Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 609-packet.md (1 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS LST-488 | Hull: LST-488 | Designation: LST, later LST(H)-488 | Class: LST-1 class
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-h-488-lsth488-pkt-609-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-488 - construction, World War II operations, LSTH-488 redesignation, decommissioning, MSTS service, Philippine transfer, awards (live NHHC page) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-488 entry, full text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull (DANFS, live NHHC page retrieved 2026-10-02): 'LST-488 was laid down on 11 January 1943 at Richmond, Calif., by Kaiser, Inc.; launched on 5 March 1943; and commissioned on 24 May 1943.' Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; participated in the occupation and defense of Cape Torokina (November 1943), capture and occupation of Guam (July 1944), Leyte landing (October 1944), and Lingayen Gulf landing (January 1945). 'Following the war, LST-488 was redesignated LSTH-488 on 15 September 1945 and performed occupation duty in the Far East until early January 1946. Upon her return to the United States, she was decommissioned on 11 January 1946. She was redesignated LST-488 on 6 March 1952 and served with the Military Sea Transportation Service as USNS LST-488 in the postwar period. The ship was transferred to the Republic of the Philippines as a lease on 15 July 1972.' LST-488 earned four battle stars and the Navy Unit Commendation for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1980
- Population
- Kaiser Richmond construction trades (1943); crew and embarked troops (1943-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; the DANFS entry contains no asbestos or materials content. DANFS's wording places the decommissioning 'upon her return to the United States' while NavSource places it in the Far East with same-day transfer to SCAJAP - NavSource carried, discrepancy flagged in the correction row. 'Redesignated LST-488 on 6 March 1952' in DANFS vs MSTS transfer 12 March 1952 in NavSource - both carried.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USNS T-LST-488 / ex-USS LST(H)-488 / USS LST-488 - designation timeline, unit assignments, campaign dates, occupation periods, SCAJAP transfer, MSTS service, Philippine lease/sale, specifications, commanding officers (live page, HTTP 200 verified 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160488.htm header, awards block, campaign table, occupation-period table, timeline, specifications block, commanding-officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 11 January 1943 at Kaiser, Inc., Richmond, CA; launched 5 March 1943; commissioned USS LST-488 on 24 May 1943, LTjg Jessie M. MacKey, USN, in command. Unit assignments: LST Flotilla Five (CAPT G.B. Carter), LST Group Fifteen (CDR V.K. Busck), LST Division Twenty-Nine; later LST Flotilla Three (CDR A.A. Ageton), LST Group Seven (LCDR E.B. Garrigures), LST Division Thirteen. Campaigns: occupation and defense of Cape Torokina 6 and 17 November 1943; capture and occupation of Guam 21-28 July 1944; Leyte landings 20 October 1944; Lingayen Gulf landings 4-15 January 1945. Redesignated Landing Ship Tank (Hospital) LST(H)-488 on 15 September 1945. Navy Occupation Service periods: 17-29 October 1945, 12 November - 2 December 1945, and 3-11 January 1946. Decommissioned 11 January 1946 and transferred to Commander Naval Forces Far East (COMNAVFE) Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP), redesignated Q009. Transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service 12 March 1952 and placed in service as USNS T-LST-488. Transferred on lease to the Philippines 15 July 1972 and named BPR Suriago Del Norte (LT-94); sold outright to the Philippines 5 March 1980; struck from the Naval Register, date unknown; final disposition 'fate unknown.' Spec block: 328' o.a., 50' beam, displacement 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; speed 11.6 kt; complement 13 officers / 104 enlisted, troop accommodations 16 officers / 147 enlisted; propulsion two General Motors 12-567A 900 hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, three diesel-drive 100 kW generators, two propellers 1,700 shp. Commanding officers: LTjg Jessie M. MacKey (24 May 1943 - 26 April 1944); LTjg Glenn E. Scott, USNR (26 April 1944 - May 1945); LT M.V. Lewis, USNR (May 1945 - 11 January 1946). Awards additionally include Philippine Presidential Unit Citation and Philippine Liberation Medal (2).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1980
- Population
