Texas Asbestos Exposure: Refineries, Legal History & One Family's Story

Episode Description

Six of the top oil refineries in the United States are located in Texas—and refinery workers, construction crews, and even their families have paid the price with mesothelioma diagnoses decades later.

In this episode of MESO: The Mesothelioma Podcast, host Dave Foster—Executive Director of patient advocacy at Danziger & De Llano with 18 years of experience helping mesothelioma families—sits down with Rod De Llano, Founding Partner with 25 years of mesothelioma litigation experience, and Larry Gates, Senior Client Advocate whose father died of mesothelioma in 1999 after 22 years of refinery work in Pasadena, Texas.

Together, they cover:

• Why Texas ranks among the top three states for mesothelioma cases—alongside California and Florida—due to refineries, shipyards, and petrochemical plants concentrated along the Gulf Coast
• The hidden danger of drilling mud: asbestos-containing drilling fluids exposed roughnecks and oil field workers until approximately 1985
• Secondary exposure patterns: how wives and children developed mesothelioma 30+ years after breathing fibers from workers' clothing
• How asbestos litigation began in the 1980s and led to approximately 35 trust funds now compensating victims and families
• Larry's personal story: watching his healthy, athletic father go from active to gone in just 6 months after his 1999 diagnosis
• Why Texas law changes in 2003 made it harder to file mesothelioma cases in the state—and where cases are filed now

Whether you're a refinery worker, construction tradesperson, military veteran stationed in Texas, or a family member seeking answers about a loved one's exposure, this episode explains the industries, timelines, and legal landscape that shaped Texas asbestos cases.

Resources:

• Asbestos Exposure Sources: https://dandell.com/asbestos-exposure/
• Mesothelioma Compensation: https://dandell.com/mesothelioma-compensation/
• Rod De Llano, Founding Partner: https://dandell.com/rod-de-llano/
• Larry Gates, Senior Client Advocate: https://dandell.com/larry-gates/
• Free Consultation: https://dandell.com/contact-us/

MESO: The Mesothelioma Podcast is sponsored by Danziger & De Llano, a nationwide mesothelioma law firm with over 30 years of experience and nearly $2 billion recovered for asbestos victims. For a free consultation, visit Dandell.com.