'My Lungs Had Nothing Left': Inside the Epidemic Killing Countertop Stonecutters [View all]

https://prospect.org/2026/03/17/epidemic-killing-countertop-stonecutters-engineered-stone/

A new California law aims to protect workers from silicosis, an incurable lung disease that has killed 29 people in the state and sickened hundreds. Experts say it isn’t enough.

by Semantha Raquel Norris March 17, 2026

This article was produced by Capital & Main, an award-winning publication that reports from California on economic, political, and social issues. It is co-published here with permission.

Photos by Semantha Raquel Norris

For more than 15 years, Oscar worked nearly seven days a week in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, cutting and polishing stone countertops for kitchens and bathrooms. He didn’t know the engineered stone he was fabricating was rapidly killing him.

At the age of 45, Oscar began to have difficulty breathing. He felt extremely tired and weak, unable to lift the stone slabs he once carried with ease.

“My lungs couldn’t take it anymore,” Oscar said in Spanish. “They were already collapsing.”

Oscar spoke on condition that he be identified only by his first name in order to protect his privacy.

FULL story at link above.


After receiving a double lung transplant, Oscar’s chest and torso are marked by scars.