- Kaiser Richmond construction trades (1943); crew and embarked troops (1943-46); SCAJAP Japanese-crewed operation (1946-52); MSTS civil-service crew (1952-72); Philippine Navy crew (1972-80)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; its milestone dates generally track DANFS/NVR. Philippine name spelled 'Suriago Del Norte' on the page (province spelling is 'Surigao del Norte'); hull number LT-94 here vs LT-97 in secondary sources - unresolved (gaps). 'Struck, date unknown' means no stricken date is documented. No asbestos or materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-02
-
[4]Consolidated era inference: NavSource ship-specific spec block (diesel plant, no boilers) + LST-1 class profile (lst-1-class.class.json ev-03, BuShips SDB-1945 v2 machinery data) + era amphibious-ship construction practice [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 160488.htm spec block; lst-1-class.class.json evidence ev-lst-1-class-03
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for this hull: LST-488 is a diesel-powered LST-1-class tank landing ship (2 x GM 12-567A diesels per NavSource spec block) - no boilers, so the steam-plant boiler/pipe-lagging pathway does not apply. Era-standard asbestos-relevant applications aboard a 1943 amphibious hull of this type: diesel engine exhaust lagging and gaskets, engine-room thermal and acoustic insulation, deck coverings/tile, bulkhead and accommodation insulation, and winch/crane brake linings. The 15 September 1945 conversion to LST(H) hospital configuration added interior rework of accommodation and tank-deck spaces - conversion work of this era commonly disturbed or added insulation materials.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1980
- Population
- Kaiser Richmond construction trades (1943); conversion-yard trades for the LST(H) rework (1945); crew, embarked troops, and hospital patients/staff (1943-46); MSTS crew (1952-72); Philippine Navy crew (1972-80)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation schedule, material list, survey, or work package located for LST-488. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity, no fiber content, no exposure for any individual. The BuShips SDB-1945 v2 scan cited by the class profile returned HTTP 404 on 2026-10-02 (shipscribe.com path dead, no Wayback capture) - machinery data here rests on the NavSource ship-specific spec block instead.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-03
-
[5]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
- AJIM 11(3):359-373, article/abstract
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study 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 LST-1-class hull was mass-produced at Kaiser Richmond - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard U.S. hulls, with documented worker-protection weaknesses.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or this class and establishes nothing about materials aboard this hull, quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. DOI resolves to Wiley (onlinelibrary.wiley.com); automated fetch returns HTTP 403 (bot block) - citation is to the published article, abstract-level.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-04
-
[6]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, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - spanning this hull's entire construction (1943) and U.S./MSTS service era (1943-72).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- 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 text not retrieved - gao.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch on 2026-10-02 (standing defect per BATCH-01); content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-05
-
[7]U.S. EPA Superfund/CERCLA site record: 'Kaiser Alum & Chem Co Shipyard #2,' Richmond, CA - EPA/RCRA ID CAD980637557, EPA Region 9 (live page, HTTP 200 verified 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- EPA cumulis site info page, id=0901909; shipyard-exposure-map shipyards.json entry 'kaiser-shipyards' (ev-kaiser-shipyards-epa-01/-02)
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- Yard-level documentation for this hull's builder: the EPA CERCLA record covers the former Kaiser shipyard property at Richmond, CA (the Kaiser complex that built LST-488), and the companion DTSC site record for the Kaiser Richmond Shipyard documents asbestos-containing materials in site soils and structures under the Richmond Harbor Restoration Project. The Kaiser shipbuilding complex built hundreds of vessels at Richmond 1940-1945 with peak wartime employment in the tens of thousands.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- site record current; build period 1940-45
- Population
- Kaiser Richmond construction trades (1940-45)
- Limitations
- Yard/site-level environmental record, not a hull record: documents contamination of the former shipyard site - it does not name LST-488 and does not establish that any material aboard this hull contained asbestos. DTSC companion page (dtsc.ca.gov SiteCleanup Kaiser_Richmond_Shipyard) returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch on 2026-10-02; EPA page live. Kaiser 'Shipyard #2' site record is one of several Kaiser Richmond parcels - exact yard-parcel mapping to the LST-488 build site (Richmond Yard No. 4 per secondary sources) is not established by the EPA record alone.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-06
