Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]research packet bv-packet.md (9 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-kittiwake-asr13-pkt-bv-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, 'Kittiwake' (ASR-13) entry - NHHC canonical page not migrated (all /danfs/k/kittiwake*.html variants 404 on 2026-09-26); verbatim DANFS text verified via the HistoryCentral transcription; identical text also carried at hullnumber.com/ASR-13 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Kittiwake' entry, full text incl. spec header; HistoryCentral mirror https://www.historycentral.com/navy/AS/kittiwake.html; parallel transcription https://www.hullnumber.com/ASR-13
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy history documents: Kittiwake (ASR-13), a Chanticleer-class submarine rescue ship, was launched 10 July 1945 by Savannah Machine & Foundry Co., Savannah, Ga.; sponsored by Mrs. Howard S. Rue, Jr.; commissioned 18 July 1946, Lt. L. H. Collier in command. Service through 1967: post-shakedown transit Charleston to Balboa, Canal Zone (arrived 8 October 1946); submarine rescue/support duty with Submarine Squadron 6 (sea-trial escort, dive monitoring, rescue-procedure practice, torpedo recovery) operating to the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and the Davis Strait; transferred to Norfolk 6 June 1949; 17 January - 1 February 1950 provided divers and equipment in salvage operations freeing USS Missouri (BB-63), grounded off Thimble Shoals, Va.; 1950s Atlantic/Caribbean operations supporting the submarine force; 20 July 1960 on station off Cape Canaveral for USS George Washington's first submerged Polaris launches; Mediterranean deployment August-November 1961 (Rota, Piraeus); 2 February 1963 took aboard 12 Cuban refugees from the boat Jose Maria Perez off Key West; April-August 1963 towed two LCUs to St. Nazaire then Med/Rota operations; 1965 Med deployment supporting SSBNs of Submarine Squadron 16 (Andrew Jackson, Woodrow Wilson, James Madison, Nathan Hale) and SubRon 14 at Holy Loch (torpedo recovery for James Monroe, John Adams; training for tender Hunley AS-31); autumn 1965 guarded new Polaris submarines Lewis & Clark and Simon Bolivar on builder's trials; July-November 1966 Med deployment then ordered 15 September to the North Sea to assist locating/salvaging the sunken German submarine Hai (S-171), on scene 17-20 September; East Coast operations into 1967. Spec header: dp. 1,780; l. 251'4"; b. 42'; dr. 16'; s. 16 k.; cpl. 115; a. 1 3", 4 20mm.; cl. Chanticleer.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-1967
- Population
- Ship's complement (~102-115 depending on source - see gaps) and attached divers
- Limitations
- Official Navy history (DANFS print volume text, verified verbatim against the HistoryCentral mirror); contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information. Covers through 1967 only - the print-volume cutoff; later history comes from other rows. NHHC canonical URL not live as of 2026-09-26 (standing NHHC link-rot/migration defect, same as batch-01).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - USS Kittiwake (ASR-13) page (timeline, spec block, commanding-officer roster, NHHC-credited photos incl. K-80394 and NARA identifier 6452768) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net/archives/09/32/3213.htm - timeline block, Specifications block, Commanding Officers table, photo captions (Mabel Clark, 18 Feb 2010 tow)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource documents: laid down 5 January 1945 at Savannah Machinery and Foundry, Co., Savannah, GA; launched 10 July 1945; commissioned 18 July 1946, LT. L. H. Collier in command; decommissioned 30 September 1994; struck from the Naval Register 30 September 1994; title transferred to MARAD 31 March 2000 for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River, Lee Hall, VA; withdrawn 18 February 2010 and towed to Dominion Marine, Norfolk, VA to prepare for reefing; reefed 5 January 2011 in the Cayman Islands as a dive site. Spec block: displacement 1,780 t. (lt) / 2,141 t. (fl); 251'4" x 42' x 14'10" (lim); 14.5 kts; complement 6 officers + 96 enlisted; propulsion four General Motors 12-278A diesels, diesel-electric, single propeller 3,000 shp; ship's service generators two GM 8-268A 200 kW + one GM 3-268A 60 kW; armament two single 3"/50 cal dual-purpose mounts, eight single 20mm, four depth-charge tracks; largest boom capacity 20 t.; diesel fuel 1,785 bbls. CO roster names LCDR Peter F. Fawcett commanding 16 March 1979 - 1981 (corroborates the ship-named respondent in the CourtListener opinion - see litigation row). Photo captions record the 18 February 2010 tow to Dominion Marine 'where she will be cleaned of toxic materials.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-2011
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archive reproducing NVR-derived milestone data, class specs, and credited official photos; reliable for identity/milestones but not an official publication - figures cross-checked against DANFS and MARAD where overlap exists (all consistent except complement: NavSource 102 vs DANFS 115 - logged in gaps). No asbestos or materials information beyond the 'cleaned of toxic materials' photo caption.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-02
-
[4]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - KITTIWAKE (ASR-13), Detail 2889 [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 2889 - characteristics block + Milestones table
