Evidence
7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).
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[1]DANFS, Steelhead (SS-280), Vol. 7 (verbatim hazegray .htm transcription via Wayback) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS service narrative and spec block (Wayback capture of hazegray transcription)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 1 June 1942 by the Portsmouth (N.H.) Navy Yard; launched 11 September 1942 (sponsor Mrs. Marguerite Brown); commissioned 7 December 1942, Lt. Comdr. David L. Whelchel. Six battle stars; sank converted salvage vessel Yamabiko Maru and shared in damaging tanker Kazalhaya (finished by Tinosa SS-283). Routed to the west coast for overhaul in late 1944; while in drydock on 1 October 1944 she suffered a serious fire requiring installation of a new conning tower; repairs ran to 16 April 1945 when she stood out of San Francisco. Decommissioned (reserve, out of commission) 29 June 1946 and attached to the Pacific Reserve Fleet; placed in service in reserve May 1947 as a reserve training ship; struck 1 April 1960.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942-1960
- Population
- Portsmouth NY construction trades (1942); San Francisco-area yard trades (1944-45, unnamed); Mare Island reserve workers (1946-47); crew (1942-1946)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. The 1944-45 overhaul/fire-repair yard is not named in DANFS (San Francisco area); the '10 January 1945' torpedoing date inside the third-patrol narrative reads as a misprint for 1944 - logged in gaps. Transcription is the .htm variant; live NHHC page pattern returned 404 batch-wide.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-01
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[2]NavSource Online Submarine Photo Archive, Steelhead (SS-280) page - milestones, disposal detail, drydock photos (volunteer-compiled archive) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block, disposition line, and dated photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource supplements: built at Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, ME; decommissioned 29 June 1946 at Mare Island Navy Yard and laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Mare Island Group; placed in service as a Naval Reserve Training Vessel 12 November 1947 at San Diego, CA; struck 1 April 1960; sold for scrap 21 December 1960. Photos document her in Mare Island dry docks with Sawfish, Pargo and Puffer in January-February 1947.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942-1960
- Population
- Mare Island drydock/reserve workers (1946-47); San Diego NRT personnel (1947-1960); scrap workers (1960)
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archive; consistent with DANFS on milestones. NRT in-service date 12 November 1947 (NavSource) vs 'May 1947' (DANFS) - both logged. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-02
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[3]Era inference built on: DANFS spec block + service history (diesel-electric DERD plant, no boilers); BuShips Ships' Data 1945 submarine machinery tables (Gato-era DERD drive, 4 diesels, ~5,400 hp); shipyard-exposure-map documented asbestos product lists for portsmouth-naval-shipyard, mare-island-naval-shipyard [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS service narrative; BuShips SDB 1945 submarine tables; shipyards.json product lists
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Construction at Portsmouth Navy Yard (Jun-Dec 1942), a documented west-coast overhaul and drydock fire repair (Oct 1944-Apr 1945, San Francisco area, yard unnamed), and Mare Island inactivation/reserve drydockings (1946-Jan/Feb 1947) define her asbestos-relevant disturbance windows. As a diesel-electric fleet boat she carried no boilers or steam plant; era-standard asbestos applications for the type were diesel exhaust lagging, engine gaskets and packing, acoustic/thermal hull insulation, and insulation around galley/refrigeration equipment. Naval Reserve training custody at San Diego (1947-1960) is a lower-intensity maintenance window.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942-1960
- Population
- Portsmouth NY trades (1942); San Francisco-area yard trades (1944-45); Mare Island trades (1946-47); crew (1942-1946); NRT personnel (1947-1960)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey or material list located for SS-280. Names era-standard applications for diesel-electric boats and the hull's documented yard events as disturbance pathways, not confirmed installed materials; establishes no quantities and no exposure for any individual. The 1944-45 overhaul/fire-repair yard is unnamed in sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-03
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[4]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 - covering her 1942 construction, wartime overhauls including the 1944-45 conning-tower replacement, and reserve-era custody.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- 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 returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-04
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[5]Kase v. Metalclad Insulation Corp., Cal. Ct. App. (4th Dist.) 2021 (CourtListener opinions 4324658, 4332654) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion, specification-history discussion (SUBSAFE/MIL-I-24244)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- A docketed asbestos personal-injury opinion recounts that after USS Thresher's 1963 loss the Navy created the SUBSAFE program, which issued procurement specification MIL-I-24244 covering asbestos-containing insulation for submarines - court-documented evidence that asbestos-containing insulation was specified in the submarine construction and maintenance regime.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 2021 (opinion); regime described 1963-forward
- Population
- Navy submarine construction/maintenance trades, SUBSAFE era
- Limitations
- Documents the spec regime only; names no vessel as an exposure site. Postdates this hull's USN maintenance era - she was in reserve/NRT custody from 1946 and scrapped in 1960, before SUBSAFE existed; the spec documents the regime governing sister hulls, not this vessel's materials. Does not establish exposure, causation, quantity, or eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-05
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[6]Dryfka v. Trane US, Inc., Notice of Removal, ECF No. 2, S.D. Ill. No. 3:13-cv-01019; Lyautey v. Alfa Laval, Inc., Notice of Removal exhibits, ECF 1-2, S.D. Fla. No. 1:10-cv-22891; Keri Heath, 'World War II-era vessels in Galveston to undergo asbestos abatement', Galveston Daily News, 27 Jul 2020 (located via the Gato class profile's litigation sweep) [court_record]
- Locator
- Dryfka ECF 2 service-history recital; Lyautey ECF 1-2 exposure sheets pp. 37-39; galvnews.com 27 Jul 2020 (per class profile ev-gato-class-04/05/10)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- The Gato class's documented ship-level asbestos landscape: Dryfka v. Trane US recites a Navy reservist's alleged asbestos exposure aboard USS Drum (SS-228) as a reserve instructor at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard May 1966-Feb 1967; Lyautey v. Alfa Laval attaches exposure sheets listing USS Cavalla (SS-244) among Navy jobsites (1954-1974 window); and the Galveston Daily News reported in 2020 that asbestos had been found in the public areas of museum boat Cavalla (SS-244), with an approved abatement. All are pleading-stage or press-stage items for sister hulls, not this vessel. No pleading naming this vessel was located.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- Service windows 1954-1974; filings 2010-2013; reporting 2020
- Population
- Sailors and yard workers aboard sister Gato-class hulls (SS-228, SS-244)
- Limitations
- Pleading-level allegations and a news account for different hulls; unadjudicated; carried as class context showing the class's litigation/documentation landscape, not as evidence about this vessel. Does not establish exposure, causation, quantity, or eligibility for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-06
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[7]Batch-36 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription via Wayback/hazegray; NavSource; CourtListener searches (blocked by throttle - see ledger); web litigation-footprint check; GAO product page [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-steelhead-ss280-01 through -07
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or qualifying asbestos case naming USS Steelhead (SS-280) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener searches were throttled this session (HTTP 429, retry-after ~10,339 s observed 2026-09-18; web UI 403) - logged as blocked and flagged for QA re-run.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-steelhead-ss280-07