Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
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[1]research packet crew-fj-packet.md (7 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS Johnston (DD-557). Hull: DD-557. Designation: DD.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-johnston-dd557-pkt-crew-fj-packet-md
-
[2]NHHC, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Johnston I (DD-557)' - full text via Wayback capture 2025-12-09 (live history.navy.mil page returned 404 to automated fetch this session) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS expanded entry: specifications block, namesake biography, construction/commissioning paragraphs
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Expanded NHHC DANFS entry for this hull (Robert J. Cressman, published 2021-04-07, built from the ship's deck logs and war diary): namesake Lt. John Vincent Johnston, Civil War gunboat officer. Laid down 6 May 1942 at Seattle, Wash., by the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp.; launched 25 March 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Marie S. Klinger, great-niece of Lt. Johnston; commissioned 27 October 1943 (placed in full commission by Capt. Hubert J. Stubbs, Supervisor of Shipbuilding at the Seattle-Tacoma yard; Lt. Cmdr. Ernest E. Evans assumed command). Spec block: displacement 2,700 (normal); length 376'6"; beam 39'8"; draft 17'9"; speed 35 knots; complement 273; armament 5 5-inch, 10 40mm, 7 20mm, 10 21-inch torpedo tubes, 6 depth charge projectors, 2 depth charge tracks; class Fletcher.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Population
- Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding construction trades 1942-43; crew (design complement 273)
- Limitations
- Ship identity, specifications, and construction only. DANFS does not identify asbestos aboard, itemize materials, or quantify any individual exposure. Note the spec block's 'displacement 2,700 (normal)' is a published figure carried as printed - other Fletcher references give 2,050 standard / 2,940 full load (Tin Can Sailors class data sheet); the variance is carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-01
-
[3]NHHC, DANFS, 'Johnston I (DD-557)' (service narrative; Wayback capture 2025-12-09); verbatim original-edition transcription at ibiblio.org HyperWar (dd557.html) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS expanded entry: fitting-out/shakedown and operations paragraphs; HyperWar dd557.html narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Service narrative per expanded DANFS: fitted out at the Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, from commissioning day (27 October 1943) through the first week of November; cleared the navy yard 11 November; sailed for San Diego 15 November and began shakedown 19 November 1943; completed a post-shakedown availability at Puget Sound and departed Seattle 1 January 1944. Marshalls: Kwajalein bombardment 1 February, Eniwetok 17-22 February 1944; Kapingamarangi Atoll bombardment 28 March en route to Solomons patrol; shared in the sinking of Japanese submarine I-176 (expanded entry dates the action 16 May 1944); bombarded Guam with Pennsylvania (BB-38) from 21 July, over 4,000 rounds by 29 July; screened escort carriers during the Palaus operation; joined Taffy 3 (TU 77.4.3) for the Leyte landings from 12 October 1944.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1944
- Population
- Crew of USS Johnston (wartime manning at loss: 327 aboard); Puget Sound Navy Yard trades during fit-out and post-shakedown availability
- Limitations
- Operational history only - no materials or asbestos content. The original-edition DANFS dates the I-176 action 15 May 1944; the expanded NHHC entry reads 16 May 1944 - variant carried in gaps rather than reconciled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-02
-
[4]NHHC, DANFS, 'Johnston I (DD-557)' (Battle off Samar, casualty, striking, and honors paragraphs; expanded entry, Cressman 2021); original-edition text corroborated at ibiblio.org HyperWar (dd557.html) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS expanded entry: action narrative, casualty paragraph, striking sentence, honors paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Loss and casualty record: in the Battle off Samar (25 October 1944), Johnston - screening Taffy 3's six escort carriers - laid a 2,500-yard smoke screen, fired on and launched ten torpedoes at the Japanese Center Force, scoring hits on heavy cruiser Kumano; she took three 14-inch and three 6-inch shell hits, fought on one engine, was ordered abandoned about 0945, and sank about 1010, a Japanese destroyer closing to 1,000 yards to fire a final round. Of 327 men aboard (326 ship's company plus Lt.