USS Admiralty Islands
The USS Admiralty Islands was a Casablanca class naval escort carrier vessel. Built by the Kaiser Shipbuilding Company of Vancouver, WA, the vessel was originally to be named the USS Chapins Bay. Under U.S. Maritime Commission contract, the Admiralty Island's hull was laid in February of 1944 and the vessel was launched in May of 1944, demonstrating the speed and efficiency by which carriers were being built at the height of shipbuilding for the Second World War.
During her tenure as a wartime carrier, Admiralty Islands served primarily as a cargo and aircraft ferry between Pearl Harbor and the Marshall Islands. Her first voyage was between the Pearl Harbor and Majuro Atoll. After a cargo unloading, she immediately returned to Hawaii to again load with aircraft and other supplies. Following cargo service between Hawaii and the Marshall Islands, the Admiralty Islands then began to ferry supplies from the United States mainland to New Guinea and elsewhere in the Pacific. Later in the year, the carrier suffered her first casualty. While Admiralty Islands was never reported to have been engaged by enemy fire, a jet crashed while attempting to land on the deck of the vessel, killing the pilot. The only combat Admiralty Islands saw came in late 1945, when she supported a bombardment of the Japanese home islands in the waning days of the war.
Occasionally, those who worked and served on vessels such as the USS Admiralty Islands were exposed to dangerous situations. While perhaps the simple notion of putting themselves in the line of fire seemed to be the most obvious risk, there were also situations aboard the Admiralty Islands and other vessels that were likewise life-threatening. In fact, among the more common hazards encountered by ship crews and shipyards workers is toxic materials. The most common of these substances was asbestos.
Asbestos was used frequently in nearly all ship constructions up until the late 1970's, when the material was banned by federal statute. Asbestos was banned because of a clear connection that was discovered between exposure and the development of cancer and other respiratory illness. Those who worked on ships, such as the Admiralty Islands, or other vessels constructed prior to 1980, should closely monitor respiratory health and report issues to their physician if adverse symptoms appear. At particular risk are those who worked in the vicinity of asbestos materials, which we most often found in insulation capacities.
