Mesothelioma Lawyer Wisconsin: Asbestos Exposure at Nelson Dewey Generating Station

If you or a family member worked at Nelson Dewey Generating Station in Cassville, Wisconsin and have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, an experienced Wisconsin asbestos attorney may be able to help you pursue compensation. Workers who may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials decades ago are receiving diagnoses right now. Do not wait to understand your legal options — filing deadlines are real and unforgiving.

Wisconsin Filing Deadline: Five Years From Diagnosis

Under Wis. Stat. § 893.54, Wisconsin residents have five years from the date of diagnosis to file an asbestos personal injury claim. That clock starts when a physician diagnoses you — not when your exposure occurred, and not when symptoms first appeared. Miss that window and your claim is gone.

Proposed legislation, including

The Disease You Were Just Diagnosed With Was Caused by Work Done Decades Ago

Mesothelioma and asbestosis have latency periods of 20 to 50 years. If you worked at Nelson Dewey Generating Station during the 1960s, 1970s, or 1980s and you have just received a diagnosis, the connection between your work and your illness is exactly what asbestos litigation was designed to address.

The manufacturers who supplied asbestos-containing materials to facilities like Nelson Dewey knew their products were lethal. Internal documents produced in decades of asbestos litigation have shown that companies including Johns-Manville, Owens-Illinois, and W.R. Grace suppressed evidence of asbestos hazards while continuing to sell to power plants, refineries, and industrial facilities across the country. Workers and their families paid the price.

What Nelson Dewey Generating Station Was and Why It Matters

Nelson Dewey Generating Station sits along the Mississippi River in Cassville, Grant County, Wisconsin — named after Wisconsin’s first governor. Wisconsin Power and Light Company brought Unit 1 online in 1959 and Unit 2 in 1960. The plant later operated under Alliant Energy and its subsidiary Interstate Power and Light Company as a coal-fired steam-electric generating station serving Wisconsin and surrounding states.

Alliant Energy has announced decommissioning, with demolition activities now underway. Demolition of structures that reportedly contain asbestos-containing materials disturbs those materials and can generate airborne fiber — a concern not only for current demolition workers but for the public record of what this facility contained.

Nelson Dewey was built squarely within the peak era of industrial asbestos use. Coal-fired power plants of that era ran boilers at temperatures exceeding 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Asbestos-containing materials were the standard engineering solution for thermal insulation, fire protection, and mechanical sealing throughout the industry. Workers at facilities like Nelson Dewey may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials during initial construction and throughout decades of routine maintenance operations.

What Workers May Have Encountered: Asbestos-Containing Materials at Nelson Dewey

Based on the facility’s construction era, plant type, and operational history, the following categories of asbestos-containing materials were reportedly present at Nelson Dewey. These are the material categories that have appeared repeatedly in asbestos litigation involving coal-fired power plants constructed and operated during the same period.

Thermal Insulation: The Highest-Volume Exposure Source

Thermal insulation represented the largest volume of asbestos-containing materials in any mid-century coal plant. Workers at Nelson Dewey may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials in the following applications:

Pipe Insulation Pre-formed sectional asbestos-containing pipe covering on high-temperature steam and condensate lines was reportedly specified by manufacturers including Johns-Manville, Owens-Corning, Owens-Illinois, Armstrong World Industries, and W.R. Grace under brand names including Kaylo and Thermobestos. Installation required cutting, fitting, and trimming — tasks that generated respirable fiber. Sealants and cements applied at sectional joints reportedly also contained asbestos-containing materials.

Boiler Insulation Asbestos-containing block insulation around boiler casings was allegedly supplied by manufacturers including Johns-Manville, Babcock & Wilcox (refractory division), National Gypsum, and Celotex. Asbestos-containing finishing cements and plaster were applied as surface layers over insulation systems throughout the plant.

Turbine Insulation Asbestos-containing blankets, rope packing, and block insulation on steam turbines and associated systems were reportedly supplied by manufacturers including Combustion Engineering and Armstrong World Industries.

Asbestos Cements and Finishing Compounds Asbestos-containing cements sealed gaps between insulation sections and around pipe penetrations throughout the plant. Products including Johns-Manville Joint Compound reportedly contained asbestos-containing materials. These cements crumble with age, vibration, and mechanical disturbance — releasing fibers during routine maintenance that may have occurred years after original installation.

Gaskets, Packing, and Mechanical Seals

Asbestos-containing gaskets and packing materials were reportedly in routine use throughout the piping systems, valves, flanges, and pump systems at Nelson Dewey.

Manufacturers allegedly supplying these materials included Garlock Sealing Technologies and John Crane, whose products were marketed under names including Unibestos and Superex. Workers who removed old gaskets from flanges and valve bonnets, cut new asbestos-containing sheet gasket stock to fit, or compressed asbestos-containing packing into pump seals and valve packings may have sustained repeated, hands-on exposure to these materials over the course of years.

Every maintenance cycle — every valve repair, every pump overhaul — potentially meant renewed contact with asbestos-containing materials.

Refractory Materials and Insulating Firebrick

The fireboxes, combustion chambers, and boiler linings at Nelson Dewey were allegedly lined with refractory materials that may have contained asbestos fibers. Insulating firebrick with asbestos-containing binders was reportedly supplied by manufacturers including Babcock & Wilcox and National Gypsum. Refractory cements, castable refractory compounds, and spray-applied coatings on boiler internals allegedly also contained asbestos-containing materials.

