For most of the twentieth century, the plants that kept Arizona's lights on ran on heat, and where there was heat there was asbestos. Generating stations packed it into boilers, turbines, pipes, and wiring because it resisted fire and high temperatures. The workers who built, ran, and repaired those plants breathed in fibers without knowing it, and some are now being diagnosed with mesothelioma decades later.
Throneberry Law Group was founded by attorney Michael Throneberry after mesothelioma took his father-in-law, and he brings an engineering background to the way our Arizona mesothelioma lawyers trace exposure through old plants and equipment. Our firm has pursued mesothelioma claims for workers from the Salt River Project's Navajo Generating Station near Page, so we know firsthand what asbestos exposure at these stations looked like. If you spent part of your career in Arizona power generation, we can help you find where the asbestos came from.
Why Power Plants Relied on Asbestos
A generating station is built around equipment that gets extremely hot. Asbestos insulation wrapped the boilers, steam pipes, and turbines, while asbestos gaskets, packing, and cloth sealed joints and shielded workers from the heat. The trades that faced the steadiest exposure were boilermakers, pipefitters, insulators, electricians, and laborers, especially during maintenance, repairs, and demolition, when old insulation was cut, scraped, or torn out and invisible fibers filled the air people were breathing.
Arizona Power Plants Where Workers Faced Exposure
Asbestos was used across the state's power industry, at the large coal stations, the gas plants, and the nuclear station alike. The plants where Arizona workers most often faced exposure include:
- Navajo Generating Station near Page: the Salt River Project coal plant that ran from the 1970s until 2019, where our firm has handled asbestos exposure cases
- Cholla Power Plant near Joseph City: an Arizona Public Service coal plant that operated for decades before closing in 2025
- Coronado Generating Station near St. Johns: a Salt River Project coal station in eastern Arizona
- Springerville Generating Station near Springerville: a large coal plant with Tucson Electric Power and other owners
- Apache Generating Station near Cochise: a combined coal and gas plant in southeastern Arizona
- Four Corners Power Plant near the New Mexico line: an Arizona Public Service coal plant that drew many Arizona workers
- Palo Verde Generating Station near Tonopah: the nuclear station west of Phoenix, where asbestos was used in construction
- H. Wilson Sundt and Irvington stations in Tucson: Tucson Electric Power generating sites in the southern part of the state
- Phoenix-area gas plants: including the Agua Fria, Ocotillo, Kyrene, and West Phoenix stations
Workers at these sites handled or worked near asbestos for years, and our overview of power plant jobs explains how that exposure happened day to day. Several of these stations sit near Tucson, where our Tucson mesothelioma lawyers can take a closer look at local exposure.
Why a Diagnosis Today Traces Back Decades
Mesothelioma takes a long time to appear. According to the CDC's Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, signs of the disease may not show up until 30 to 40 years after exposure to asbestos. That is why workers who were on the job from the 1950s through the 1980s are being diagnosed now. It also means the companies that made the asbestos insulation and parts, rather than the utility you worked for, are usually the focus of a claim. Our list of companies related to asbestos exposure is a useful place to begin, and you can see the wider picture in our list of Arizona sites with known asbestos exposure.
Arizona Mesothelioma Lawyers at Throneberry Law Group
Reconstructing what happened inside a power plant that ran decades ago takes patience, the right questions, and real familiarity with how these stations were built and maintained. We have done that work, including for families connected to the Navajo Generating Station. If you or someone in your family worked in Arizona power generation and now faces mesothelioma, we can investigate where the exposure started and who is responsible.
Our team works from Phoenix, with additional offices in Kansas City and Chicago, helps clients across the country, and can assist Spanish-speaking families, with each case kept in the hands of attorneys who know it well. The review costs you nothing, and the first step is as simple as reaching us through our contact form.
