Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]DANFS, 'Centaurus II (AK-264)' entry, Naval History and Heritage Command (live NHHC URL returns 404 - verbatim text retrieved via Internet Archive Wayback capture 20240526183514; hazegray DANFS mirror corroborates) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Centaurus' page, second entry 'Centaurus II (AK-264)' below the AKA-17 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC records, verbatim: 'Centaurus - A southern constellation. II - The second Centaurus (AK-264) was acquired from the Army 12 June 1951 and lent to South Korea the same day.' The 'II' header establishes this as the second U.S. Navy ship of the name - distinct from USS Centaurus (AKA-17), the WWII Andromeda-class attack cargo ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1951
- Limitations
- Primary Navy historical entry - authoritative for the Army-to-Navy acquisition date and the same-day ROK loan; a one-sentence entry with no construction data, no spec block, no crew data (the ship was never commissioned), no strike/disposal dates, and no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim. Live NHHC page 404s (standing link rot, cf. BATCH-01); the Wayback capture is the verbatim NHHC text.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-01
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[2]Shipscribe U.S. Navy auxiliary ships data sheets, 'USS Alchiba (AK 261, N3-S-A2) Class' page (Stephen S. Roberts compilation from Navy registers, BuShips/SCB design records, and MARAD files) [other_primary]
- Locator
- AK-261 class page: characteristics block, construction table (AK-264 row), disposition table, class notes (Korean Program / naming / disposal paragraphs), ship notes (AK-264 row)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Compilation naming this hull in class tables and ship notes: CENTAURUS acquired 12 Jun 1951; keel 2 Oct 1944; launched 25 Mar 1945 at McCloskey, Tampa; never in U.S. commissioned service ('Svc: --'); struck 1 Feb 1960; ship note - 'Ex merc. NORTHERN EXPLORER, ex-NAT BROWN, ex-NORTHERN EXPLORER, completed 4 Jun 1945. To Army 27 May 1946 at Pusan. Loaned by the Army to ECA Korea 3 Jan 1950. Sold 27 Jun 1960 to Hong Kong Rolling Mills.' Class notes document the program context: eight N3-S-A2s in the Army's Korean Program as of 31 Aug 1948 on MC bareboat charter, title to the Army 23 Feb 1949 under Public Law 766; Army's 5 May 1951 request that COMNAVFE control six of them for ROK civil relief; June 1951 Army-to-Navy transfer with simultaneous ROK loan; CNO naming request for AK 257-266 on 20 Jun 1951; BUPERS slate DENEBOLA/REGULUS/RIGEL/SIRIUS/SPICA/VEGA cancelled 12 Jul 1951 and final names approved 26 Jul 1951; SECNAV disposal approval 1 Dec 1959; MA scrapping-only authorization 8 Jan 1960; return to Navy custody at Sasebo; advertised 23 May 1960; sold 27 Jun 1960 with the five sisters and six ex-Army FS freighters (AKL 37-42). Class data: N3-S-A2 design, 1,276 lt / 4,040 fl tons; 259' oa x 42' x 19'; 11 kts; 1,300 hp Ajax Uniflow 6-cylinder compound reciprocating engine, 2 oil-fired boilers, 1 screw; accommodations 9 officers + 24; unarmed. N3-S-A2 origins: 59 built of 76 proposed; developed after the 1941 British Shipbuilding Mission urged small-yard capacity for coaster tonnage.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1944-1960
- Population
- McCloskey & Company construction workforce (1944-45); merchant crew (1945-46); U.S. Army Transportation Service / Korean-Program crews (1946-50); ECA Korea / Republic of Korea crews (1950-1960); Hong Kong breaking-yard workers (1960)
- Limitations
- Compiled secondary transcription of official Navy register, design, and MARAD records, not the registers themselves; used where consistent with DANFS/NavSource/shipbuildinghistory. Contains no asbestos information; the detailed custody dates document events, not materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-02
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[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - Centaurus (AK-264), file 09/13/130264 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 130264.htm - specifications block, timeline entries, NH 84176 photo credit
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline corroborates DANFS: laid down as Northern Explorer, MC type N3-S-A2 (MC hull 2516), McCloskey & Company, Tampa FL; launched June 1945; delivered to the Maritime Commission June 1945; acquired by the US Navy 1951, renamed Centaurus (AK-264) and leased to South Korea the same day; returned to US Naval custody January 1960; struck from the Naval Register February 1960. Spec block: 2,905 t lt / 5,202 t fl; 258'9" x 42'1" x 20'9"; 10.5 kts; complement 23; cargo capacity 2,243 t; radius 4,500 nm; 'reciprocating steam engine, single propeller.' Photo: NH 84176 (NHHC) shows the ship under way in South Korean service, circa 1951, location unknown. NavSource lists final disposition as 'fate unknown.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1944-1960
- Limitations
- Specialist secondary compilation - detailed but non-official; consistent with DANFS on the timeline. Spec-block and disposition conflicts logged in gaps: 'launched June 1945' conflates launch with the documented 4 Jun 1945 completion (shipscribe gives launch 25 Mar 1945); displacement entries differ from shipscribe class data (1,276 lt / 4,040 fl) - the 2,905 figure is the design deadweight; 'fate unknown' is superseded by the documented 27 Jun 1960 scrapping sale to Hong Kong Rolling Mills. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-03
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[4]ShipbuildingHistory.com (Tim Colton), 'Tampa Ship' yard table + 'N Type Coastal Cargo Ships' table (http://shipbuildinghistory.com/merchantships/2ntypeships.htm) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Tampa Ship yard table, McCloskey section row 29 (official no. 248016); N-type coastal cargo table, MC 2516 row; yard-history narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Yard production table row for this hull: yard no. 29, U.S. official no. 248016, 'Northern Explorer', U.S. Maritime Commission, type N3-S-A2/MC hull 2516, 1,870 GRT, 250 ft, delivered Jun-45, 'Later Nat Brown, to USA 1949, to USN 1951 as Centaurus (AK 264), scrapped 1960.' Yard history: Matthew McCloskey developed the Hookers Point yard in 1942 on Tampa Port Authority land with $7 million in Maritime Commission funding; 13 building ways constructed concrete C1-S-D1 ships before the yard switched to steel ships; closed after the war; site acquired by the City of Tampa from the War Assets Administration January 1948.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1942-1960
- Population
- McCloskey & Company construction workforce (1944-45)
- Limitations
- Reputable secondary compilation of shipyard production data, not an official register; 'to USA 1949' corresponds to the PL 766 title transfer of 23 Feb 1949 documented by shipscribe (Army custody began 27 May 1946 at Pusan on bareboat charter). Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-04