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- MARAD Vessel History record for KITTIWAKE (ASR-13): year built 1945; shipyard Savannah Machine and Foundry Company; general type Naval Combatant; length 251.50 ft; beam 42.00 ft; gross tons 2,290; lightweight displacement 1,653 t. Milestones: NDRF entry 11 June 1998 ('Auth by NISMF Portsmouth'; 'ENTRY TO PROGRAM V'); MARAD accepted title 31 March 2000; withdrawal 18 February 2010. 'Fate' field prints 'Unknown'; no historical narrative, mission record, or documents posted for this vessel.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-2010
- Limitations
- Authoritative for federal custody milestones only; the 'Fate: Unknown' field is stale - the hull was donated to the Cayman Islands Government (title August 2009) and reefed January 2011, events after MARAD's withdrawal milestone. Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim by itself.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-03
-
[5]Kittiwake Shipwreck & Artificial Reef - official project website of the Cayman Islands Tourism Association (CITA), 'About Kittiwake' page (Wayback capture 2012-01-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- kittiwakecayman.com About/History sections (Wayback 20120103093438)
- Finding type
- abatement_record
- Finding
- The reefing project sponsor's official account documents that after the Cayman Islands was approved as the pilot project for donation of a MARAD ship to a foreign government, 'The Kittiwake was transferred from MARAD to the Cayman Islands Government in August 2009 and was cleaned and remediated in Norfolk, Virginia to become an artificial reef. This included substantial work including the removal of all hazardous materials (like pcb's, asbestos, mercury, cabling, wires, oils, lubricants and a very long list). Additionally, all thin or loose materials that could break off during or soon after sinking were removed.' Site also documents: award date 11 May 1944; keel laid 5 January 1945; departure from James River under tow 17 December 2010 aboard tug America; arrival Grand Cayman 25 December 2010; sinking position 19 21.714'N, 081 24.073'W off the north end of Seven Mile Beach (Sand Chute dive site); armament removed before export; crow's nest, mast and stern A-frame cut down and remounted to reduce height; large access holes cut through the hull and bulkheads.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2009-2011
- Population
- Remediation/dive-prep workforce at Dominion Marine, Norfolk, 2010; later recreational divers on the cleaned wreck
- Limitations
- Sponsor-published project history - a participant source, not a government survey or waste manifest. Establishes that asbestos was among the hazardous-material categories removed from THIS hull during remediation, but gives no quantity, locations, or abatement methodology detail. The page's own spec block carries internal errors (commissioned '16th July 1945' vs the correct 18 July 1946 also printed on the same page; complement 85 vs 10+98 elsewhere on the page) - use only for the remediation narrative, cross-check dates against DANFS/MARAD.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-04
-
[6]Divers Alert Network, Alert Diver magazine, 'The Anatomy of a Shipwreck: The Kittiwake in Grand Cayman' (1 May 2011) - reconstructed timeline in the words of project manager Nancy Easterbrook (Divetech) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- dan.org Alert Diver article, 'Anatomy of a Shipwreck' - TSCA paragraph, seacock/drydock paragraph, timeline
- Finding type
- abatement_record
- Finding
- The reefing project manager's published first-person account documents that the Toxic Substances Control Act governed the export: 'when ships are donated for reefing, they have to be clean of all oils and contaminants such as asbestos and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)' - a standard the project met by stripping PCB-bearing wiring and chipping paint across the five-deck, 251-foot ship. The account documents drydocking the 2,200-ton hull to replace 32 below-waterline seacock rubber gaskets (~2 lbs total) that might have contained PCBs, at an added ~$40,000 cost, to satisfy export-level compliance; title received August 2009; USCG, EPA and Cayman Cabinet-level approvals satisfied; the tow departed Norfolk 17 December 2010 and the ship arrived Grand Cayman 25 December. Since the ship was for export it was 'under the purview of the Toxic Substances Control Act' and held to a higher standard than domestically reefed ships.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2002-2011
- Population
- Remediation workforce at the Norfolk contractor yard (Dominion Marine), 2010
- Limitations
- Project manager's account published in a specialist safety magazine - participant-level documentation, not a regulatory filing or manifest. Confirms asbestos was within the legally-required removal scope for this hull and that a contaminant-removal program was performed, but does not itemize the asbestos found, its location, or quantity; the seacock-gasket episode documents PCB uncertainty, not confirmed PCB content. Establishes removal occurred; does not independently establish the pre-removal condition.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-05
-
[7]DIVER Magazine, 'Return to the Kittiwake' (18 May 2020), words/photos by Drew McArthur - dive with former crew member Pete Larson (engineer aboard 1986-89) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- divermag.com 'Return to the Kittiwake' - Larson quote aboard the Divetech boat; SRB correction paragraph
