The USS Shields (DD-596) was a Fletcher-class destroyer that served with distinction during World War II, the Korean War, and throughout the Cold War period. The vessel participated in combat operations, peacekeeping missions, and training exercises across the Pacific. Like all warships constructed during this era, the USS Shields contained extensive asbestos materials integrated into its construction and systems, creating the risk of mesothelioma and other health hazards for her crew members and the shipyard personnel who worked on the vessel throughout her operational service.
About the USS Shields
Fletcher-class destroyers like the USS Shields were among the most reliable of the U.S. Navy’s destroyer fleet during and after World War II. With an overall length of 376 feet 5 inches in overall length, a beam of 39 feet 7 inches, and a draft of 17 feet 9 inches, the ship displaced 2,050 tons when fully loaded. Capable of achieving speeds up to 35.2 knots, these vessels and their complement of 329 crew members were used in tactical situations that required a rapid response.[1]
The USS Shields carried a formidable armament specifically designed for its multi-operational role and assignments, including five 5-inch dual-purpose guns for surface and anti-aircraft engagement, ten 40mm anti-aircraft guns for close-in defense, ten 21-inch torpedo tubes for anti-ship warfare, and various depth charge equipment for anti-submarine operations. This comprehensive weapons suite allowed the destroyer to fulfill diverse missions, from fleet screening and convoy escort to shore bombardment and anti-submarine patrol duties.
Throughout her service career, the Shields demonstrated exceptional operational flexibility. During World War II, she conducted escort missions and patrol operations in the Pacific theater, while her Korean War deployments involved coastal bombardment and fire support missions. During peacetime operations, the vessel participated in fleet exercises, diplomatic missions, and reserve training activities, maintaining America’s naval readiness and presence in strategic regions worldwide.
Naming of the USS Shields
The USS Shields was named in honor of Thomas Shields, a U.S. Navy Purser who served with distinction in the early 19th century. Born in New Castle, Delaware, Shields was appointed to the role of midshipman in 1804 and served aboard several vessels before requesting transfer to the Purser corps due to physical limitations. He led a successful expedition against retreating British forces following the Battle of New Orleans, capturing numerous prisoners and destroying enemy vessels.[2]
Construction
Construction of the destroyer began in August 1943, at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, as part of the wartime emergency shipbuilding program. The vessel was launched in September 1944, with First Lieutenant Margaret Shields Farr, WAC, serving as sponsor—she was the great-granddaughter of Purser Shields. The ship was commissioned in February 1945 under Commander George B. Madden, USN.[2]
Operational History and Deployments
World War II Service
The USS Shields’ shakedown cruise lasted from March to April 1945 and included a brief escort assignment with the battleship Iowa (BB-61. In May, the ship left Puget Sound for the Pacific theater, and after training operations near Pearl Harbor, she joined convoy PD-413-T bound for Eniwetok Atoll.
The ship’s World War II combat service lasted just three months, from May 24th to August 15th, and consisted primarily of escort and patrol duties between strategic Pacific bases including Eniwetok, Ulithi, Leyte, Okinawa, and Borneo. Her only direct combat engagement took place in June, when she conducted shore bombardment of Japanese installations at Miri, Borneo, in support of Australian ground forces.
When the war ended in August, the Shields was stationed in Okinawa. For the next month, she escorted transport units carrying occupation forces to Jinsen, Korea, then from September through the remainder of 1945, she operated in the Gulf of Po Hai, conducting naval demonstrations off northern China and reconnaissance missions at ports including Chefoo, Chinwangto, Weihaiwei, Taku, Dairen, and Port Arthur.
The Shields concluded her Far Eastern deployment with escort duties for aircraft carriers Antietam (CV-36) and Boxer (CV-21) and patrol operations with the Yangtze River Patrol Force based at Shanghai. She returned to San Pedro Bay, California, in February 1946, and was decommissioned and placed in reserve.
Korean War Era
The start of the Korean conflict led to the USS Shields being returned to active service. The ship was recommissioned in July 1950 and immediately deployed to the Far East, arriving in September. This was the first of three Korean War deployments, during which she operated along the Korean coast near the bombline and Kojo area to provide fire support for the First ROK Corps and First Marine Division. She participated in the assault on Kojo and conducted harassing and interdiction fire missions until returning home in February 1952.[2]
Her second deployment during the Korean conflict began in November 1952. Once again, she was assigned to coastal patrol and fire support operations, though this deployment expanded to include anti-submarine warfare exercises off Japan and Okinawa. The ship’s second deployment concluded with training missions for Chinese Nationalist naval forces at Taiwan before returning to San Diego in June 1953.
