Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]Naval History and Heritage Command, DANFS, 'Grasp II (ARS-51)' (entry 2006-01-20; published 2015-07-14) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry body: header/spec block, chronology 1985-2006, homeport/CO/deployment/awards tables
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC DANFS entry 'Grasp II (ARS-51)' (entry dated 2006-01-20, page published 2015-07-14) gives identity, spec block, milestones, and a full operational chronology: built by Peterson Builders Inc., Sturgeon Bay, WI; keel 30 Mar 1983; launched 02 May 1985 (sponsor Mrs. Margaret Gelly); commissioned 14 Dec 1985; homeport Norfolk/Little Creek, VA. Specs at commissioning: 3,280 tons, 255 ft, beam 51 ft, draft 16 ft 10 in, 15 knots, complement 99 plus 16 temporary; 40-ton boom aft, 7.5-ton boom forward, towing and salvage gear, beach salvage legs, 300-ton lift rollers, diving gear. Nine Mediterranean deployments 1987-2005; operations include the TWA Flight 800 recovery off East Moriches (Jul-Aug 1996), the JFK Jr. Piper 32 crash recovery off Martha's Vineyard (Jul 1999), harbor clearance at Roatan, Honduras (1993) and Massawa, Eritrea (1994), Operation Uphold Democracy (Port-au-Prince, 1994), Operation Iraqi Freedom support (2002-03), Sorbet Royal 2005; decommissioned and transferred to MSC 19 Jan 2006.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1983-2006
- Population
- Crew ~99 plus 16 temporary at commissioning (spec block)
- Limitations
- Official ship history; establishes identity, construction, and operations. Contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or hazardous-material statement - this row supports no asbestos claim. DANFS keel/launch dates conflict with the NVR record (see ev-02 and gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-01
-
[2]Naval Vessel Register (NAVSEA), ship detail record 'USNS GRASP (T-ARS 51)', nvr.navy.mil/nvrships/details/ARS51.htm [other_primary]
- Locator
- NVR ship-detail page, all fields (2012-01-26 Wayback capture; live NVR is JS-rendered and did not serve the detail page to automated fetch)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Naval Vessel Register detail record for USNS GRASP (T-ARS 51), UIC 21467, class ARS 50: status Military Sealift Command Naval Fleet Auxiliary Force, Atlantic fleet, homeport Norfolk (Little Creek); date status changed 01/19/2006; builder Peterson Builders; award date 02/11/1982; keel 05/02/1983; launch 04/21/1984; delivery 11/26/1985; commission 12/14/1985; decommission 01/19/2006; stricken date blank. Characteristics: 255 ft overall/240 ft waterline, extreme beam 51 ft, max navigational draft 17 ft, light displacement 2,522 tons/full 3,203 tons, steel hull and superstructure, 2 propellers, propulsion type 'Geared Diesel Engines', accommodations 7 officers + 92 enlisted; custodian and planning yard MSC. (Page last updated 08/16/2011.)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1982-2011
- Limitations
- Official register. NVR keel (05/02/1983) and launch (04/21/1984) dates conflict with DANFS (30 Mar 1983 / 02 May 1985) and NavSource (20 Mar 1983 / 21 May 1984) - unreconciled; DANFS dates used in the top-level fields, conflict logged in gaps. NVR makes no asbestos statement. The record predates the 2018 San Diego homeport shift.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-02
-
[3]Military Sealift Command photo gallery caption (msc.usff.navy.mil, photo 2002480995); Navy News Service 'Navy Leads Haitian Harbor Assessment' (2010-01-28, via globalsecurity.org archive); DVIDS news 452589 (2023-08-31); DVIDS image 8538324 (2024-07-18); DVIDS tag 'USNS Grasp' (2018 USS San Diego survey video) [other_primary]
- Locator
- MSC photo caption; DVIDS news/image records 248312, 452589/7999932, 8538324; NNS release mil-100128-nns05 (globalsecurity mirror); Naval Today 2018-10-26 report for exact arrival date
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MSC-era operational record confirms the vessel remains active: homeport shifted from Little Creek, VA to San Diego for duty in MSC's Pacific area of responsibility, arriving San Diego in late October 2018 (trade-press report gives Oct 23 arrival after an 18-day transit; MSC photo caption: 'USNS Grasp (T-ARS 51) arrives in San Diego for duty in MSC's Pacific area of responsibility'). Documented MSC operations: SUPSALV embarked aboard Grasp for Port-au-Prince port clearance under Operation Unified Response (Haiti earthquake, Jan 2010, NNS); partnered with NHHC and MDSU-2 on the July 2018 wreck survey of USS San Diego (ACR-6) (DVIDS); towed decommissioned USS Mobile Bay (CG-53) San Diego to Bremerton (Aug 2023, DVIDS); towed ex-Tarawa (LHA-1) to the RIMPAC 2024 sinking-exercise target area (Jul 2024, DVIDS).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2010-2024
