General Equipment at Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line Illinois

The equipment below represents the systems and infrastructure documented or typically present at this facility during the era when asbestos-containing materials were specified in industrial construction. This is general facility-equipment reference — not a legal attribution of any specific product, manufacturer, or exposure event to this facility. Material-category and manufacturer information is addressed in the AsbestosIndex Product Crosswalk linked under the records table below.

Industrial Boilers View crosswalk › Process Piping View crosswalk › Pipe Insulation View crosswalk › Block Insulation View crosswalk › Valves View crosswalk › Gaskets View crosswalk › Pumps View crosswalk › Heat Exchangers View crosswalk › Cooling Equipment View crosswalk ›

Documented Asbestos Evidence

The records below are verified, state-documented asbestos removals at this facility. Each entry represents a regulated abatement project where the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) was notified under federal NESHAP rules, the work was logged, and the asbestos-containing material was confirmed and removed under regulated conditions. These are not allegations or estimates — they are paper records tying documented asbestos-containing material to this specific site.

No Illinois EPA NESHAP abatement notifications have been identified for this facility in current public records. Per the framing above, absence of state-agency documentation should not be read as absence of asbestos — only as absence of a formal, regulated abatement event meeting reporting thresholds. Workers who recall encountering pipe insulation, block insulation, gaskets, or other asbestos-era construction materials at this facility may still have viable claims regardless of whether a state record exists.

Material Categories in Documented Records

The materials documented above (and similar asbestos-containing materials commonly encountered in records of this type) appear in the AsbestosIndex catalog with historical manufacturer and trust-fund information. Click a category to view manufacturers historically associated with that material:

Thermal System Insulation View crosswalk › Asbestos-Cement Board View crosswalk › Pipe Insulation View crosswalk › Roofing & Flashing View crosswalk › Spray Fireproofing View crosswalk › Floor Tile & Mastic View crosswalk › Ceiling Tile View crosswalk › Gaskets & Packing View crosswalk ›

Who May Have Been Exposed at Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line Illinois

Workers in the following classifications on the UP-NW corridor and its associated facilities may have faced elevated asbestos exposure. If your trade isn’t listed here, that does not mean you don’t have a claim — call and describe what you actually did.

Boilermakers and Heat and Frost Insulators

Work allegedly performed:

  • Removing and replacing deteriorated asbestos-containing boiler insulation
  • Repairing and maintaining steam locomotive boilers, stationary shop boilers, and heating system boilers
  • Cutting, fitting, and installing asbestos-containing insulation materials — work that generated concentrated, inhalable dust

Machinists and Locomotive Inspectors

Work allegedly performed:

  • Engine overhauls requiring removal of asbestos-containing gaskets from gaskets and packing and packing materials
  • Inspection and repair of internal engine components surrounded by asbestos-containing insulation
  • Brake system maintenance involving asbestos-lined brake shoes and pads

Insulators (Heat and Frost Insulators Local 1 and Boilermakers Local 27)

Work allegedly performed:

  • Application and removal of spray-on asbestos-containing insulation
  • Installation of asbestos-containing pipe insulation on steam lines and process piping
  • Application of asbestos-containing fireproofing to structural steel in shop buildings, reportedly using products

Pipefitters and Plumbers (UA Local 562 and UA Local 268)

Work allegedly performed:

  • Installation and replacement of asbestos-containing pipe insulation and lagging
  • Work on steam distribution systems, boiler systems, and facility heating systems
  • Cutting through asbestos-containing insulation to access and repair underlying piping

Carmen (Freight Car and Coach Workers)

Work allegedly performed:

  • Maintenance and repair of freight cars and passenger coaches
  • Work on asbestos-containing brake systems, door mechanisms, and interior fixtures
  • Renovation and repainting work that may have disturbed asbestos-containing materials, ceiling tile, and other manufacturers

Electricians

Work allegedly performed:

  • Installation and maintenance of electrical systems in close proximity to asbestos-containing insulation
  • Work on diesel locomotive electrical systems with asbestos-wrapped cables and wiring insulation
  • Building electrical work in facilities reportedly containing asbestos-containing materials from multiple manufacturers

Maintenance-of-Way and Track Workers

Work allegedly performed:

  • Maintenance and repair of signal houses, relay buildings, and pump stations that allegedly contained asbestos-containing materials and ceiling tile
  • Removal of debris from areas with deteriorating asbestos-containing building materials
  • General yard maintenance in facilities with aging, asbestos-containing infrastructure

Laborers and General Workers

Work allegedly performed:

  • Material handling and cleanup in shops and yards where asbestos-containing dust from multiple manufacturers may have been present
  • Yard work and facility maintenance in areas with aging asbestos-containing infrastructure
  • Bystander exposure — working near trades that generated asbestos dust without performing that work directly

Bystander exposure is a recognized legal theory. You

For informational purposes only. Not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this page. © 2026 Rights Watch Media Group LLC — Disclaimer · Privacy · Terms · Copyright

Critical Filing Deadline & Next Steps

Illinois law gives mesothelioma and asbestos-disease claimants 2 years from the date of medical diagnosis to file a personal-injury lawsuit (735 ILCS 5/13-202). For wrongful-death claims after an asbestos-related death, the filing window is 2 years from the date of death (740 ILCS 180/2). The two deadlines run on separate tracks — preserving one does not extend the other.

The personal-injury clock runs from diagnosis, not from exposure. Mesothelioma latency is typically 20 to 50 years, so workers exposed in the 1950s–1980s are being diagnosed today.

Practical first steps

  1. Document what you remember. Pay stubs, W-2s, union cards, photographs, coworker names, and dates of employment. The WorkChain widget on this page can save a copy you can email yourself.
  2. Preserve medical records. Pathology reports, biopsy results, imaging, and pulmonary-function tests are central to both civil claims and trust-fund filings.
  3. Identify household members. Spouses who laundered work clothing and children of plant workers are eligible for secondary-exposure claims when diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease.
  4. Speak with an asbestos attorney with Illinois experience. The first conversation is free and confidential. Asbestos trust-fund claims and civil claims run on different tracks — both can be pursued in parallel.

Asbestos-Related Diseases

Asbestos fiber exposure can cause several specific diseases that typically appear decades after the original exposure. The latency period — the gap between exposure and diagnosis — usually runs 20 to 50 years. That's why workers exposed in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s are receiving diagnoses today.

Mesothelioma

A rare, aggressive cancer that affects the lining of the lungs (pleural mesothelioma), abdomen (peritoneal), or heart (pericardial). Mesothelioma is almost exclusively caused by asbestos exposure, which is why a mesothelioma diagnosis often points directly to historical workplace exposure. Average latency from first exposure to diagnosis is 30-50 years.

Asbestosis

A chronic, non-cancerous scarring of lung tissue caused by inhaled asbestos fibers. Asbestosis causes progressive shortness of breath, persistent cough, and reduced lung function. It does not improve with treatment, and it is a recognized basis for compensation under most trust schedules and civil claims.

Lung Cancer

Asbestos exposure significantly increases the risk of lung cancer, particularly when combined with a history of smoking. Asbestos-related lung cancer is compensable under the same trust schedules and civil claim avenues as mesothelioma.

Other Recognized Diseases

Pleural plaques, pleural thickening, laryngeal cancer, ovarian cancer, and certain gastrointestinal cancers are also recognized as asbestos-related under various trust schedules and case-law authorities, though eligibility and proof requirements vary by claim type.

If you have any of these diagnoses and you worked at this facility, lived with someone who did, or were exposed in any documented capacity, you may have a claim worth pursuing. Speak with an attorney before assuming you don't qualify.

Data Sources

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

If specific equipment or product claims in this article are sourced from a non-public database, the source is identified parenthetically within the text above.