The ship’s third Far Eastern cruise began after six months of West Coast operations. Arriving off the coast of Korea in February 1954, she operated with Task Force 77 until being reassigned to the Philippines on February 21. Operating from Subic Bay during March and April, she patrolled the Indochina coast with Carrier Task Group 70.2. After diplomatic duties at Hong Kong and undergoing maintenance at Yokosuka, Japan, she conducted fleet exercises before returning to San Diego in July 1954.
The USS Shields received the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and three battle stars for her Korean War service.
Later Service and Decommissioning
Between 1954 and 1963, the USS Shields completed seven additional Western Pacific deployments while maintaining normal destroyer operations from her home port of San Diego. Notable achievements during this period included participating in commemorating Theodore Roosevelt’s “Great White Fleet” return to San Francisco and receiving the Battle Efficiency “E” award for combat readiness in August 1960.
In November 1963, the Shields transitioned to Naval Reserve Training duties as part of Reserve Destroyer Squadron 27, operating with a reduced crew for the next eight years. After a March 1972 survey that concluded that modernization costs would be too expensive, the vessel was decommissioned in July 1972 and transferred to the Brazilian Navy.
How Was Asbestos Used in Fletcher-class Destroyers like the USS Shields?
The USS Shields was constructed during an intensive wartime shipbuilding period, where the military’s focus was on protecting both personnel and physical assets. In the period when the Shields was being built, asbestos materials were considered a miracle mineral because of its exceptional fire resistance properties, lightweight characteristics, superior insulation capabilities, vibration-dampening qualities, and electrical non-conductivity. It was used extensively in virtually every naval vessel’s design and construction, especially because its affordability and widespread availability made it an economically attractive choice. All of these factors led to the military making asbestos use mandatory in multiple applications throughout naval vessels.
Today, we are well aware that asbestos is carcinogenic and of the extensive scientific research linking asbestos to a range of health dangers. The same was true of the manufacturing companies that produced and supplied the asbestos products to the military, but these companies deliberately withheld this critical information from military procurement officials. Their decision to prioritize corporate profits over the safety of innocent people resulted in catastrophic long-term health consequences for countless sailors and shipyard employees who encountered these hazardous materials.
Asbestos-containing components were integrated throughout the USS Shields’ structure and systems, including:
- The destroyer’s propulsion systems included four Babcock & Wilcox boilers and two General Electric turbines. This equipment incorporated extensive asbestos insulation to surround the boilers and turbine assemblies, as well as steam piping, pumping equipment, and associated machinery. Thermal lagging and insulation wrapped virtually every high-temperature component and surface within the compartments holding this equipment, and as a result, these areas represented the highest risk of inhaling asbestos fibers.
- The ship’s electrical infrastructure included asbestos for its exceptional insulation properties. This included power distribution systems, control panels, switchgear, and motor applications. These asbestos materials were considered essential for preventing electrical fires and protecting sensitive equipment from thermal damage during normal operations and combat conditions.
- Structural fire protection throughout the vessel included both insulation and other materials containing compressed asbestos in bulkhead construction, overhead installations, ventilation system components, and fire-resistant barriers. These materials were present in crew quarters, dining areas, corridors, and workspace locations, making it inevitable that personnel aboard the vessel encountered asbestos, regardless of their specific duty assignments.
- Combat systems and weapons installations incorporated asbestos materials for thermal protection, vibration control, and fire suppression. This included gun mounts, ammunition storage areas, fire control equipment, and sensitive electronic systems, all of which were critical for maintaining operational effectiveness during combat engagements and protecting these systems from battle damage.
The Shields’ operational history included several overhauls, modernizations, and damage repair sessions. While necessary, each created new opportunities for asbestos to be disturbed and release its fibers into the air, as the work almost always required the removal and replacement of deteriorated asbestos insulation or damaged asbestos-containing materials. Each of these episodes dramatically increased the exposure risk for personnel involved in these operations.
Routine shipboard activities, including regular maintenance procedures, firefighting training exercises, and damage control drills, similarly contributed to the asbestos exposure of crew members. Additionally, many depositionspresented by veterans diagnosed with asbestos-related disease noted that shipboard vibrations from machinery operation and weapon firing would cause asbestos dust to fall through seams in the vessel’s corridors and be released into the vessel’s atmosphere and ventilation systems.
