Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]Report of Loss of U.S.S. LCI(L) 1 - Commanding Officer LT Carl F. Robison, USNR, to the Secretary of the Navy via Commander-in-Chief U.S. Fleet, 19 August 1943, with endorsements by Commander Group Four LCI(L) Flotilla Two, Commander LCI(L) Flotilla Two, and Commander Landing Craft and Bases, Northwest African Waters (7-page scanned official correspondence) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Full scan; basic letter paragraphs 1-9 (pp. 5-7) and endorsements (pp. 2-4); position at para. 2; casualty list at para. 6; rescue distribution at para. 5
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official loss report: on 17 August 1943, USS LCI(L)-1, underway in the channel toward Lac de Bizerte, Tunisia during an enemy night air attack, was hit by an incendiary bomb just aft of the conning tower. The bomb ignited fuel oil in the service tanks and fire engulfed the ship amidships; the engine-room switchboard was blown against the engine controls. The ship drifted and collided with S.S. Paine Wingate, then sank at approximately 2200-2259 local time at 37 deg 13'20"N, 9 deg 51'12"E. All hands abandoned ship; none were killed; approximately twelve men were wounded (burns and shrapnel), including the executive officer. Survivors were picked up by LCI(L)-236 (14 men and 1 officer), LCI(L)-324 (4), U.S.S. Delta (4), and S.S. Paine Wingate (2). Endorsements record that the ship had been recommended for a Presidential Unit Citation for the Sicilian invasion and that no blame attached to any person; Commander LCI(L) Flotilla Two recommended the crew be transferred as a unit to take over a new LCI(L) to be designated number one.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1943-08-17 (loss); 1943-08-19 (report)
- Population
- Ship's company at loss (~4 officers, ~24 enlisted complement); rescue crews of LCI(L)-236, LCI(L)-324, U.S.S. Delta, and S.S. Paine Wingate
- Limitations
- Documents loss circumstances, casualties, and command chain only; contains no materials or asbestos information. Sinking-time figures differ slightly between the letters (basic letter ~2200B, forwarding letter ~2259B zone time). Scanned copy hosted by NavSource; the underlying record is a wartime Navy loss report of the type held by NARA. OCR of the scan is imperfect - individual name spellings in the casualty list are approximate.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-01
-
[2]Naval History and Heritage Command, National Museum of the U.S. Navy - 'Landing Craft Infantry (Large)-10 (USS LCI(L)-10)' photography and class-description page [museum_official]
- Locator
- Page lead paragraphs (class description) beneath the LCI(L)-10 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC's National Museum of the U.S. Navy describes the LCI(L) type: Navy-designed craft launched by the hundreds; approximately 157 feet long, speeds up to 14 knots, crew of 24 officers and men, four 20mm guns; the first version debarked troops by catwalks and ramps while later versions used bow doors; the same hull was modified into mortar, gunboat, and rocket versions and flotilla flagships.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- WWII (class description)
- Population
- LCI(L) crews and embarked troops (class context)
- Limitations
- Class-level description published on a sister hull's page, not LCI(L)-1-specific. Rounded class figures (157 ft, four 20mm guns, crew of 24) differ slightly from the detailed transcription for this hull (158 ft 5.5 in, five 20mm guns, 4 officers + 24 enlisted) - variant not reconciled. Contains no materials or asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-02
-
[3]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 scholarship documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during World War II - the era and program under which this 1942 naval landing craft was built - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in ship construction.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or the LCI(L) type and does not establish that asbestos was aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-03
-
[4]Report of Loss of U.S.S. LCI(L) 1 (machinery-space configuration: fuel-oil service tanks, engine-room switchboard, screw-engine controls) + LCI(L)-1-class specification transcription (8 GM diesels, no steam plant) per NavSource Amphibious Photo Archive [other_primary]
- Locator
- Loss report basic letter para. 5 (fire in fuel-oil service tanks; engine-room switchboard); NavSource USS LCI(L)-1 page, 'Specifications' block (propulsion section)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The LCI(L) was a diesel-powered beaching craft: the class specification records eight GM 6051-series-71 diesel engines (four per shaft) with twin variable-pitch propellers and diesel-driven service generators, and the official loss report corroborates a machinery plant of fuel-oil service tanks, an engine-room switchboard, and screw-engine controls - no boilers and no steam system. The era's dominant shipboard asbestos applications (boiler and steam-line lagging) were therefore absent by design on this craft type; residual era-typical candidate materials on a diesel landing craft (engine-exhaust/muffler lagging, gaskets, packing, electrical insulation, joiner and deck materials, coatings) are not documented for this hull.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Population
- Engine-room crew (machinery space described in loss report); construction trades (New York Shipbuilding, 1942)