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A named former crew member - ex-Petty Officer Pete Larson, an engineer aboard the Kittiwake 1986-89 - stated aboard the dive boat: 'Back in the day, there was a lot of asbestos used on the Kittiwake, which was removed when they realised it was a bad product.' The article separately documents that 'prior to sinking, significant portions of the Kittiwake were removed to make her safe in her new environment' and that diver snag/entrapment hazards were sealed or removed. It also corrects the dive-briefing myth that the ship recovered Challenger's 'black box': per NASA/US Navy reports, Challenger had no crash-survivable flight recorder and Kittiwake actually recovered a Solid Rocket Booster piece from ~177 feet.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1986-2011
- Population
- Former crew (engineering department, 1986-89)
- Limitations
- Crew recollection quoted in trade press - anecdotal, unquantified, and loosely worded ('a lot of asbestos' blends era construction use with the 2010 removal); not a survey or record of where asbestos was installed. The black-box correction is consistent with the documented SRB recovery. Supports 'asbestos was used aboard and removed' at anecdote level; does not establish exposure of any individual.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-06
-
[8]Environmental Protection Agency / Maritime Administration, 'National Guidance: Best Management Practices for Preparing Vessels Intended To Create Artificial Reefs' - Notice of availability, Federal Register (E6-7274, published 12 May 2006; guidance EPA842-B-06-002, required by Section 3516 of the FY2004 National Defense Authorization Act) [federal_register]
- Locator
- FR Doc. E6-7274, Federal Register vol. 71 (12 May 2006), 'Summary'/'Background' sections
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- The EPA/MARAD national reefing guidance - the framework under which this hull's 2009-2010 remediation was performed - names the materials of concern to be addressed before a vessel is sunk as an artificial reef: 'Fuels and oil, asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), paints, debris ... and other materials of environmental concern (e.g., mercury, refrigerants).' The guidance provides clean-up performance goals and methods for achieving them.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2006 (guidance); applied to this hull 2009-2010
- Limitations
- Program-level regulatory framework - the notice does not name this vessel and establishes no condition aboard it; it documents the compliance requirement the Kittiwake project operated under (amplified by TSCA export rules for foreign donation). Not evidence of any material's presence on this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-07
-
[9]U.S. EPA, 'Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Ships' program page (TSCA export rules for vessels; MARAD reflagging self-certification) [other_primary]
- Locator
- epa.gov/pcbs/polychlorinated-biphenyls-pcbs-ships - export-permission and MARAD self-certification sections
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- EPA documents the export-control regime that applied because this hull was exported to a foreign government: owners must obtain EPA permission before exporting older ships containing PCBs for disposal; TSCA and its PCB regulations prohibit export of regulated levels of PCBs (>=50 ppm in shipboard materials such as paint, electrical cabling, and gaskets); MARAD approval is required for foreign transfer of U.S. vessels over 1,000 gross tons (46 U.S.C. 56101).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2009-2010 (as applied)
- Limitations
- Federal regulatory context for the PCB/export side of the remediation - explains the TSCA requirement Easterbrook describes and the gasket drydock episode; the page does not name this vessel and establishes no asbestos content aboard (asbestos is not a TSCA PCB item - it falls under the reefing cleanup scope described in ev-04/05/07).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-08
-
[10]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), PMID 3570817 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Am J Ind Med 11(3):359-373 (1987); PubMed abstract 3570817
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical scholarship documents that asbestos was used extensively as an insulating and fireproofing material in U.S. shipbuilding during the WWII program under which this hull was built (keel laid January 1945 at a commercial yard, Savannah Machine & Foundry, Savannah GA), and that shipyard insulation trades worked with asbestos-containing materials during the period.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1939-1945
- Population
- WWII-era shipyard insulation trades (era context)
- Limitations
- Era/program-level scholarship - does not name this vessel or establish what was installed aboard it; usable only as context for why a 1945 naval auxiliary plausibly carried asbestos. This hull is diesel-electric (no boilers/steam plant), so steam-plant-specific findings in era literature do not attach to it; typical diesel-era applications would be machinery/exhaust insulation, gaskets, packing, electrical insulation, and interior fireproofing - none verified aboard. The ship-specific removal record (ev-04/05/06) is independent of this row.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-09
-
[11]CourtListener API v4 opinion search - 'Kittiwake' (9 hits, 2026-09-26): Moye v. Fawcett, 10 M.J. 838 (U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Military Review, filed 13 Feb 1981, Misc. No. 80-14) [court_record]
- Locator
- courtlistener.com/api/rest/v4/search/?q=Kittiwake&type=o (9 results); Moye opinion cluster 8663191
