoma
  • Public Service Company of Oklahoma
  • Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) Power Plant
  • Public Service Oklahoma
  • Pure Oil Company
  • Rex Aluminum Plant
  • River Bend Station
  • Riverside Station Unit 1
  • Robinson Steel Mill
  • Rock Island Refining Company
  • Rogers Galvanizing Company
  • Rust Engineering Company
  • Saint Francis Hospital
  • Sand Springs Trail Trek
  • Santa Fe Delivery
  • Scovil & Sublett, Inc.
  • Seminole Generating Station
  • Sewage Treatment Company
  • Shaffer Oil and Refining Company
  • Sheffield Steel
  • Sheffield Steel Corporation
  • Sinclair Oil Corporation
  • Sinclair Prairie Oil Company
  • Sinclair Refining Company
  • Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother (SSM) St. John Ministry
  • Skelly Oil Company
  • Skirvin Hotel
  • Southeastern Oklahoma Industries Authority
  • Southland Cotton Div Company
  • Southland Shopping Center
  • Southwestern Light & Power Company
  • Southwestern Public Service Company
  • Southwestern Sta Unit Number 3
  • St. Anthony Hospital
  • St. John Medical Center
  • St. Paul’s Lutheran Church
  • Standard Asbestos Manufacturing and Insulating Company
  • Stanolind Oil and Gas Company
  • Stanolind Pipe Line Company
  • State Penitentiary
  • Stevens Asbestos Product Company, Inc.
  • Stevens-King Company, Inc.
  • Sublett & Associates, Inc.
  • Sun Oil Company of Pennsylvania Refinery
  • Sun Oil Refinery
  • Sun Petroleum Products Company
  • Sunray DX Oil Co. Refinery
  • Sunray Refinery
  • Swift & Company
  • Swift & Company
  • Texaco Oil
  • Texaco, Inc. Refinery
  • Texas Company
  • Thermal Systems, Inc.
  • Thermo Technology Plant
  • Thorpe Plant Services, Inc.
  • Tidewater Refinery
  • Tinker Air Force Base
  • Tosco Refinery
  • Transworld Drilling Company
  • Trigen Tulsa Energy Corporation
  • Trigen-Oklahoma Energy Corporation
  • Tulsa Assembly Center
  • Tulsa City Hall
  • Tulsa International Airport Buildings and Facilities
  • Tulsa National Bank
  • Tulsa Performing Arts Center Buildings and Facilities
  • Tulsa Power Station
  • Tulsa Rig and Reel Manufacturing Company
  • Tulsa Tube Bending Company
  • U. S. Naval Ammunition Depot
  • U.S. Army Corps Engineers, Tulsa District
  • Ultramar Diamond
  • Union Carbide Corporation
  • Union Iron Works
  • Uniroyal Plant
  • United Insulation Company
  • University of Oklahoma
  • University of Tulsa
  • Veteran’S Hospital
  • Veterans Administration Hospital
  • Vista Chemical Company
  • Warren Clinic Urgent Care-Springer
  • Warren Petroleum Corporation
  • Washita Power Plant
  • Western Electric Company, Inc.
  • Western Farmers Electric Corporation
  • Western Farmers Power Plant
  • Westinghouse Electric Company
  • Weyerhauser Paper Mill
  • Wheeler’s Drywall LLC
  • Wilson & Company
  • Wynnewood Refinery
  • Xerox Corporation

Find Mesothelioma Doctors, Lawyers and Asbestos Exposure Sites Near You

Find Mesothelioma Doctors, Lawyers and Asbestos Exposure Sites Near You
Sources [+]
  • 1

    Oklahoma Energy Resources Board. “A Strong Future.” OERB.com.

  • 2

    Sorahan, Tom. “Mortality of UK Oil Refinery and Petroleum Distribution Workers, 1951-2003.” Occupational Medicine 57, no. 3 (2007).