Legal Definitions - dangerous exposure

Dangerous exposure refers to contact with a harmful substance, condition, or agent that is significant enough to create a reasonable risk of injury, illness, or other adverse consequences. It implies that the level, duration, or nature of the contact goes beyond a minimal or incidental interaction and poses a credible threat to health or safety.

Here are some examples illustrating dangerous exposure:

• Example 1: Environmental Hazard

  During a home renovation, a family discovers that their attic contains significant amounts of friable (easily crumbled) asbestos insulation, which has been releasing microscopic fibers into their living spaces through the ventilation system for several months. This constitutes dangerous exposure because inhaling asbestos fibers is a known cause of severe lung diseases, and the prolonged, uncontrolled release of these fibers into their home created a substantial risk to their health.

• Example 2: Workplace Incident

  A factory worker is assigned to clean a large industrial tank without being provided with a respirator or proper ventilation, despite the tank having recently contained highly corrosive and volatile chemicals. The worker subsequently experiences severe respiratory distress and chemical burns. This situation represents dangerous exposure because the worker was subjected to harmful chemicals at concentrations and durations that posed an immediate and serious threat to their physical well-being, due to a lack of appropriate safety measures.

• Example 3: Public Health Risk

  Following a major natural disaster, a community's water treatment plant is severely damaged, leading to untreated sewage contaminating the public drinking water supply. Residents who consume this water without boiling it first are at high risk of contracting waterborne diseases like cholera or giardiasis. This is a case of dangerous exposure because the contaminated water contains pathogens that, upon ingestion, are highly likely to cause serious illness, thereby posing a widespread public health threat.