Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 375-packet.md (2 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-ix-527-ix527-pkt-375-packet-md
-
[2]Shipbuilding History (T. Colton), T.S. Marvel / Steel Style Inc. yard table, Newburgh NY: 'YFN 1259 | US Navy | Lighter | 174d | 132 | 1982 | Later IX 527, active'; corroborated by Naval Marine Archive freight-lighter table (YFN-1259, Steel Style, Newburgh NY, 1982) [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com yard table row 'YFN 1259'; navalmarinearchive.com yf3.html row 'YFN 1259'
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- YFN-1259 was built by Steel Style, Inc. at Newburgh, NY and delivered to the U.S. Navy in 1982 as a covered lighter (approx. 174 gross tons); the yard site had reopened in 1976 as Steel Style Inc. on the former Ward Stanton/T.S. Marvel property. The craft was later reclassified IX-527 and remains in service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1982
- Population
- Steel Style yard construction workforce (1981-82)
- Limitations
- Reference-work data (Colton yard table + Naval Marine Archive) corroborate builder, location, and year but conflict on length (132 ft vs 110 ft); neither is a government record. The Naval Vessel Register detail page for this hull is gated behind DoD access controls and could not be pulled. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-01
-
[3]U.S. Warships (jounin.jp) YFN service-craft listing, NVR-derived: YFN-1259 Steel Style Inc. - delivered 1982/6, operational 1983/1, reclassified unclassified miscellaneous vessel (IX-527) 1999/4/7; corroborated by hazegray worldnav IX listing ('Submarine Test Support Barge (ex-YFN 1259) | NSWC, Ketchikan, AK') and GlobalSecurity IX table [other_primary]
- Locator
- uswarships.jounin.jp/yfn.htm row YFN-1259; hazegray.org/worldnav/usa/aux_othr.htm (cached; site offline at access date); globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ship/ix.htm
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- YFN-1259 was delivered June 1982, entered operational use January 1983, and was reclassified to the unclassified miscellaneous designation IX-527 on April 7, 1999. The IX category was moved in the NVR from the naval-vessel to the service-craft category around 1970, so the hull is carried as a service craft, not a commissioned ship.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1982-1999
- Limitations
- Dates come from a secondary NVR-mirror listing; the live NVR public site gates its data endpoints behind DoD authentication and the hull has no public NVR detail page. Assignment history between 1983 and the 1999 reclassification is not documented in the sources consulted.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-02
-
[4]SAM.gov presolicitation N0016725R1001, 'SEAFAC Barge IX-527 and IX-528 Overhaul' (posted Feb 25, 2025, NSWC Carderock Division; verbatim mirror at SAMDaily.us issue SAM #8493 and HigherGov) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SAM.gov notice N0016725R1001 description paragraph; SAMDaily.us FBO-07352524
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Navy's own procurement notice identifies IX-527 and IX-528 by hull number as the Southeast Alaska Acoustic Measurement Facility (SEAFAC) Static Site barges, permanently moored at Back Island near Ketchikan, AK - 'a unique waterborne asset designed to test various underwater resources as a Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation (RDT&E) Platform.' The barges do not meet stability criteria for open-ocean towing; overhaul must occur at a yard reachable via protected inland waters (not west of Guard Island), with Vigor Alaska LLC, Ketchikan, cited as the only capable source; period of performance through FY2027.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2025-2027
- Population
- Shipyard personnel performing overhaul (Vigor Alaska, Ketchikan); SEAFAC operations staff
- Limitations
- Official notice text read via verbatim public mirrors; the canonical SAM.gov record requires login. Documents the vessel's role and maintenance posture; contains no asbestos, hazmat, or condition-survey information - the PIRM statement of work and barge drawings are JCP-controlled and not public.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-03
-
[5]NAVSEA, NSWC Carderock Division - 'Southeast Alaska Acoustic Measurement Facility - Ketchikan, Alaska' official facility page; Navy NWTT SEIS/OEIS SEAFAC Fact Sheet (March 2019); navy.mil 'The Quiet Waters of Southeast Alaska' (Dec 7, 2018) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsea.navy.mil SEAFAC page, 'static site' paragraph; NWTT SEAFAC Fact Sheet 'Static Site' section; navy.mil article 2249044
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy sources describe the function this hull performs: at SEAFAC's Static Site, 'suspension barges lower the submarine on cables and position it between measurement arrays to evaluate acoustic signatures of individual machinery components'; the submarine's propulsion is secured during static testing, which typically takes one to seven days. SEAFAC has operated since March 1992 and is the Navy's only West Coast acoustic measurement facility; roughly 12-15 acoustic trials run per year and each Pacific Fleet submarine visits about once every four years.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1992-present; article dates 2018-2019
- Population
- SEAFAC site staff and trial personnel; submarine crews under test (aboard the submarine, not the barges)
- Limitations
- The facility page and fact sheet describe the suspension-barge function without naming hull numbers - identification of the barges as IX-527/IX-528 rests on the SAM.gov notice (ev-03). Facility-level staffing figures (about 12 resident contractors; about 19 additional personnel during trials) attach to SEAFAC operations generally, not specifically to personnel aboard this hull. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-04
-
