USS Tullibee (SS-284)

Name
USS Tullibee
Hull designation
SS-284
Vessel class
Gato
Evidence tier
Tier 2
Evidence entries
7
Record ID
uss-tullibee-ss284
Dataset version
2026.10.12-rc.1
Canonical URL
https://asbestosatlas.org/ships/uss-tullibee-ss284

Evidence

7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).

  1. [1]DANFS, Tullibee (SS-284), Vol. 7 p.330 (verbatim hazegray 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 Tullibee, laid down 1 April 1942 at Mare Island, Calif., by the Mare Island Navy Yard; launched 11 November 1942 (sponsor Mrs. Kenneth C. Hurd); commissioned 15 February 1943, Comdr. Charles F. Brindupke. Docked for repairs twice at Pearl Harbor for air-fitting leaks, then entered the navy yard there until 11 July 1943. Four war patrols; sank Kaisho Maru, Chicago Maru, and net tender Hiro Maru; three battle stars. On 26 March 1944 in the Palaus area she was sunk by one of her own torpedoes that ran a circular course; sole survivor Gunner's Mate C. W. Kukyendall (taken POW, survived the war); struck from the Navy list 29 July 1944.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1942-1944
    Population
    Mare Island NY construction trades (1942-43); Pearl Harbor navy-yard repair workers (May-Jul 1943); crew (1943-1944, 79 lost, 1 POW survivor)
    Limitations
    Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. Launch date: 11 November 1942 (DANFS) vs 7 October 1942 (NavSource header and captions, which mirrors Tinosa's launch date - reads as a transcription error) - DANFS adopted, logged in gaps. Live NHHC page pattern returned 404 batch-wide; verbatim transcription used.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-tullibee-ss284-01
  2. [2]NavSource Online Submarine Photo Archive, Tullibee (SS-284) page - milestones, launch photos, loss documentation (volunteer-compiled archive) [other_primary]
    Locator
    NavSource spec block, disposition line, and dated photo captions
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    NavSource supplements: sunk on 4th patrol by own torpedo, 26 March 1944, in the Palaus area, one survivor (79 men lost per ComSubForPac report); struck from the Naval Register 29 July 1944. Launch photos and header carry a 7 October 1942 launch date conflicting with DANFS's 11 November 1942 (the 7 October date duplicates Tinosa's launch - apparent transcription error). Survivor Clifford Kuykendall's POW account is documented via a 2009 AP story carried on the page.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1942-1944
    Population
    Mare Island NY trades (1942-43); crew (1943-1944, 79 lost)
    Limitations
    Volunteer-compiled archive; consistent with DANFS except the launch-date error - DANFS adopted. No asbestos content.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-tullibee-ss284-02
  3. [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, pearl-harbor-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 (Apr 1942-Feb 1943) and a documented navy-yard repair period at Pearl Harbor (two dockings, then yard entry to 11 July 1943) define her asbestos-relevant disturbance windows - a construction-era-only hull lost on her fourth patrol. 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.
    Verification
    inferred
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    class_or_era
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1942-1944
    Population
    Mare Island NY trades (1942-43); Pearl Harbor navy-yard repair workers (1943); crew (1943-1944, 79 lost)
    Limitations
    Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey or material list located for SS-284. 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.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-tullibee-ss284-03
  4. [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 1942-43 construction and wartime repair period (she was lost before the substitution era).
    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-tullibee-ss284-04
  5. [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 entire existence - she was lost March 1944, nearly two decades before SUBSAFE; the spec never governed this vessel. Does not establish exposure, causation, quantity, or eligibility.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-tullibee-ss284-05
  6. [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-tullibee-ss284-06
  7. [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-tullibee-ss284-01 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 Tullibee (SS-284) 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-tullibee-ss284-07

Attribution

Compiled by
Paul Danziger; Rod de Llano
Publisher
Danziger & De Llano, LLP
License
CC-BY-4.0
Citation
Danziger, P., and De Llano, R. (2026). AsbestosAtlas Navy Vessel Asbestos Exposure Dataset. Danziger & De Llano, LLP. DOI: not yet assigned
Dataset version
asbestosatlas-ships-2026.10.12-rc.1
DOI
not yet assigned