(j.g.) Pliska of DesDiv 94): 50 killed in action, 45 died of wounds or exposure, 91 listed missing and later classified presumed dead; 40 seriously wounded and 101 slightly; 141 survivors rescued by LCI gunboats on 27 October 1944 after more than 50 hours on rafts. Loss publicly announced 17 November 1944; stricken from the Navy Register 27 November 1944 - 'two days shy of one year' in commission. Share of the Presidential Unit Citation to Task Unit 77.4.3; six battle stars; Cmdr. Evans posthumously received the Medal of Honor.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- Crew of USS Johnston: 327 aboard at loss, 141 survivors; next of kin
- Limitations
- Casualty and honors documentation, not materials documentation. The original-edition text records 92 men 'alive in the water ... never heard from again' (including Cmdr. Evans) where the expanded entry records 91 missing-later-presumed-dead - same 186 total lost; variant carried in gaps. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-03
-
[5]USS Johnston (DD-557) Action Report, DD557/A16-3 Serial 04 (14 Nov 1944) - transcription on the USS Johnston-Hoel Association site (Wayback capture 2021-07-29); original in NARA WWII action reports (RG 38) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Action report header block, Part I paras. 1-2 (association transcription; original at NARA)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's own action report survives: DD557/A16-3, Serial 04, 14 November 1944, CONFIDENTIAL, 'From: The Senior Surviving Officer. To: The Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet' (via CTU 77.4.33, ComCarDiv 25, ComCarDiv 22, Commander Seventh Fleet, CincPac) - 'Action Report - surface engagement off Samar, P.I., 25 October 1944,' with enclosures including Report of Ship's Damage and Medical Report. Written by the gunnery officer, Lt. Robert C. Hagen, senior surviving officer. Documents GQ at ~0650, three hours of engagement, abandon-ship order ~0945, sinking ~1010 (zone -9); all logs, records, accounts, and publications were lost with the ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-10-25 to 1944-11-14
- Population
- Ship's crew at loss (documentation only - no exposure claim made)
- Limitations
- Primary document transcribed on a veterans' association site (secondary host); the report documents battle damage and loss, not materials or asbestos content. Enclosure (B) Report of Ship's Damage is the closest period document to a material condition record - it describes battle damage, not insulation inventory. Original at NARA not retrieved this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-04
-
[6]NHHC, DANFS, 'Johnston I (DD-557)' expanded entry (yard/availability events extracted from deck logs); Tin Can Sailors destroyers.org DD-557 page corroborates the verbatim DANFS text (April 2021 edition) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS expanded entry: fit-out paragraph; March/April/May/August/September 1944 availability passages
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented in-service maintenance and availability events on this hull (expanded DANFS, from deck logs): fitting-out dockside at Puget Sound Navy Yard 27 Oct-11 Nov 1943 and post-shakedown availability at Puget Sound completed before departure 1 Jan 1944; rested on keel blocks in floating dry dock ARD-5 for repairs 18-19 March 1944 (availability 13-19 March); 24-hour availability alongside Eaton (DD-510) 29-30 April 1944 'for repairs to her steam lines'; seven days' availability alongside destroyer tender Dixie 26 May-2 June 1944 (routine upkeep and repairs); availability alongside repair ship Piedmont (AD-17) 16-18 August 1944; 'availability for emergency upkeep and repairs' alongside Briareus (AR-9) 25-26 September 1944; tender availability at Manus October 1944.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1944
- Population
- Puget Sound Navy Yard trades (fit-out, post-shakedown); crew during 1943-44 availabilities; tender/floating-dock work parties (Eaton, Dixie, Piedmont, Briareus, ARD-5)
- Limitations
- Documents where and when maintenance occurred on this hull - including steam-line repairs - but no source identifies the materials worked on or disturbed; any insulation disturbance is era inference, not a per-hull record. Forward-area tender availabilities involved voyage repairs and upkeep, scope not itemized.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-05