[6]U.S. Navy, Northwest Training and Testing FEIS/OEIS ch. 2 (Oct 2015) - SEAFAC Static Site description; 33 CFR 334.1275 (West Arm Behm Canal restricted areas) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NWTT FEIS ch. 2, SEAFAC static-site paragraph; 33 CFR 334.1275(a) Area No. 2
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Navy's FEIS locates the SEAFAC Static Site within restricted Area 2 of the West Arm Behm Canal restricted area (33 CFR 334.1275, centered 55d34'N 131d48'W), approximately 2 nautical miles northwest of Back Island: 'a vessel is tethered between two surface barges' and submerges for acoustic measurements. This is the permanent mooring location of IX-527.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2015 (FEIS); CFR area designation current
- Limitations
- The FEIS describes the site and the two-barge configuration without naming hull numbers; hull identification rests on the SAM.gov notice. Coordinates are the Area 2 center from the CFR, not a surveyed hull position. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-05
-
[7]GAO HRD-80-2, 'Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure' (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO HRD-80-2 highlights/digest (thermal insulation specification change 1973; deliveries through May 1978; 1975 and 1979 removal policies)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Per GAO's 1979 review: Navy product specifications for thermal insulation were changed in 1973 to specify asbestos-free materials, but already-purchased asbestos materials were in some cases installed in ships under construction, so 'some ships were delivered with asbestos insulation as late as May 1978'; as of 1979 'all ships presently in service contain some quantity' of asbestos because technically acceptable substitutes had not been identified for a few applications. This hull was delivered in 1982 - after the documented asbestos-insulated delivery window closed - and as a non-self-propelled covered lighter it lacks the machinery, boiler, and piping thermal-insulation systems that GAO identifies as the Navy's major asbestos application.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1973-1979 (policy window); hull built 1982
- Population
- Not hull-specific; era context for Navy construction practices
- Limitations
- Program-level 1979-era documentation - it does not establish that asbestos is or is not aboard this specific hull, only that the documented asbestos-insulated construction window ended before this hull was built and that the hull type omits the era's principal application. Residual-era asbestos applications (gaskets, packing, coatings) remain possible and are undocumented aboard this craft. gao.gov blocks automated full-text fetches (HTTP 403); summary and report text were reviewed via the product page and search-extracted PDF text - same limitation as Batch 01.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-06
-
[8]Batch-4833 search ledger (this record): NVR (auth-gated), NHHC/DANFS, NavSource, SAM.gov notice mirrors, official NAVSEA/NWTT/navy.mil SEAFAC documentation, reference yard tables, hazegray (offline) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-ix-527-01 through sl-uss-ix-527-14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or material itemization naming IX-527 or YFN-1259 was found in the public sources searched. The PIRM overhaul notices (2024-2025) describe preservation/repair scope but publish no hazmat detail; barge technical drawings are JCP-controlled and not public.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - 1982 construction postdates the documented asbestos-insulated delivery window but residual-era applications were possible and remain undocumented. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-07
-
[9]CourtListener API v4 authenticated sweeps via cl-auth-search.py: opinion type=o q="IX-527" (1 hit); docket type=r q="IX-527" (0); opinion type=o q="YFN-1259" (0); docket type=r q="YFN-1259" (0) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener v4 search results; opinion id 8527917 cross-checked against deb.uscourts.gov opinions/11385.pdf
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying asbestos litigation located naming this hull. The sole exact-phrase opinion hit for "IX-527" (In re Hercules Offshore, Inc., Bankr. D. Del., Nov 1, 2016, 565 B.R. 732) is a name collision - the literal string does not appear in the opinion text (verified against the court's published PDF); the index match is a tokenization artifact of section heading 'IX.' and page 527 of the reporter. Both exact-phrase docket sweeps and the "YFN-1259" opinion sweep returned zero.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Limitations
- Litigation sweep classified at the least-final stage: zero qualifying results is a sweep finding, not proof that no suit was ever filed - unindexed dockets and settled claims are outside the index. The lone hit is a name collision, not a case about the vessel.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-08
-
[10]SAM.gov industry-day notice (NSWCCD), 'SEAFAC Barges IX527 & IX528 Tour and Industry Day' (barge tour July 22, 2025, Knudson Cove check-in; verbatim mirror at BidNet Direct) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BidNet Direct notice 2582986002 (mirror of NSWCCD industry-day announcement)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Barge drawings and technical information for IX-527/IX-528 exist under Navy control but are restricted to offerors holding active Joint Certification Program (JCP) certification - the authoritative material-condition documentation for this hull is non-public. Additional unretrieved leads: the 1988 SEAFAC Final EIS (cited in the 2015 NWTT FEIS) and NARA service-craft records may document the hull's pre-1999 assignment history.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2025
- Limitations
- Archival lead only - establishes that relevant technical records exist, not their contents. JCP restriction means the drawings' material specifications (including any ACM statements) cannot be reviewed without certification.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ix-527-09