Health Consequences for USS Shields Personnel
Naval personnel assigned to the USS Shields encountered continuous asbestos exposure throughout their service, and so did any shipyard employees who worked on construction, maintenance, and repair teams. These exposures created serious long-term health risks of asbestos-related diseases that can remain undetected for decades.
Asbestos fibers, when inhaled or ingested, can pierce the cells of the mesothelium, an organ that lines the pleural and peritoneal cavities. Once there, their unique physical and chemical properties resist the body’s natural elimination processes and eventually result in genetic mutations and malignant tumor development that develop over decades without the veteran realizing it’s happening.
The latency period for asbestos-related diseases typically ranges from 20 to 50 years, and the internal damage that is done before symptoms appear can be life-threatening. While some asbestos-related conditions, such as pleural plaquesand asbestosis, cause chronic disability and breathing difficulties, others, including mesothelioma and lung cancer, frequently prove fatal.
Who Faced the Highest Risk for Asbestos Exposure Aboard the USS Shields?
Although anybody who spends time in an asbestos-contaminated environment faces potential health risks, certain duty assignments on the USS Shields resulted in significantly greater exposure levels due to specific work environments and job responsibilities. Those working in the engineering and propulsion spaces suffered the most intensive and prolonged asbestos exposure, as did damage control teams who routinely handled asbestos materials during training exercises, maintenance operations, and emergency response procedures. Electricians, pipefitters, and other specialists working on heat-generating shipboard systems faced elevated exposure risks due to their frequent contact with asbestos-insulated equipment and components.
Naval veterans, and particularly those who served aboard destroyer-class vessels, have been diagnosed with disproportionately higher rates of asbestos-related diseases than the rest of the population, and this is a direct result of the constant and concentrated exposure they faced while serving. Extended deployment schedules in the cramped environment of a destroyer create substantial cumulative exposure doses. Research has shown that to is one of the biggest contributors to the probability of developing mesothelioma or other asbestos-related conditions.
Help for USS Shields Veterans Diagnosed with Mesothelioma
Former USS Shields crew members who’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases may qualify for compensation from Veterans Affairs, asbestos trust funds, legal settlements, or jury awards after filing a personal injury lawsuit.
Veterans Affairs Claims
The Department of Veterans Affairs has established specialized benefit categories recognizing service-connected asbestos exposure and resulting medical conditions. Veterans who successfully establish a connection between their military service and their diagnosis qualify for disability compensation, frequently rated at 100% disability levels. These benefits also provide comprehensive medical care through the VA’s integrated medical system, including specialized respiratory medicine departments, advanced diagnostic capabilities, and treatment programs specifically designed for asbestos-related diseases.
Personal Injury Legal Action
Veterans affected by asbestos exposure retain the right to file personal injury lawsuits against manufacturers and suppliers of asbestos products used by the Navy. These claims typically focus on the companies’ failure to provide adequate warnings about their products’ dangers, despite knowing the associated risks and potential health consequences. Successful litigation against these manufacturers and suppliers has resulted in substantial financial compensation for veterans suffering from asbestos-related diseases, and in many cases, in generous settlements negotiated between the parties before the case ever goes to a jury.
Asbestos Trust Fund Compensation
Dozens of former asbestos companies were driven into bankruptcy after being sued for millions by mesothelioma victims. As part of their reorganization agreements, they were required to establish specialized trust funds to make sure that future victims of their negligence could get justice. While the payment amounts from these funds are typically lower than what is seen in litigation, collectively the trust funds hold more than $30 billion, and they offer expedited payment processes without requiring victims to participate in lengthy, adversarial legal proceedings.
Contact an Asbestos Attorney
If you spent time serving or working on the USS Shields, it’s important to inform your doctor about your exposure history so they can begin monitoring your health and ordering appropriate screening. If you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma, an experienced mesothelioma attorney can provide answers to all your questions and comprehensive information about your available options. Whether you’re considering VA benefits, asbestos trust fund claims, or personal injury litigation, these compassionate professionals can provide essential guidance, help you with documenting your service history, identify specific asbestos-containing products used aboard Fletcher-class destroyers like the Shields, and develop effective strategies for maximizing financial support and security for you and your family.
References
View All References