- Limitations
- The diesel configuration is documented; the asbestos-relevant material content aboard is not. Absence of boilers/steam removes the largest era-typical asbestos mass, but era-typical smaller applications (exhaust lagging, gaskets, electrical insulation, coatings) are plausible and undocumented - this row bounds the inference, it does not establish presence or absence. The detailed specification block is an unofficial archive transcription (ledger sl-01); no BuShips materials list for this hull was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-04
-
[5]Naval History and Heritage Command, Underwater Archaeology Branch - Sunken Military Craft Act policy page (Pub. L. 108-375, title XIV, enacted 2004-10-28; implementing rule 32 CFR 767) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SMCA policy summary, paragraphs 1-3
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Under the Sunken Military Craft Act of 2004, this hull's wreck in Lake Bizerte, Tunisia remains U.S. Navy property regardless of location or passage of time and may not be disturbed without a Navy permit; NHHC notes that sunken military craft can contain oil or other hazardous materials. No survey, condition assessment, or materials record for this wreck was located.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2004-present (statutory regime); wreck since 1943-08-17
- Limitations
- Legal-status framework applying to all sunken U.S. military craft including this wreck; it presumes continued title but says nothing about materials condition aboard this hull. The wreck is unsurveyed; whether any hazardous material remains aboard is undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-05
-
[6]CourtListener API v4 search, type=o, queries 'LCI(L)-1' (11 collision hits) and '"landing craft" asbestos' (2 non-qualifying hits), authenticated helper, 2026-09-29 [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-07 and -08
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener API v4 (authenticated) searches on 2026-09-29 located no qualifying litigation naming this vessel. Opinion search 'LCI(L)-1' returned 11 hits, all name collisions (LCI International Telecommunications Corp. matters; 'LCI' used for Lieber Correctional Institution and other entities; unrelated docket text). Opinion search '"landing craft" asbestos' returned 2 non-qualifying hits (a Navy accommodation-ladder personal-injury appeal naming no landing-craft hull; an ASBCA government-contract appeal). No asbestos opinion or docket naming USS LCI(L)-1, LCI(L) 1, or this hull was found.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- accessed 2026-09-29
- Limitations
- Sunken 1943 hull with no postwar service; any crew exposure claims would name defendants (builders, manufacturers, operators), not the hull number, so a hull-name negative does not establish that crew members never filed claims. RECAP/docket coverage of wartime-era and early asbestos litigation is inherently thin. Docket-type (type=r) and broader 'landing craft infantry' queries were attempted but fleet pacing blocked completion; logged in ledger.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-06
-
[7]Batch-4895 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS index and URL-pattern check; HyperWar Ships of the U.S. Navy 1940-1945 landing-craft section and DANFS mirror; NavSource Amphibious Photo Archive; USS LCI National Association 'Elsie Item' loss list; AFMM / LCI(L)-713 restoration disclosures; CourtListener sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-04, -05, -10, -11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located. No DANFS entry exists for this hull (the NHHC DANFS URL pattern and the HyperWar DANFS mirror both return 404 for LCI(L)-1; NavSource attributes this hull's history to Turner Publishing's USS LCI volume, not DANFS). No asbestos survey, abatement contract, or hazmat disclosure can exist from the usual channels - the ship sank in 1943, before such documentation regimes. The veterans' association loss list corroborates the sinking (aerial bombing off Bizerte, 17 August 1943) but contains no materials information. No litigation names the hull (see litigation_sweep row).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the hull was never surveyed and the wreck is in place in Lake Bizerte. A negative finding is a documentation result, not evidence of absence of exposure or of eligibility/ineligibility for any claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-07
-
[8]National Archives and Records Administration record groups RG 38, RG 19, RG 24 (mapped, not retrieved) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger row sl-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival path for any deeper record: NARA RG 38 (Chief of Naval Operations wartime records - holds the original action/loss reports of which the scanned report is a copy, and LCI(L) Flotilla Two / Group Four war diaries covering this craft's operations), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships records - LCI(L) design and construction correspondence and any materials specifications), and RG 24 (deck logs, if surviving, for the pre-loss period). None of these holdings is digitized; no retrieval was performed.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping is a research path, not evidence about this hull; holdings' contents were not examined and their coverage of this specific craft's materials is unknown.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-1-lcil1-08