-
[8]Batch-6474 search ledger (this record): live NHHC DANFS LST-488 page; NavSource 160488.htm; CourtListener opinion + docket searches (hull and name variants); NARA deck-log guidance pages; EPA/DTSC Kaiser yard records; secondary cross-checks (Wikipedia - not cited) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-h-488-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, material schedule, or docketed litigation naming USS LST-488 / LST(H)-488 / T-LST-488 / Surigao del Norte was found in the public sources searched. DANFS and NavSource entries contain no asbestos or insulation-material statement. CourtListener searches (authenticated via fleet helper) returned zero results for: 'LST-488' opinions, 'LST 488' opinions, 'LST-488' dockets, '"Surigao del Norte" asbestos' opinions, 'T-LST-488' opinions, and 'Surigao del Norte' plain opinions. Two low-yield variant sweeps ('LST(H)-488'/'LSTH-488' opinions, 'LST 488' dockets) remained blocked by fleet-wide pacing at file time - logged blocked, not as negative results (see search_ledger). The only 'asbestos aboard LSTs' material on the open web is law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 2026-10-02
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943 Kaiser-built amphibious hull that underwent an interior hospital conversion in 1945 is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, but that is inference, not ship-proven fact. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-07
-
[9]NARA guidance pages: '1941-1959 Deck Logs' (RG 24 Entry 118 series; National Archives Identifier 581208) and 'Logbooks of the US Navy at the National Archives' - both live (HTTP 200 verified 2026-10-02); plus NARA-cataloged photographs of this hull referenced in NavSource captions (80-G-202485; NAID 193852929; NAID 193852167) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA logbook guidance pages + NavSource photo-caption NARA identifiers
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival lead (not retrieved - requires NARA catalog/research-room work): LST-488's commissioned-period deck logs (May 1943 - January 1946, spanning four amphibious operations and the LST(H) conversion) are the era covered by NARA's 1941-1959 deck-log series (RG 24 Entry 118); whether this hull's logs are digitized was not verified. NavSource captions already tie three NARA-cataloged photographs to this hull: NARA 80-G-202485 (LST-353 with LST-488 and LST-70 at Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, 6 November 1943) and NAIDs 193852929 / 193852167 (Empress Augusta Bay unloading, 17 November 1943). SCAJAP Q009 operating records (1946-52) and MSTS T-LST-488 period records are additional untapped leads.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1980 records
- Limitations
- Record-group and photo-ID mapping only - no box-level or item-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents in this hull's deck logs is unknown. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-08
-
[10]Cross-source discrepancy check: DANFS LST-488 entry vs NavSource 160488.htm timeline vs Wikipedia LST-488 article (secondary cross-check only, not cited as a record source) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS entry text; NavSource timeline; Wikipedia USS LST-488 infobox (cross-check only)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION/discrepancy log: (a) Decommission location - DANFS wording ('upon her return to the United States, she was decommissioned on 11 January 1946') implies a U.S. decommissioning; NavSource's detailed sequence (last occupation period ending 3-11 January 1946; decommissioned 11 January 1946 and transferred to COMNAVFE SCAJAP as Q009) places the decommissioning in the Far East. NavSource carried. (b) MSTS milestone - DANFS gives 'redesignated LST-488 on 6 March 1952'; NavSource gives MSTS transfer/in-service as USNS T-LST-488 on 12 March 1952. Both carried as related but distinct events (designation vs custody). (c) Philippine identity - NavSource: 'BPR Suriago Del Norte (LT-94)'; Wikipedia: 'Surigao del Norte,' hull symbol LT-97. Philippine hull number is unresolved between LT-94 and LT-97; name spelling follows the province 'Surigao del Norte.' (d) Builder wording - DANFS 'Kaiser, Inc.'; secondary sources specify Permanente Metals Corporation Richmond Yard No. 4 - consistent (Kaiser-operated Richmond complex).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1946-1980
- Limitations
- Corrects/clarifies publication-level discrepancies; none materially affects identity or asbestos status. Wikipedia is used only as a cross-check flag, never as a record citation. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-488-09