-
[7]Caladan Oceanic expedition press release, 'Submersible crew completes the world's deepest shipwreck dive in history (USS Johnston),' 31 March 2021; USNI News, 'Famed WWII Destroyer USS Johnston Discovered 4 Miles Down,' 1 April 2021 (NHHC statement); NHHC DANFS 'Johnston I (DD-557)' wreck paragraph (updated April 2021) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Caladan press release pp.1-2 (depth, hull number, Petrel provenance, no-remains statement); USNI News 2021-04-01 (Cox statement); DANFS wreck paragraph
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Wreck identification and present status: wreckage on the edge of an undersea cliff east of Samar at more than 20,000 ft was first filmed in October 2019 by R/V Petrel (Vulcan Inc., expedition lead Robert Kraft); NHHC assessed on location it could be either Johnston or Taffy-3 sister Hoel (DD-533). In March 2021 Caladan Oceanic's DSV Limiting Factor, piloted by former Navy commander Victor Vescovo, completed two eight-hour dives to 21,180 ft (6,456 m) - the deepest wreck dives, manned or unmanned, in history - confirming identity by the hull number '557' visible on both sides of the bow; forward two-thirds upright and intact with both forward 5-inch mounts, twin torpedo mounts, and 40mm mounts in place. No human remains observed; nothing taken; all sonar data, imagery, and field notes committed to the U.S. Navy. NHHC director Rear Adm. Samuel Cox confirmed the identification publicly 1 April 2021, and the NHHC DANFS entry was updated (April 2021) to incorporate it.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2019-10; 2021-03
- Population
- Expedition personnel (no exposure claim made); wreck is the war grave of up to 186 crewmen
- Limitations
- Identification survey and condition imagery only - the expedition reported no material characterization of any kind, and at 21,180 ft the hull is beyond any feasible remediation or interior survey. No asbestos statement exists in any wreck source. Precise wreck coordinates were not publicly released (data committed to the Navy); lat/lon fields left null.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-06
-
[8]DANFS specifications block (Fletcher class; 35 kt) + Tin Can Sailors Fletcher class data sheet (4 boilers, 2 GE turbines, 60,000 hp; complement 20 officers/309 enlisted as of 1945) + destroyerhistory.org Seattle-Tacoma builder page; NARA RG19 GIB archival lead [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block; destroyers.org/ships/dd-557 class data sheet; destroyerhistory.org/destroyers/seatac builder history
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: a WWII Fletcher-class destroyer built 1942-43 with a four-boiler/60,000-shp steam plant would have carried period-standard asbestos boiler and steam-line insulation, turbine lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. Builder Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp. (Harbor Island) is NOT in the Atlas shipyard dataset; the Destroyer History Foundation builder page documents the yard as a purpose-built 1940 destroyer plant (government seed money), taken over during the war by Todd Dry Dock & Construction, with 17,000 employees and 40 destroyer commissions - third-largest destroyer builder. NARA RG 19 'General Information Books' per-vessel material specifications are an unretrieved archival lead for hull-level specs.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding construction trades 1942-43; crew 1943-44
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No ship-specific insulation survey, material schedule, or asbestos statement exists for DD-557; the wreck's interior material condition is undocumented and unsurveyable at 21,180 ft. Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-07
-
[9]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked to automated fetch, HTTP 403 - product-page description used)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - placing DD-557's construction (1942-43) and entire commissioned service (Oct 1943 - Oct 1944) inside the documented asbestos-use era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full report text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-08
-
[10]CourtListener API v4 authenticated searches (type=o opinions and type=r dockets), 2026-09-27, via the fleet-paced helper only [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-johnston-dd557-08 and -09 (per-query enumeration); raw JSON: cl-3528-ussjohnston-op/-asb/-dock, cl-3528-uss-dot-johnston, cl-3528-dd557-op/-dock, cl-3528-dd821-asb/-dock, cl-3528-johnston-ship, cl-3528-johnston-dd
