Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (NHHC), 'Caliente (AO-53)' - detailed update entry dated 24 May 2004, page published 2023-03-08 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS 'Caliente (AO-53)' page (live URL returned 404 on 2026-09-24; cited via Wayback capture 2025-12-09)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for Caliente (AO-53), 1943-1973: sixth auxiliary oiler built by Bethlehem-Sparrow's Point Shipyard, a type T3-S2-A1 fast petroleum carrier; laid down at Sparrow's Point, Md., 2 January 1943; launched 25 August 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Helen Kasary; commissioned 22 October 1943, Commander E. G. Genthner, USNR, in command. Statistics line: displacement 7,236; length 553'0"; beam 75'0"; draft 32'4"; speed 18.0 knots; complement 304; armament 1 5-inch, 4 3-inch, 8 40-mm, 8 1.1-inch AA, 12 20-mm, 2 depth charge projectors; class Cimarron. Entry narrates Pacific service 1944-45 (Majuro/TG 50.17, Hollandia, Marianas/Philippine Sea, Palaus, Ulithi including the 20 November 1944 kaiten sinking of sister oiler Mississinewa AO-59 alongside, Leyte Gulf, Okinawa support), occupation/China service, Korean War logistics (over 750,000 barrels to U.N. ships), 1953 Kaohsiung station oiler duty, Operation Passage to Freedom (1954), Operation REDWING nuclear tests (July 1956), Vietnam-era line operations 1964-1973, a 1972 Bethlehem Steel Shipyard conversion of her boilers to diesel fuel, Board of Inspection and Survey unfit finding 13 November 1973, and stricken/decommissioned at Long Beach 15 December 1973 with sale of the hulk to National Metal & Steel Corp. 5 April 1974. Awards line: 10 battle stars WWII, 4 Korean War.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-1973
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, construction dates, statistics, operational history, yard availabilities, and disposal. Contains no asbestos or insulation-material statement; supports no asbestos claim. Three DANFS-vs-secondary discrepancies are carried in gaps (commissioned 22 Oct vs 12 Oct; sponsor 'Kasary' vs 'Essary'; complement 304 vs 314).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-01
-
[2]U.S. Maritime Administration, Vessel History Database - CALIENTE (AO-53), Detail 5727 [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- Vessel detail page: characteristics block, imagery captions (Long Beach Naval Shipyard 1953-03-30; Mare Island Navy Yard 1955-03-01), Status Cards section
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD Vessel History Database record for CALIENTE (AO-53), detail 5727: year built 1943; shipyard Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding Division; general type Naval Auxiliary; specific type AO Oiler; MARAD type T3-S2-A1; length 553.00 ft; beam 75.25 ft; gross tons 11,316; displacement 7,236 light / 25,440 summer; fate code 'Sold -NTU.' Record includes ten digitized U.S. Navy photographs of the ship's antenna apparatus taken at Long Beach Naval Shipyard 30 March 1953 and at Mare Island Navy Yard 1 March 1955, plus digitized vessel status-card images. No historical narrative or milestone entries in the record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Limitations
- Confirms builder, MARAD type, dimensions, sold fate, and documents specific Navy-yard availabilities (photo captions only - no work scope stated). Status cards are digitized images whose handwritten entries were not OCR-verified this pass. No asbestos or hazmat statement in the record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-02
-
[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Caliente (AO-53) page (archives/09/19/19053) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource AO-53 page: class/construction header, campaign tables, commanding-officer list, disposal line
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Online Service Ship Photo Archive page for USS Caliente (AO-53): campaign tables confirm ten Asiatic-Pacific battle stars (Marshalls, 1944 raids, Hollandia, Marianas, Tinian, Western Carolines/Palaus/Philippines assaults, Leyte including Surigao Strait, Luzon, Okinawa Gunto, 3d Fleet operations against Japan), four Korean War campaigns, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, eight Vietnam Service Medal campaign stars, Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation, Philippines Presidential Unit Citation, occupation/China service periods; disposal line: stricken 15 December 1973, transferred to the Maritime Commission for National Defense Reserve Fleet lay-up, sold for scrapping 5 April 1974 to National Metal & Steel Corp. under disposal contract PD-X-974 for $426,819.19, delivered 29 April 1974.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation, not an official source - used for campaign/award enumeration and disposal detail (contract PD-X-974, price, delivery date) that DANFS does not state. NavSource's header gives 'T3-S2-A3' and commissioned 12 October 1943, both conflicting with DANFS/MARAD - DANFS values carried, discrepancies logged in gaps. No asbestos or insulation statement on the page.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-03
-
[4]Banchik v. Buffalo Pumps, Inc., 2:09-cv-04744-R-VBK (C.D. Cal.), complaint Exhibit A; MDL-875 JPML docket 1245688 doc. 6475-17 (complaint attachment); C.D. Cal. docket 12418148; E.D. Pa. docket 13069670 (5:09-cv-80018, terminated 2014-04-17) [court_record]
- Locator
- MDL-875 JPML docket doc. 6475-17, complaint pp. 19-20 (Exhibit A exposure table: 'USS Caliente (AO-53) ... 1949-1950'; Exhibit B diagnosis/death statement); verified against the scanned page image this session
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Nancy Jo Banchik et al. v. Buffalo Pumps, Inc. et al., No. 2:09-cv-04744-R-VBK (C.D. Cal.; wrongful-death asbestos complaint removed from Los Angeles Superior Court BC415135, filed 2009-07-01 by Simon Eddins and Greenstone LLP; transferred to MDL-875, In re Asbestos Products Liability Litigation (No. VI), E.D. Pa., under Conditional Transfer Order 324 and re-docketed 5:09-cv-80018). Complaint Exhibit A lists decedent Dale Dean Woeppel's exposure sites for U.S. Navy service as Engineman, 1949-1970, as including 'USS Caliente (AO-53)' with exposure dates 1949-1950, alongside thirteen other ships and stations (incl. USS Bryce Canyon AD-36, USS Nereus AS-17, USS Buckley DDR-808, USS Sacramento AOE-1). Exhibit B alleges decedent was diagnosed with mesothelioma on or about 20 January 2009 and died 13 February 2009. C.D. Cal. docket terminated 2009-08-10 on the MDL transfer; the E.D. Pa. member docket terminated 2014-04-17; no published opinion exists.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- Alleged exposure 1949-1950; litigation 2009-2014
