Evidence
7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).
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[1]DANFS, Sunfish (SS-281), 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: the first Sunfish, laid down 26 September 1941 by the Navy Yard, Mare Island, Calif.; launched 2 May 1942 (sponsor Mrs. J. W. Fowler); commissioned 15 July 1942, Comdr. R. W. Peterson. Eleven war patrols; sank Kosei Maru, converted gunboat Edo Maru, Kozon Maru, Kunishima Maru, Shingubari Maru, Shanmai Maru, Taihei Maru, Chihaya Maru, Etashima Maru, Edogawa Maru, Seisho Maru, transport Dairen Maru, Manryu Maru, Coast Defense Vessel No. 73, Kaiko Maru, and Taisei Maru; nine battle stars. Post-shakedown availability at San Francisco (1942); overhaul at San Francisco March-June 1944 (yard unnamed); refit at Midway August 1944; overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard 7 May-31 July 1945. Decommissioned at Mare Island 26 December 1945; reserve until struck 1 May 1960.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1941-1960
- Population
- Mare Island NY construction trades (1941-42); San Francisco-area yard trades (1942, 1944); Mare Island yard trades (1945); crew (1942-1945)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. The 1942 post-shakedown availability and 1944 overhaul are 'San Francisco' events with the yard unnamed; the 1945 overhaul is named Mare Island Naval Shipyard. Transcription is the .htm variant; live NHHC page pattern returned 404 batch-wide.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sunfish-ss281-01
-
[2]NavSource Online Submarine Photo Archive, Sunfish (SS-281) page - milestones, disposal detail, yard-period photo documentation (volunteer-compiled archive) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block, disposition line, and dated photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource supplements: laid down 25 September 1941 (one-day variance vs DANFS 26 September); decommissioned 26 December 1945 at Mare Island Navy Yard and laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Mare Island Group; placed in service April 1949 as a Naval Reserve Training Vessel at Vallejo, CA, until 1960; struck 1 May 1960; sold for scrapping 29 November 1960 to Learner & Co., Oakland, CA for $27,287 and removed 15 December 1960. Photos document her 1945 overhaul window at Mare Island (6 May-25 July with five sea trials) and her after deck being removed at Mare Island in August 1962.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1941-1962
- Population
- Mare Island yard trades (1945, 1962 stripping); Vallejo NRT personnel (1949-1960); Learner & Co. scrap workers (1960)
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archive; consistent with DANFS on milestones except the one-day laid-down variance - DANFS adopted. The NRT service (Apr 1949-1960) and post-strike 1962 stripping photo are NavSource-only facts, flagged. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sunfish-ss281-02
-
[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 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 Mare Island Navy Yard (Sep 1941-Jul 1942), a post-shakedown availability (1942) and overhaul (Mar-Jun 1944) at unnamed San Francisco yards, and a named Mare Island Naval Shipyard overhaul (7 May-31 Jul 1945) plus inactivation (Sep-Dec 1945) 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. Post-strike stripping at Mare Island in 1962 is documented by photo.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1941-1962
- Population
- Mare Island NY trades (1941-42, 1945); San Francisco-area yard trades (1942, 1944); crew (1942-1945); NRT personnel (1949-1960); Mare Island stripping workers (1962)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey or material list located for SS-281. 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 1942/1944 San Francisco yards are unnamed; the 1962 stripping scope is undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sunfish-ss281-03
-
[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 1941-42 construction, wartime availabilities and overhauls, and reserve/NRT 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-sunfish-ss281-04
-
[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 struck in 1960 and stripped/scrapped by 1962, before the spec issued; 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-sunfish-ss281-05
-
[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-sunfish-ss281-06
-
[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-sunfish-ss281-01 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 Sunfish (SS-281) 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-sunfish-ss281-07