USS Capricornus
The USS Capricornus was a Spitfire class cargo ship launched in May of 1943 after construction by Moore Drydock and Co. of Oakland, CA. The vessel was acquired by the Navy in November of 1943 and placed in partial commission. However, the outfit of the ship was not precisely what the Navy needed at the time and it was sent to Willamette Iron and Steel Shipyard for further modifications later that month. The Capricornus received full commission and was on the open seas in May of 1944.
The Capricornus made two transport voyages in the summer of 1944. Both voyages transported supplies between San Pedro, CA. and Hilo, HI. Capricornus then joined the Southern Attack Force for the invasion of Leyte. Under heavy fire, Capricornus delivered supplies and withdrew several times during the campaign. Following the invasion, Capricornus sailed directly to the beaches of Okinawa to assist in one of the most infamous battle of the Pacific theatre. Day and night the Capricornus unloaded ammunition onto the beaches of Okinawa under heavy fire fron Japanese defenses and air attacks. The Capricornus sailed back to San Francisco in 1945 where she received the news of the Japanese surrender.
The Capricornus was an important vessel in the Pacific theatre. Without the supplies and munitions delivered to the landing troops, the invasions of Okinawa and other islands would never have been possible. Unfortunately many of the men and women who worked aboard the Capricornus while at sea and those who serviced her at shipyards in the Puget Sound and San Francisco were exposed to dangerous asbestos materials used within the ship's construction.
Asbestos was used frequently for the insulation of pipes, electrical fixtures, and hull constructions. It was also used as a fire retardant material. Therefore, it could be found nearly anywhere in ship constructions, particularly in naval vessel. Those who have worked around asbestos materials aboard naval ships have been exposed to asbestos and suffered the respiratory consequences of exposure. If you have worked aboard the Capricornus or another vessel and think you may have been exposed to asbestos, it is important you tell your physician about this. Respiratory complications, including mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer, have been conclusively linked to asbestos exposures.
