Connecticut Light & Power Company: Asbestos Exposure and Your Legal Options

Connecticut Light & Power's Industrial History

For most of the 20th century, Connecticut Light & Power (CL&P) was one of the state's largest utility companies, operating power plants, substations, and an extensive network of transmission infrastructure across Connecticut. Like most power utilities of that era, CL&P relied heavily on asbestos-containing materials throughout its operations — asbestos was prized for its heat resistance and was used extensively in insulation for boilers, turbines, pipes, and high-voltage cabling.

In 2015, Connecticut Light & Power was rebranded as Eversource Energy following a corporate merger, and the CL&P name is no longer used for the company's current operations. This matters for anyone pursuing a claim: depending on when and where your exposure occurred, your case may involve Eversource as CL&P's corporate successor, or may be handled through other channels depending on the specific facility and timeframe involved.

How CL&P Workers Were Exposed to Asbestos

Power plant workers, electricians, insulators, boiler operators, and maintenance personnel at CL&P facilities faced regular exposure to asbestos fibers through several types of work:

Insulation work on boilers, turbines, and steam pipes, which were routinely wrapped in asbestos-containing materials to manage extreme heat.

Electrical cable work, since asbestos was commonly used as an insulating material in high-voltage cabling and switchgear.

Maintenance and repair work, which often disturbed aging asbestos insulation and released fibers into the air, particularly during demolition, replacement, or renovation projects.

Boiler room work generally, an environment widely recognized across the utility industry as carrying some of the highest asbestos exposure risk of any job site.

What Made Power Plant Environments Especially Hazardous

Power generation facilities were among the most heavily asbestos-insulated industrial environments of the 20th century, for a straightforward reason: boilers, turbines, and steam systems operate at extremely high temperatures, and asbestos was, at the time, considered the most effective and affordable insulating material available. This meant that virtually every major piece of equipment in a power plant — boilers, turbines, generators, steam pipes, and electrical switchgear — was wrapped in, lined with, or otherwise built using asbestos-containing materials.

Unlike some industries where asbestos exposure was concentrated in a single task or area, power plant workers often faced exposure throughout an entire facility, since asbestos insulation was present in nearly every mechanical system. Maintenance and repair work was particularly hazardous, since removing or disturbing aging asbestos insulation released fibers directly into the air workers were breathing, often in enclosed boiler rooms with limited ventilation.

Documented Risk Across the Power Industry

The connection between power plant work and asbestos exposure is well documented across the utility industry generally, not just at any single company. Industry analyses of asbestos jobsites consistently identify power plant and utility work among the highest-risk occupational categories, alongside shipbuilding and heavy manufacturing. This is consistent with what mesothelioma attorneys and researchers have found when reviewing the occupational histories of patients diagnosed with asbestos-related disease: utility and power plant workers appear disproportionately often.

What Documentation Can Help Your Claim

If you or a family member worked at a CL&P facility, a few types of documentation can meaningfully strengthen a future claim:

Employment records showing dates, job titles, and specific facility locations.

Union records, if applicable, which often include detailed work history and job classifications.

Sworn statements from former coworkers who can help confirm the conditions and materials present at a specific facility during a specific time period.

Any documentation of specific tasks performed, particularly maintenance, repair, or insulation work, which tend to carry higher exposure risk than other utility roles.

Mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases typically don't appear until 20 to 50 years after the original exposure. Many former CL&P workers who spent their careers in power plants during the mid-20th century are only now being diagnosed, often well into retirement, and may not immediately connect a new diagnosis to work they did decades earlier.

Your Legal Options

If you or a family member worked at a Connecticut Light & Power facility and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related illness, you may have legal options, including asbestos trust fund claims if any responsible companies have gone through bankruptcy, or direct claims where a solvent, responsible company is still identifiable. Because power utility exposure often overlapped with work at other Connecticut industrial sites, it's worth having your full occupational history reviewed rather than assuming only one employer is relevant.

Connecticut has a significant industrial history of asbestos exposure beyond the utility sector as well — including shipbuilding, aerospace manufacturing, and other industrial sites across the state. Our attorneys regularly help clients identify every relevant exposure source connected to their work history.

A Note on Timing and Deadlines

Connecticut's statute of limitations for mesothelioma and asbestos-related disease claims is generally three years from the date of diagnosis. While that may sound like ample time, building a strong case — particularly one involving decades-old employment records and witness testimony — takes time, and evidence only becomes harder to gather the longer you wait. It's generally advisable to have your situation reviewed as soon as possible after diagnosis, even if you haven't yet decided whether to pursue a claim.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related illness, contact us for a free case evaluation.

Because power utility exposure can overlap with claims involving multiple companies and trust funds, working with an attorney who regularly handles Connecticut asbestos cases — and understands the specific history of the state's utility, aerospace, and shipbuilding industries — can make a real difference in identifying every source of compensation available to you and your family.

Jazlowiecki & Jazlowiecki LLC has represented mesothelioma and asbestos exposure victims for decades. Free case evaluations, no fee unless we win.