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Asbestos | Asbestos Industry
Occupations > Sawyers
History of the Sawyer Trade
Prior to the 1900's Sawyers were highly skilled carpenters that worked with saws to create wooden planks out of logs. They were frequently sought after for new home construction and other smaller construction jobs. At the beginning of the twentieth century, technological break-throughs required a group of trades people to specialize in cutting stone. Sawyers took on that function while carpenters were known as trades people who worked mainly with wood. Sawyers primarily focused on cutting concrete, stone, and asbestos-cement sheet and insulated pipes to be used in new building development efforts.
Sawyers are Frequently Exposed to Asbestos on the Job
Sawyers were at serious occupational risk for inhaling dangerous asbestos fibers while performing their job up until the mid to late 1970's. Their primary job function was to saw and cut concrete slabs, stone, asbestos cement sheets and insulated pipes. In the sawing process, harmful dust was generated in large quantities. Asbestos was a favored form of insulating material used in the early to late twentieth century because it possessed superior heat and fire resistant properties. It was also inexpensive. Unfortunately it was later found to cause cancer and other pulmonary disease in individuals who sustained extended exposure to airborne asbestos particles.
As sawyers performed their jobs of cutting materials that contained asbestos, the asbestos dust and fibers were released into the air. If the proper protective gear, such as a respirator and mask, was not worn the workers were susceptible to inhaling the harmful dust. Most sawyers were not aware of the risks they faced. Recent changes in safety rules have mandated the use of water when cutting stone to avoid the creation of unhealthy dust, but sawyers still have the potential to be placed at high risk on the job.
Asbestos use has been significantly reduced if not eliminated since the mid 1970's to early 1980's. Because it was used so extensively in building construction prior to that time, however, renovation or demolition efforts on older structures must be carefully executed and monitored and asbestos abatement protocol followed where necessary. The risk of asbestos exposure in those situations can be extremely high.
Mesothelioma, Asbestosis and Lung Cancer and are Frequently Diagnosed in Sawyers
The link between asbestos exposure and pulmonary disease was discovered in the mid 70's. At that time it was quickly discovered that blue collar workers, especially, faced occupational risks that resulted in their sustaining extended asbestos exposure. In addition, their families were also placed at risk for second hand exposure because they would bring asbestos fibers home on clothes, shoes and hair. Provided below is a brief description of the diseases they were at risk for developing as a result of that asbestos exposure:
- Mesothelioma: Is a malignant form of cancer with asbestos exposure as the only known cause. This cancer doesn't attack the organs themselves but can metastasize if left untreated. It primarily affects the lining of the lungs (pleural mesothelioma), stomach (peritoneal mesothelioma) or heart (pericardial mesothelioma).
- Asbestos Related Lung Cancer: Lung cancer can be caused by exposure to asbestos. Smokers who are also exposed to asbestos have a significantly higher risk for developing this form of cancer than non smokers. With this cancer, malignant tumors form in the lungs making breathing difficult and painful.
- Asbestosis:This is a pulmonary disease that, like mesothelioma, is caused exclusively by exposure to asbestos. With this illness, scar tissue is created in the lungs and causes extreme breathing difficulty and restricted blood flow.
It is not uncommon for these illnesses to take many years to show up. Lung cancer may take up to ten years to show signs after initial asbestos exposure and mesothelioma and asbestosis can take anywhere from thirty to forty years to manifest. Of course there are also instances where a disease can develop more quickly but it is more common to see a longer latency period. The usual symptoms to look for are changes in the ability to breathe, pain in the chest area, persistent cough with bloody sputum at times. These diseases do not generally have a favorable prognosis.
