Evidence
6 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-6).
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[1]research packet 679-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-branch-county-lst482-pkt-679-packet-md
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[2]DANFS, LST-482 (NHHC ship-history entry; live history.navy.mil page returned 404 on 2026-10-03 - ARCHIVED Wayback capture of 2025-12-09 cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry body, 'LST-482' (published 2015-08-03)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity and milestones: laid down 14 September 1942 at Richmond, Calif., by Kaiser, Inc.; launched 17 December 1942; commissioned 20 March 1943, Lt. R. L. Eddy, USNR, in command. WWII Asiatic-Pacific operations: Gilbert Islands (Nov-Dec 1943); Kwajalein and Majuro (Jan-Feb 1944); Hollandia (Apr 1944); Guam (Jul 1944); Leyte (Oct 1944); Lingayen Gulf (Jan 1945). Redesignated LSTH-482 on 15 September 1945; occupation duty in the Far East November-December 1945; decommissioned 23 February 1946; redesignated LST-482 on 6 March 1952; named Branch County (LST-482) on 1 July 1955 after a county in Michigan; struck from the Navy list 11 August 1955; sunk in early March 1956 by naval gunfire and submarine-launched torpedoes in an exercise off San Diego, Calif. Six battle stars for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1956
- Population
- WWII crew and embarked troops (class-standard 13 officers / 104 enlisted ship's company; 16 officers / 147 enlisted troops - NavSource spec block, not DANFS)
- Limitations
- DANFS establishes identity, campaigns, and disposition; it contains no asbestos, material, survey, or complement information. Live NHHC page 404 on 2026-10-03 - archived capture cited and labeled; canonical live URL needs re-locating before production use. DANFS gives 6 March 1952 for the LST-482 redesignation; NavSource carries 11 March 1952 - conflict carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-branch-county-lst482-01
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[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS Branch County (LST-482) page (timeline, unit assignments, spec block, commanding officers, captioned US Navy / NARA-sourced photographs) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page 10/16/160482.htm - timeline, campaign table, spec block, CO list, photo captions (last updated 2021-06-25)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Timeline and photographic record: assigned LST Flotilla Three (CDR A. A. Ageton), LST Group Seven, LST Division Thirteen; campaign dates as DANFS. Decommissioned 23 February 1946 and transferred to COMNAVFE Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP), redesignated Q072; photograph caption documents ex-LST(H)-482 as SCAJAP LST-Q072 approaching Brown Beach, Okinawa, with repatriated Okinawans, circa August-December 1946. Returned to the US Navy for lay-up in the Reserve Fleet. US Navy photo NH 99196 places her in Berth 12 at Mare Island Navy Yard 20-24 March 1943, immediately after commissioning. US Army Air Corps photo (NARA collections) documents her lowering her ramp at Makin Island, Gilbert Islands, 29 November 1943. Five commanding officers listed, LT R. L. Eddy (20 March 1943) through LTjg J. T. Galvin III (to 23 February 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1956
- Population
- Ship's company; SCAJAP crews; Okinawan repatriation passengers (1946)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a curated volunteer archive, not an official record; its captions cite US Navy (NH 99196) and NARA-held photographs. The SCAJAP/Q072 assignment and 11 March 1952 redesignation date rest on this source alone - DANFS omits SCAJAP and gives 6 March 1952. Spec block is class-standard, not hull-measured. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-branch-county-lst482-02
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[4]NavSource LST-1-class specification block (propulsion, complement, cargo) + DANFS builder/dates (archived capture) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block, 'Propulsion' and 'Complement' sections
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The documented plant is diesel: two General Motors 12-567A 900-hp diesel engines, Falk main reduction gear, two shafts (1,700 shp), three diesel-driven 100 kW ship's-service generators - no steam plant, so no boiler/turbine lagging pathway. Asbestos-relevant systems aboard would have been the era-standard applications: thermal insulation, machinery and exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, and electrical insulation; insulation, gasket, and packing products of the WWII period commonly contained asbestos.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1956
- Population
- Construction trades (Kaiser Richmond, 1942-43); WWII crew; SCAJAP crews
- Limitations
- Era inference from the documented diesel plant plus period shipbuilding practice - no hull-specific insulation survey, specification sheet, or abatement record located. Not a quantity; does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull. Spec block is class-standard, not hull-measured.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-branch-county-lst482-03
-
[5]U.S. Navy Dept. and U.S. Maritime Commission, Minimum Requirements for Safety and Industrial Health in Contract Shipyards, U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1943 (approved Navy 1943-01-20, Maritime Commission 1943-02-09; LCCN 43051830 - bibliographic record verified via Open Library) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Open Library edition OL45393095M bibliographic record (publish_date 1943, U.S. GPO, LCCN 43051830); NLA copy nla.obj-52889494 (blocked); toxicdocs.org full-text copies (unverified)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- In early 1943 the Navy Department and U.S. Maritime Commission jointly issued mandatory safety and industrial-health minimum requirements for contract shipyards - the category covering Kaiser Richmond, which built this hull in 1942-43 under a Maritime Commission (MCE) contract. Court records and historical literature describe the document as dealing in detail with asbestos-dust hazards (segregation of dust-producing work, ventilation, respirators for lagging work).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943
- Population
- Contract-shipyard workers, incl. Kaiser Richmond construction trades
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the bibliographic record (publisher, approval dates, LCCN) is verified, but the full text was not reviewed this session - National Library of Australia digitized copy is behind an anti-bot (Anubis) wall; a full-text PDF exists on toxicdocs.org (third-party document archive) but was not text-verified. Even at full text, the document establishes a regulatory regime for contract yards, not conditions aboard this specific hull. Its asbestos-dust content is described by secondary litigation/historical literature, not yet by the primary text in this record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-branch-county-lst482-04
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[6]Batch-6988 search ledger (this record): DANFS/NHHC, NavSource, Naval Vessel Register, secondary-web litigation sweep; CourtListener via fleet helper cl-auth-search.py [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-branch-county-lst482-01 through sl-uss-branch-county-lst482-07
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming LST-482 / LST(H)-482 / Branch County was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The completed CourtListener query '"Branch County" asbestos' returned 2 hits, both name collisions (United States v. Cello-Foil Products, Inc., 848 F. Supp. 1352 (W.D. Mich. 1994) - Branch County, Michigan is the landfill location; not the ship, not vessel asbestos). Hull-number and docket-index CourtListener queries were blocked by fleet pacing on 2026-10-03 - logged as blocked, not as a negative result.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 2026-10-03
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1942-built hull sunk in 1956 predates survey/abatement regimes. The litigation picture is incomplete: the completed CourtListener query is name-collision-only, but hull-number and docket coverage is blocked (unsearched), so a docketed case naming this hull may exist and was not found. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-branch-county-lst482-05