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweeps, 2026-09-26 (authenticated v4 via fleet pacing helper): (a) Opinion index 'Kittiwake' - 9 hits. One is ship-specific: Moye v. Fawcett, 10 M.J. 838 (N-M Court of Military Review 1981) - a Radioman Seaman's petition for extraordinary relief seeking a writ of prohibition forbidding his general court-martial, naming 'Peter F. Fawcett, Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy, Commanding Officer, USS KITTIWAKE (ASR-13)' as respondent (Fawcett's command of this hull 1979-81 is corroborated by the NavSource CO roster). It is a military-justice case - NOT asbestos litigation and no exposure question appears in it. The remaining 8 hits are name collisions: the kittiwake seabird in Alaska environmental litigation (National Audubon Society v. Hodel, D. Alaska 1984; National Parks & Conservation Ass'n v. Babbitt, 9th Cir. 2001; State v. Stanley, Alaska 1973) and other-vessel/other-meaning references (State Establishment for Agricultural Product Trading v. M/V Wesermunde, 11th Cir. 1985/1988; State v. Bay Towing & Dredging, Ala. 1956). (b) Opinion index 'ASR-13' - 1 hit: the same Moye v. Fawcett. (c) RECAP docket index 'Kittiwake' - 68 hits, 60 reviewed before the pacing budget cut off the last page: all name collisions - a marine-contract in rem suit against a fishing Vessel Kittiwake (Van v. Vessel Kittiwake, D. Alaska 2004), the kittiwake seabird in Alaska environmental dockets, 'Kittiwake' street/entity names inside mega-bankruptcy filings (W.R. Grace, Motors Liquidation, Tribune, Lehman - their asbestos content does not attach to this hull), and unrelated civil dockets. No docket names USS Kittiwake or pairs this hull with asbestos. No qualifying asbestos litigation located at any level. A general web litigation-index check surfaced only marketing list pages (including one law-firm page listing a nonexistent 'USS Kittiwake DD-821' - DD-821 was USS Johnston) and no docketed asbestos case.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1981 opinion; sweep run 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Litigation-stage discipline applied: the only ship-specific hit (Moye) is military justice, classified 'other litigation,' not an exposure finding; everything else is collision noise. Residual gap: the last 8 of 68 RECAP hits were not individually reviewed when the fleet pacing budget cut off pagination - no Navy-hull signal appeared in the first 60; absence of a located docketed case is not proof no claim was ever filed (MDL-875 and state-court filings may exist outside these indexes).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-10
-
[12]Associated Press via Deseret News, 'Cayman Islands to scuttle U.S. Navy ship, create artificial reef and tourist attraction' (10 October 2008); Cayman News Service archive coverage of the December 2010 arrival and 5 January 2011 sinking [reputable_press]
- Locator
- deseret.com AP wire 2008-10-10; archive.caymannewsservice.com 2010-12-30 and 2011-01-03 entries
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- Contemporaneous wire coverage documents the disposal plan at announcement: ownership of the 2,290-ton former submarine rescue ship to transfer from MARAD to the Cayman Islands government; 'Toxic materials must first be removed by contractors from the vessel built in 1945, before the ship is sunk next year in the Caribbean Sea as an artificial reef.' Cayman News Service coverage documents the ship docked at George Town being prepped for sinking in late December 2010, repeated weather postponements, and the completion of the sinking off Seven Mile Beach - the first MARAD ship donated to a foreign government for reefing.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2008-2011
- Limitations
- News coverage of intent and events - the AP piece predates the actual remediation (statement of requirement, not of completion); the CNS sinking coverage confirms the disposal but does not detail the abatement scope. Neither is a survey or manifest.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-11
-
[13]NARA deck-log guidance (post-1940 US Navy logs at Archives II, College Park; Blue Water Navy digitization status) plus unretrieved program and host-nation records [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov/research/military/logbooks (deck-log program pages); NHHC COR directory tree probes; MARAD detail 2889 (documents tab empty); doe.ky coastal-works archive
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG 24 Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations 1941-1992 hold this ship's deck logs at College Park; digitized status for ASR-13 was not confirmed this pass (the catalog search returned no surfaced Kittiwake unit). (b) NHHC command-operation reports for ASR-13 are not in the digitized COR tree (all /k/kittiwake* paths 404) - the paper archive at NHHC remains the lead. (c) The strongest prospective asbestos documentation is the disposal file itself: MARAD's donation/reefing file for this hull, the Dominion Marine remediation contract and waste manifests, EPA Region 3 TSCA export correspondence, and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment environmental survey and sinking plan referenced by the project manager - none public online. (d) Savannah Machine & Foundry hull construction/outfitting records would document original materials; no online collection located.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-2011 records
- Limitations
- Record-path mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; whether any of these files contains asbestos-specific documentation for this hull is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kittiwake-asr13-12