Electrical Systems and Components

Asbestos-containing materials extended throughout the plant’s electrical infrastructure.

Wire and cable insulation, cable jackets, and asbestos paper tape used for cable wrapping were reportedly supplied by manufacturers including General Electric and Westinghouse. Switchgear arc chutes from manufacturers including General Electric and Square D allegedly contained asbestos-containing materials. Asbestos paper and millboard used as thermal insulation in transformers and electrical panels were reportedly supplied by manufacturers including Westinghouse, Combustion Engineering (controls division), and Square D.

Electricians working on panel maintenance, cable pulls, and switchgear repairs may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials throughout the facility.

Floor, Ceiling, and Roofing Materials

Administrative, control, and maintenance areas throughout the plant allegedly contained:

Vinyl asbestos floor tiles — 9-inch and 12-inch — from manufacturers including Armstrong World Industries and Georgia-Pacific
Asbestos-containing acoustic ceiling tiles in offices and control rooms, sold under brands including Unibestos and Gold Bond
Asbestos-containing roofing membranes and tiles, potentially from Johns-Manville or Owens-Corning
Asbestos-containing adhesives and mastics used to bond tiles to substrates

These materials release asbestos fibers when cut, drilled, abraded, or removed during renovation, maintenance, or demolition.

Spray-Applied Fireproofing, Welding Materials, and Heat Barriers

Welders, pipefitters, and maintenance workers at Nelson Dewey may have worked directly with asbestos-containing materials used as fire and heat barriers:

Asbestos-containing cloth and tape to protect adjacent materials from welding heat
Asbestos-containing welding blankets and fire curtains, reportedly from manufacturers including Armstrong World Industries and W.R. Grace
Asbestos rope and braided cord on high-temperature connections
Spray-applied asbestos-containing fireproofing on structural steel members, including products sold under brand names such as Monokote and Aircell

These materials shed fibers during handling, cutting, and installation. Workers in adjacent trades who were not directly handling these materials may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials in the air around them.

Who Worked at Nelson Dewey: High-Risk Occupations

Workers in the following trades and roles may have sustained significant exposure to asbestos-containing materials at Nelson Dewey:

Heat and frost insulators — installing, removing, and replacing pipe insulation, boiler insulation, and blanket materials represented the highest-intensity potential exposures
Boilermakers and boiler operators — working directly on and around boiler systems that allegedly contained asbestos-containing insulation and refractory materials
Pipefitters and plumbers — installing, repairing, and removing asbestos-containing piping systems and handling asbestos-containing gaskets and packing as routine consumables
Electricians and electrical maintenance workers — working on systems that reportedly contained asbestos-containing wire insulation, switchgear components, and panel materials
Welders — working with asbestos-containing heat barriers and adjacent to insulated systems
Millwrights and mechanics — maintaining turbines, pumps, and rotating equipment with asbestos-containing seals and packing
Construction trades workers — present during original construction and subsequent renovation projects when disturbance of asbestos-containing materials was likely greatest
Plant operators — working daily in environments where degraded asbestos-containing materials may have been releasing fibers into the air

Bystander exposure is legally recognized and compensable. You did not have to be the worker cutting the pipe insulation to have breathed the fiber it released.

Your Compensation Options: Trust Funds and Litigation

Asbestos Bankruptcy Trusts

Most of the major manufacturers who supplied asbestos-containing materials to facilities like Nelson Dewey no longer exist as operating companies — they were driven into bankruptcy by the volume of asbestos liability they faced. Before dissolving, those companies were required to fund bankruptcy trusts specifically designated to compensate asbestos victims. Over $30 billion remains available across active trusts.

An experienced asbestos attorney can identify which trusts apply to your specific exposure history and file claims on your behalf — often while simultaneously pursuing a lawsuit against defendants who did not go through bankruptcy.

Lawsuit Venues for Wisconsin residents

Wisconsin residents have strong options for venue. Milwaukee County Circuit Court has a well-established docket for asbestos personal injury cases and experienced judges who understand the medicine and the law. Illinois residents — including those in the St. Louis metro area — may also benefit from filing in Madison County or St. Clair County, both recognized as favorable venues for asbestos plaintiffs.

The Dual-Track Approach

Wisconsin law permits victims to file both trust fund claims and personal injury lawsuits simultaneously. A competent asbestos attorney will pursue both tracks — trust claims often resolve faster, providing compensation while litigation proceeds, and settlements or verdicts against solvent defendants can be substantial.

Call an Asbestos Attorney Now

If you worked at Nelson Dewey Generating Station and have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, you have five years from your diagnosis date under Wisconsin law to file a claim — and that window does not pause while you decide whether to act.

The attorneys at this firm have represented workers from coal-fired power plants, industrial facilities, and construction trades throughout Wisconsin and the surrounding region. We handle asbestos cases on a contingency basis — you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you.

Call today for a free case evaluation. The facts of your work history, your diagnosis, and your legal options deserve a real conversation with an attorney who has handled these cases — not a form submission and a callback in two weeks.

Your diagnosis was not an accident. The companies that put those materials in that plant knew what they were doing. Hold them accountable.

Data Sources

Information about facility equipment, industrial materials, and occupational records referenced on this page is drawn from publicly available sources where applicable, including:

EPA ECHO Facility Compliance Database — enforcement and compliance records for industrial facilities
[OSHA Establishment Search