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Authenticated CourtListener API v4 sweep (2026-09-27, fleet-paced helper only; raw JSON saved as cl-3528-*.json): ten queries run - "USS Johnston" opinions = 0; "USS Johnston" asbestos opinions = 0; "U.S.S. Johnston" opinions = 0; "aboard the Johnston" opinions = 0; "DD-557" opinions = 0; "USS Johnston" dockets = 2, both name collisions (Team Systems International LLC, Bankr. D. Del. 22-10066, Ch.7 corporate bankruptcy; Guerra v. Allied Van Lines Inc, S.D. Tex. 1:03-cv-00142, diversity personal-injury moving-van case); "DD-557" dockets = 1, name collision (Lee v. United States, M.D. Ala. 2006, 42:1983 civil rights - 'DD-557' matched a docket/exhibit number); "Johnston" destroyer asbestos opinions = 1, name collision (Brewer v. Fibreboard Corp., 127 Wn.2d 512 (1995) - genuine asbestos opinion, but 'Johnston' matches the cited case Adams v. Johnston; no vessel named; plaintiff worked on unnamed PSNS destroyers 1967-88). Collision-hull controls: "DD-821" asbestos opinions = 0; "DD-821" dockets = 1 collision (Purkey v. Barr, D.D.C. 2019, death-row injunction - 'DD-821' matched an exhibit tag). RESULT: zero qualifying asbestos litigation naming DD-557; every hit resolved to hull identity or in-text token collision.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Coverage limited to CourtListener-indexed federal/state appellate opinions and federal (PACER/RECAP) dockets; unindexed state trial-court filings and settled MDL-875 claimant records are not covered. The asbestos-marketing pages that exist for 'USS Johnston' uniformly target the second hull (DD-821), consistent with the zero-hit sweep. DD-821 docket query timed out once on fleet pacing and was re-run successfully (~40 min later). No search can prove the absence of all possible litigation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-09
-
[11]Batch-3528 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS (Wayback capture + HyperWar mirror); ship's action report transcription (ussjohnston-hoel.com via Wayback); Caladan Oceanic press release; USNI News; NARA Special List 44 deck-log span; NARA Navy asbestos research guide; Atlas shipyards.json builder check; Tin Can Sailors/destroyerhistory.org; CourtListener (see ev-09 and search_ledger); law-firm/aggregator ship pages (excluded per sourcing rules - they uniformly target collision hull DD-821) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-johnston-dd557-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no hull survey exists or was generated, no abatement contract or hazmat disclosure exists, and no primary record naming asbestos aboard this hull was found in the sources searched. The exposure-record pathways that produce ship-specific records for other hulls - postwar yard abatement records, museum-ship disclosures, veteran litigation naming the hull - are structurally absent: the ship sank in combat 25 October 1944 (before asbestos documentation practice), lies at 21,180 ft as a Navy war grave, and was never in U.S. service during the mesothelioma-litigation era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1942-43 steam destroyer's era-standard insulation applications are documented at class/era level, and the sunken hull plausibly retains its 1943 materials, but no interior characterization exists and none is feasible at this depth. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-10
-
[12]NARA Special List 44 (named-vessel deck log spans); NARA 'Researching Navy Asbestos Exposure' guided topic; NARA RG 38 action reports [other_primary]
- Locator
- Special List 44 'Johnston (DD-557) 10/27/1943-9/30/1944'; archives.gov/research/military/navy/guided-topics/asbestos
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holdings for this hull identified but not retrieved: Special List 44 lists Johnston (DD-557) deck logs spanning 10/27/1943-9/30/1944 (the final month's log was lost with the ship); the 14 November 1944 action report (DD557/A16-3 Serial 04) sits in WWII action reports (RG 38); NARA's Navy asbestos research guide maps the relevant series for hull-level material inquiry (RG 19 ship files, General/Ship Information Books, S39 insulation drawings). BuShips hull spec files for DD-557 are not digitized.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1944 records; indexed 2026
- Limitations
- Archival leads only - the records exist per NARA indexes but were not retrieved or reviewed. Deck logs and GIB/SIB files may document material work aboard but no content is asserted here.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-johnston-dd557-11