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[5]Consolidated era/design inference - documented N3-S-A2 machinery plant (shipscribe AK-261 class data) applied to this hull's construction era [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipscribe AK-261 class page: characteristics block and class machinery notes (Ajax Uniflow 6-cylinder compound, 2 boilers, oil-fired A2 variant)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: this hull carried a single-screw oil-fired steam plant - two boilers feeding a 1,300-hp Ajax Uniflow six-cylinder compound reciprocating engine - completed 4 Jun 1945 at a Maritime Commission contract yard, the machinery configuration for which boiler and fireroom insulation, steam-line lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, and accommodation joiner insulation of the period were commonly asbestos-containing. The hull's documented disturbance phases are distinct from a commissioned Navy auxiliary's: 1944-45 construction at McCloskey, Tampa; brief merchant operation 1945-46; Army Korean-Program operation 1946-50; ECA Korea then Republic of Korea operation 1950-1960 with undocumented maintenance; and 1960 breaking in Hong Kong under a scrapping-only MA authorization.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1944-1960
- Population
- McCloskey & Company construction trades (1944-45); merchant crew (1945-46); Army Korean-Program crews (1946-50); ECA Korea / ROK crews (1950-1960); Hong Kong breaking-yard workers (1960) - no U.S. Navy complement ever served aboard
- Limitations
- Inference from the documented machinery plant and construction era - NOT a hull record. No survey, specification, or material schedule naming AK-264 / MC hull 2516 was located; establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-05
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[6]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
- Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373
- 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 Maritime Commission emergency construction program under which this N3-S-A2 freighter was built - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in shipbuilding.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or class and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-06
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[7]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- The U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - i.e., asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel and Commission construction of exactly this hull's era and type.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- survey ~1944-45; published 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval and Commission construction generally; does not name this vessel, class, or builder yard (whether McCloskey Tampa was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified) and establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. (The study's exculpatory 'not a dangerous occupation' conclusion has since been heavily criticized - see the 2026 critique at DOI 10.1177/10482911261446696.)
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-07
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[8]Batch-916 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS via Wayback + hazegray mirror; NavSource 130264; shipscribe AK-261 class page; shipbuildinghistory Tampa/N-type tables; MARAD ShipHistory; CourtListener (blocked); indexed-web litigation checks; VA BVA index; NVR; NARA record-group guides; ROK service identity check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-centaurus-ak264-01 through sl-uss-centaurus-ak264-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, disposal-condition document, court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Centaurus / AK-264 / Northern Explorer / Nat Brown / MC hull 2516 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Name-collision caution is material here: 'Centaurus' is a two-hull Navy name (AKA-17, a WWII attack cargo ship, and this AK-264) and indexed-web checking surfaced law-firm marketing lists naming each - asbestos-ships.com and simmonsfirm.com list 'USS Centaurus' with AKA-17-era details; freeasbestostesting.com and mesotheliomaasbestoshelpcenter.com list AK-264 - all with era-typical assertions and no primary support, an excluded source class. No court opinion naming either hull was located in indexed-web checking.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 2026-09-21
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1945 oil-fired steam freighter is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and 15 years of Army/ECA/ROK operation with undocumented maintenance plus the 1960 Hong Kong breaking are undocumented disturbance phases. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. CourtListener systematic name/hull sweeps were not run - the authenticated API quota (2,800/day) was already exhausted by prior work on this machine (HTTP 429, expected available ~16,624 s) - backed off per batch instruction; negative litigation coverage rests on indexed-web checking only, and any 'Centaurus' litigation hit would in any case require hull-level attribution because two Navy ships share the name.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-08
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[9]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 178 (Records of the U.S. Maritime Commission), RG 336 (Records of the Office of the Chief of Transportation - Army Transport Service), RG 357 (Records of the Maritime Administration), RG 313 (Records of Naval Operating Forces - COMNAVFE); NHHC photo NH 84176 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov Guide to Federal Records, record-group pages; NHHC photo file number cited via NavSource
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Unretrieved primary leads: RG 178 holds the USMC construction-contract file for MC hull 2516 (McCloskey); RG 336 holds Army Transport Service / Korean-Program vessel records including the 1946 Pusan custody transfer and the PL 766 title transfer; RG 357 holds Maritime Administration files covering the ECA Korea loan, the scrapping-only authorization of 8 Jan 1960, and the 27 Jun 1960 sale at Sasebo - the most promising disposal-era hazmat lead; RG 313 covers COMNAVFE records of the 1951 transfer and 1960 custody return. NHHC photo NH 84176 documents the ship in South Korean service, circa 1951.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1944-1960 records; checked 2026-09-21
- Limitations
- Record-group descriptions establish that these series exist; they are not digitized and were not retrieved - whether any file contains asbestos, materials, condition, or crew information is unknown. No Navy deck logs exist for a vessel never commissioned in U.S. service.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-centaurus-ak264-09