- Population
- MSC crew (~28-30 civilian mariners) plus embarked MDSU detachment
- Limitations
- msc.usff.navy.mil returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches; the MSC caption text was verified via the search-index record of that page. Establishes post-transfer status and operations only - none of these sources makes an asbestos statement. Exact San Diego arrival date (Oct 23, 2018) comes from Naval Today trade press, not an official record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-03
-
[4]DoD daily contract announcements, contract N3220525C4125 (2024-10-28); N3220524C4002 (2024); N3220522C4171 (2021-11-02), MSC Norfolk contracting activity [other_primary]
- Locator
- DoD contract-announcement text as republished verbatim by Marine Log (2024-10-30), ClearanceJobs, and envzone; SAM.gov award record N3220525C4125 per governmentcontracts.us transcript
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DoD contract award N3220525C4125 (announced 2024-10-28): JAG Alaska Inc., Seward, AK, awarded $18,715,881 firm-fixed-price for an 81-calendar-day regular overhaul and dry-dock availability (ROHDD) of USNS Grasp (T-ARS 51), work 2024-12-29 to 2025-03-19, Military Sealift Command Norfolk the contracting activity - confirming the vessel active and under continued maintenance. Earlier availabilities in the same program: N3220524C4002 (mid-term availability, Vigor Marine Portland OR, Jan-Mar 2024) and N3220522C4171 (ROHDD, JAG Alaska, Jan-Mar 2022).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2022-2025
- Population
- Shipyard workers, Seward AK (JAG Alaska)
- Limitations
- defense.gov blocks automated fetch (HTTP 403); award text carried via multiple verbatim republications - substance verified, not the defense.gov URL itself. The public award notices state scope only as 'regular overhaul and dry dock availability'; they neither assert nor exclude asbestos abatement in the work package.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-04
-
[5]U.S. General Accounting Office, HRD-80-2, 'Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure' (Oct 18, 1979; released Oct 22, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page highlights (Wayback capture 2024-02-27); report text passages as indexed
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO report HRD-80-2 (published 1979-10-18), 'Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure': thermal-insulation product specifications were changed in 1973 to specify asbestos-free materials; the Navy's policy to eliminate asbestos and asbestos-containing materials wherever suitable alternates were designated issued October 1975; pre-purchased asbestos insulation was still installed in ships under construction, and 'some ships were delivered with asbestos insulation as late as May 1978'; a few shipboard applications still lacked asbestos-free substitutes. Grasp was awarded 1982-02-11 and delivered 1985-11-26, after that documented insulation window closed.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1973-1979
- Limitations
- Program-level review (fieldwork at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards); it does not name this hull and its ship list covers vessels delivered since 1973 or under construction in 1979 - this hull was awarded in 1982. The report documents that asbestos-INSULATED deliveries ended by May 1978; it does not prove zero asbestos aboard any 1985-built ship (residual gasket/packing/brake applications persisted; post-delivery repairs could introduce ACM). gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches; product-page description and indexed passages used - full-text pull remains an open lead.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-05
-
[6]Naval Sea Systems Command, FOIA Reading Room - Asbestos (specification/QPL index page) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAVSEA FOIA Reading Room asbestos index, MIL-I-24244/24244A and QPL entries (page content via 2024 Wayback capture; live page 403s automated fetch)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- NAVSEA FOIA Reading Room 'Asbestos' page indexes the shipboard thermal-insulation military specifications whose revision history underlies the phase-out described by GAO: MIL-I-24244 'Insulation Materials, Thermal, with Special Corrosion and Chloride Requirements' (document dates 1965-08-22 through 1973-09-05) superseded by MIL-I-24244A (1974-02-12 through 1976-04-21), alongside qualified-product lists for asbestos-fiber insulation felt (QPL-15091-5, 1962) and successor unicellular/plastic insulation materials (1975). The hull's 1983 keel postdates this spec transition.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1962-1976
