Throughout history, the oiler/tanker ship has been an essential part of the United States Navy military operations. During World War II, these oiler &tankers were the homes to thousands of Navy personnel. Along with personnel, each oiler & tanker contained thousands of pounds of deadly asbestos. This asbestos was supplied by companies that knew the asbestos was dangerous and knew that, eventually, thousands of servicemen would contract terrible diseases from exposure to this mineral. But the companies chose profit over safety and hid those dangers from the navy and the servicemen.
Asbestos was used frequently for the insulation of pipes, boilers, electrical fixtures and hull construction. It was also used as a fire retardant material in many areas aboard ship, including non-skid flooring on decks and on bulk head walls. The worst areas on oilers & tankers were in the fire, pump, and engine rooms where insulation covered the pipes and wiring. Some of the personnel most at risk include boiler tenders, electrician's mates, enginemen, machinist mates, pipefitters, and shipfitters.
Many of the companies that supplied asbestos products to the navy have admitted fault and set up trust funds to compensate navy veterans. If you know someone who has mesothelioma, contact us to learn more about your rights.
Below offers a list of some oilers & tankers that were commissioned between 1940 and 1990 and contained risks of asbestos exposure. Personnel aboard any of these ships or civilians that provided shipyard maintenance, repair or deconstruction may have been at risk of asbestos exposure.
United States Navy Oiler / Tanker Listing
- USS Allagash (AO-97)
- USS Ashtabula (AO-51)
- USS Aucilla (AO-56)
- USS Cacapon (AO-52)
- USS Caliente (AO-53)
- USS Caloosahatchee (AO-98)
- USS Canisteo (AO-99)
- USS Chemung (AO-30)
- USS Chenango (CVE-28)
- USS Chicopee (AO-34)
- USS Chikaskia (AO-54)
- USS Chipola (AO-63)
- USS Chiwawa (AO-68)
- USS Chukawan (AO-100)
- USS Elokomin (AO-55)
- USS Enoree (AO-69)
- USS Escalante (AO-70)
- USS Guadalupe (AO-32)
- USS Housatonic (AO-35)
- USS Kankakee (AO-39)
- USS Kaskaskia (AO-27)
- USS Kennebec (AO-36)
- USS Lackawanna (AO-40)
- USS Laramie (AO-16)
- USS Manatee (AO-58)
- USS Marias (AO-57)
- USS Mattaponi (AO-41)
- USS Mattole (AO-17)
- USS Merrimack (AO-37)
- USS Mispillion (AO-105)
- USS Mississinewa (AO-144)
- USS Mississinewa (AO-59)
- USS Monongahela (AO-42)
- USS Nantahala (AO-60)
- USS Navasota (AO-106)
- USS Neches (AO-47)
- USS Neosho (AO-143)
- USS Neosho (AO-48)
- USS Neshanic (AO-71)
- USS Niobrara (AO-72)
- USS Passumpsic (AO-107)
- USS Patuxent (AO-44)
- USS Pawcatuck (AO-108)
- USS Rapidan (AO-18)
- USS Sabine (AO-25)
- USS Salamonie (AO-26)
- USS Sangamon (CVE-26)
- USS Santee (CVE-29)
- USS Severn (AO-61)
- USS Suwannee (CVE-27)
- USS Taluga (AO-62)
- USS Tappahannock (AO-43)
- USS Tippecanoe (AO-21)
- USS Tolovana (AO-64)
- USS Truckee (AO-147)
- USS Waccamaw (AO-109)
- USS Winooski (AO-38)