Evidence
6 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-6).
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[1]DANFS vol. I, Billfish (SS-286) entry - construction, eight war patrols, postwar inactivation (verbatim transcription mirror; live NHHC page returned 404; text verified against printed vol. I scan) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS vol. I (A-B), Billfish entry and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull (DANFS): launched 12 November 1942 by Portsmouth Navy Yard (sponsor Mrs. Lewis S. Parks); commissioned 20 April 1943, Lt. Comdr. F. C. Lucas, Jr.; eight war patrols out of Pearl Harbor 12 August 1943 - 27 August 1945, sinking three freighters totaling 4,074 tons plus five smaller craft; plane-guard duty off Japan on patrols seven and eight; seven battle stars. New Orleans 19 September 1945; inactivation at Portsmouth Navy Yard June-October 1946; towed to New London by ATR-64; out of commission in reserve 1 November 1946.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942-1946
- Population
- PNSY construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-1946)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. Live NHHC DANFS page returned 404 - verbatim transcription mirror verified against the printed-volume scan (archive.org dictionaryofamer01wash).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-billfish-ss286-01
-
[2]U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, 'Lest We Forget: Rush and Rendernick' (Jan 2006) + Silver Star citation for CEM John D. Rendernick (Hall of Valor / militarytimes.com award text) - the 11 November 1943 Makassar Strait depth-charging of USS Billfish [reputable_press]
- Locator
- USNI Proceedings Jan 2006; militarytimes Hall of Valor recipient-56310 (Silver Star citation); NavSource caption for the 2004 trainer dedication
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented battle damage for this hull: on 11 November 1943 in Makassar Strait a Japanese destroyer held Billfish under a semi-continuous depth-charge attack for more than twelve hours, driving her to ~580 feet (about 170 feet below test depth). Damage included serious leaks through the stern tubes, a pressure-hull rupture aft, and the port main motor knocked off its foundation. Lt. Charles Rush (later awarded the Navy Cross) directed the boat while senior officers were incapacitated; Chief Electrician's Mate John D. Rendernick led emergency repairs - grease pumped into the leaking stern tube, bucket-brigade dewatering, hydraulic-jack repositioning of the main motor - and was awarded the Silver Star (posthumous). COMSUBPAC/NAVSUBTRACEN named the Damage Control Wet Trainer at Ford Island for Rendernick on 17 August 2004.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1943; 2004
- Population
- Crew under fire and emergency-repair party (11-12 November 1943)
- Limitations
- USNI Proceedings is a reputable professional-military source, not a primary record; the Silver Star citation is official award text. Documents machinery/structural damage and repair effort aboard this hull, not materials content - though the repair scope (motor off foundation, stern-tube leakage, flooded spaces) is a documented disturbance of machinery-space fittings.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-billfish-ss286-02
-
[3]NavSource Submarine Photo Index, USS Billfish (SS-286) - laid-down, Naval Reserve training duty, AGSS-286, strike and disposal (secondary compilation; Wayback capture) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net/archives/08/08286.htm via Wayback - milestone block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Post-DANFS disposition (NavSource): laid down 23 July 1942 at Portsmouth Navy Yard, Seavey Island, Kittery, ME; decommissioned (NavSource prints 20 July 1946 - conflicts with DANFS 1 November 1946, DANFS carried); placed in service in reserve 1 January 1960 as dockside training submarine for Naval Reservists at Boston, MA; redesignated AGSS-286 1 December 1962; placed out of service and simultaneously struck 1 April 1968; sold for scrapping 17 March 1971 to Eckhardt & Co., Hamburg, West Germany, for $77,777.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942-1971
- Population
- Naval Reserve trainees (Boston, 1960-62); crew (1943-1946)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation, not a primary record; its 20 July 1946 decommission date conflicts with DANFS's 1 November 1946 (DANFS carried; conflict flagged). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-billfish-ss286-03
-
[4]Era inference anchored to DANFS-documented construction and yard periods for this hull; Balao-class diesel-electric machinery per NavSource specification block and BuShips Ships' Data 1945 (class profile ev-balao-class-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- construction-era inference from DANFS dates, NavSource spec block, documented yard periods
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era inference: a diesel-electric fleet submarine built 1942-43 at Portsmouth Navy Yard in the peak asbestos era would era-typically have carried asbestos-containing exhaust lagging, engine gaskets and packing, and thermal/acoustic insulation around machinery and galley/refrigeration equipment. Balao-class boats had NO boilers or steam plant - the diesel-electric plant narrows the steam-era asbestos pathway materially. Documented yard windows: Portsmouth Navy Yard construction (1942-43); post-patrol damage repair; inactivation at Portsmouth Navy Yard (June-October 1946); Boston dockside trainer service (1960-62). The November 1943 depth-charge damage (stern-tube leaks, hull rupture, motor off foundation) and its subsequent repairs are a documented machinery-space disturbance window.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942-1971
- Population
- Construction and yard trades; crew
- Limitations
- CLASS/ERA INFERENCE ONLY - no ship-specific material schedule, insulation survey, or asbestos abatement record was located for this hull. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. Establishes no quantity and no exposure for any individual.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-billfish-ss286-04
-
[5]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - covering the construction and most service years of every Balao-class hull in this batch (built 1942-45).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-billfish-ss286-05
-
[6]Negative finding: no qualifying non-litigation ship-specific asbestos record located across DANFS/NHHC, NavSource, loss-report, and ACM-survey/abatement sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- see search_ledger for this record
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No hull ACM survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or adjudicated exposure finding naming USS Billfish (SS-286) was located anywhere in the research sweep.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record is not proof no record exists. Museum-hull and scrapper-side records, where they existed, were not retrievable in located sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-billfish-ss286-06