- Population
- One named decedent (Dale Dean Woeppel, engineman, alleged aboard 1949-1950)
- Limitations
- PLEADING-STAGE ALLEGATION, classified at the less-final stage per batch discipline: a complaint's exposure list is an allegation, not a finding. The complaint names this hull and gives service dates (1949-1950), but no court ever adjudicated exposure aboard Caliente; the case left the district court on MDL transfer and the MDL member docket closed 2014-04-17 with no merits determination - terms of any resolution are not public. Does not establish that asbestos was aboard, that decedent was exposed aboard, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-04
-
[5]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]
- Locator
- AJIM 11(3):359-373, abstract and article
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII, the era and program under which this 1943 Maritime Commission T3-S2-A1 steam-turbine oiler was built at Bethlehem-Sparrow's Point. Typical applications in steam plants of the era included boiler and steam-line insulation (lagging), machinery packing, and valve/flange gaskets.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- Shipyard construction workers (Bethlehem-Sparrow's Point, 1943); Navy engine-room and maintenance crews 1943-1973 (era context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarship on WWII-era shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or the T3-S2-A1 type and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-05
-
[6]Los Angeles Times, 'Port Bedeviled by Pollution Sins of the Past' (1991-08-17); National Metal & Steel Corporation site history (LA Maritime Museum / secondary compilations) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- LA Times article paragraphs on the National Metal & Steel site cleanup and port litigation
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- The breaking yard that received the Caliente hulk - National Metal & Steel Corp., Terminal Island, Los Angeles Harbor - was a documented ship-dismantling site on the former California Shipbuilding property. The Port of Los Angeles later paid approximately $12 million for a county-supervised cleanup of the former National Metal site after testing found serious contamination (heavy metals and PCBs); the port sued National Metal & Steel to recover the cost. Ship dismantling at the site ceased 1 January 1986 when the yard lost the facility to a harbor-expansion project.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1974 breaking; 1991 reporting
- Population
- Shipbreaking workers at National Metal & Steel, Terminal Island (site context)
- Limitations
- Yard-site environmental record, not a hull record - documents the breaking location's later contamination finding (heavy metals/PCBs; asbestos is NOT among the contaminants named in the article). Establishes where the hulk was broken and that no ship-specific abatement documentation exists; proves nothing about materials aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-06
-
[7]Batch-1900 search ledger (this record): DANFS via Wayback, MARAD ShipHistory detail 5727, NavSource, CourtListener opinion + docket searches, VA BVA decision search, RECAP document checks (MDL-875 doc 6475-17; C.D. Cal. docket 702384 doc 1-1) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger sl-uss-caliente-ao53-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No ship-specific asbestos record located for AO-53 beyond the pleading allegation: no Navy or MARAD asbestos survey, no abatement contract, no museum/donation hazmat disclosure, no published opinion naming the hull, and no regulatory record. The ship was sold for scrap in April 1974 at National Metal & Steel, Terminal Island - after OSHA's first asbestos standard (1971-72) but before documented ship-scrapping abatement regimes produced public paper trails, so absence of an abatement record is expected rather than probative of a clean hull. The Siegfried complaint (C.D. Cal. docket 702384, Exhibit A ship list for a Long Beach Naval Shipyard electrician, ~1969-1996) was checked and does NOT list Caliente despite her documented 1971 availability and 1973 decommissioning there - a verified non-hit.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Limitations
- Records a negative result, not proof of absence: pre-regulation-era scrapping means no abatement paper trail would be expected even if the ship carried substantial asbestos. The 1974 breaking has no located hazmat documentation for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-07
-
[8]National Archives record-group guides (RG 24 deck logs; RG 19 Bureau of Ships; RG 178 U.S. Maritime Commission); MARAD Vessel History status-card images, detail 5727 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov RG 24 guide; MARAD detail 5727 Status Cards section
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Archival leads for hull-level material records: Caliente deck logs and war diaries are held in NARA RG 24 (WWII-era deck logs digitized in the NARA catalog for many auxiliaries; AO-53 not located among digitized logs this session). Bureau of Ships construction/maintenance records (RG 19) and Maritime Commission construction files for MC hull 719 (RG 178) are the likeliest repositories for any original insulation/material specification. MARAD ShipHistory holds digitized vessel status-card images for this hull (not OCR-verified this pass).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Limitations
- Lead only - no hull-level construction specification, insulation schedule, or status-card text was pulled and verified this session; no paid reproduction authorized. Presence of records is plausible, not confirmed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-caliente-ao53-08