- Limitations
- Index listing only - the page tabulates specification titles and effective dates; it does not itself state which revision eliminated asbestos content and does not mention this vessel. Corroborates the GAO-documented 1973-74 spec transition window; no ship-specific inference beyond era placement.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-06
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[7]Batch-2681 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS live entry; NVR detail record; CourtListener opinion and docket searches (name + hull variants); MSC/DVIDS operational record; DoD contract announcements; NIOSH/CDC Stacks; EPA Superfund; MARAD ship-history check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-grasp-ars51-01 through sl-uss-grasp-ars51-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, environmental filing, or court finding naming USS Grasp / USNS Grasp / ARS-51 / T-ARS-51 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The only asbestos-litigation docket hit for the ship name (Jacob v. PLENCO, D. Guam 1:19-cv-00108) names USS Grasp ARS-24 - the earlier 1944-built ship - not this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - residual asbestos-containing components (gaskets, packing, brake linings, electrical) were possible on 1980s hulls and MSC-era maintenance records are not public. Equally, the construction era documents asbestos-free thermal-insulation specifications, so no affirmative exposure claim can be made either way; status remains unknown/unverified.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-07
-
[8]CourtListener API v4 search (authenticated, fleet-paced): opinion queries 'USS Grasp'/'USNS Grasp'/'ARS-51'/'T-ARS-51'; docket queries 'USS Grasp'/'USNS Grasp'/'ARS-51'; Jacob v. PLENCO docket 15808518, complaint doc 1 (13-page scan OCR'd locally) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener search result sets; Jacob complaint pp. 3 and 11 (OCR) - 'USS Grasp (ARS-24)' entries with 1966-1974 Guam SRF dates
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener authenticated search (2026-09-26): opinions - 'USS Grasp' 0 hits, 'USNS Grasp' 0, 'ARS-51' 0, 'T-ARS-51' 0. Dockets - 'USS Grasp' 1 hit: Jacob v. Plastics Engineering Company (PLENCO), D. Guam 1:19-cv-00108, filed 2019-06-20, terminated 2020-02-26, cause 28:1332 Diversity-Asbestos Litigation; the complaint and Exhibit A (scanned PDF, locally OCR'd) name USS Grasp ARS-24 at Guam Ship Repair Facility in 1966-67, 1970, and 1973-74 - the WWII-era first ship of the name, predating this hull's 1983 keel. Classification: NAME COLLISION, not a qualifying record for ARS-51; and in any event a pleading-stage allegation only - the terminated case never adjudicated exposure. Dockets - 'ARS-51' 26 hits, all non-ship collisions (securities/APA/ADA matters, e.g. Applied Research Systems ARS Holding v. Cell Genesys); 'USNS Grasp' 0.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2019-2020 (litigation); sweep run 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Search covers CourtListener's indexed corpus only; state courts and non-digitized federal dockets are outside coverage. The Jacob hit is a name collision on ARS-24 and, regardless, a complaint allegation (the least-final stage) - the case terminated 2020-02-26 with no adjudicated exposure finding. No qualifying asbestos litigation names this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-08
-
[9]NHHC DANFS entry footer (command histories submitted list); NARA RG 24 deck-log series; MSC contracting records [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Command Histories Submitted' line; NARA RG 24 finding-aid series
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (unretrieved): NHHC holds the ship's submitted command histories/operations reports for 1985-1994, 1996-1999, and 2001 (per DANFS entry footer); NARA RG 24 deck logs cover the commissioned period; Peterson Builders yard records (yard closed 1996, site is now Graham Park, Sturgeon Bay); MSC maintenance/work-package records for the 2006 conversion availability and later ROHDDs are the most likely repositories for any materials statements. None retrieved - no spend authorized in this batch.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1985-2006
- Limitations
- Leads only - the records are indexed but unexamined; whether they contain insulation/material statements is unknown. No claim is made from them.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grasp-ars51-09