USS Pictor (AF-54)

The USS Pictor (AF-54) was one of the U.S. Navy’s Alstede-class stores ships, designed to carry replenishment cargos to Navy vessels at sea.

THe USS Pictor was built in 1942 by the Moore Shipbuilding Company in Oakland, California, and originally launched under the name S.S. Great Republic. The Pictor served as a commercial carrier for seven years until she was acquired by the Navy, which was in desperate need of additional sealift capacity after the outbreak of the Korean War. The USS Pictor was commissioned for Navy duty on September 13th, 1950, and deployed with the Pacific Fleet shortly thereafter. The USS Pictor was one of few Navy ships with the capacity to transport refrigerated stores, and as such she saw extensive service during her time with the Navy.

During the Korean War, the USS Pictor played primarily a supporting role for the Navy’s combat ships. However, towards the end of the war, the USS Pictor was involved in the Korea, Summer-Fall 1953 campaign, earning one battle star for her role during that campaign. Over the course of the war the USS Pictor made three deployments to Korean waters, easily meeting the minimum requirements for a Korean Service Medal, which she was awarded retroactively.

During her 19-year career with the Navy, the USS Pictor underwent several modifications and modernizations. The Navy ordered numerous FRAM (Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization) overhauls for the Pictor, and certain points in her career she was equipped with sets of 40mm and 20mm guns. The work required to install and remove these weapons mounts was carried in Bremerton, Washington, where shipyard workers were undoubtedly exposed to asbestos fibers that had been trapped within the Pictor’s hull. Pictor’s crew also was likely subjected to asbestos exposure upon their return to the ship, as the asbestos that was stirred up by the overhaul crews had a tendency to remain in the ship’s atmosphere for weeks.

The USS Pictor served with the Navy’s Pacific Fleet in a peacetime role until 1965, when increasing hostilities in Vietnam forced the Navy to send dozens of vessels to Southeast Asia. The Pictor served with distinction for four year in Vietnam, earning a total of eight battle stars for her service. The USS Pictor was recalled to the United States in mid-1969, however, and eventually decommissioned in December of that year. On June 1st, 1976, the USS Pictor was struck from the Naval Register and sold for scrap.

The brave men and women who served our country in the military have long understood that their duties come with expected risks, whether or not they experience time in battle. What many didn't know about during most of the 20th century, however, was a risk that had nothing to do with bullets or enemy actions: the possibility of diseases caused by exposure to asbestos.

To safeguard the people on a ship, along with the ship itself, from fire and excessive heat, materials with excellent insulating properties are needed when building a ship. During the time when USS Pictor and other ships like her were built, the fibrous mineral asbestos was commonly utilized in shipyards because of its property of being able to insulate against flames. The problem with its use is, along with its insulation abilities, asbestos is also shown to cause debilitating illnesses as asbestosis and peritoneal mesothelioma. The harm done by asbestos occurs when very small fibers are breathed in or swallowed; they can infiltrate the respiratory system and sometimes the stomach, leading to scarring in the case of pleural plaques and damage at the cellular level in the case of lung cancer and mesothelioma.

During an enemy attack or while struggling to survive catastrophic storms, the possibility of someday developing pleural mesothelioma was undoubtedly the furthest thing from most sailors' thoughts. However, when a navy ship was subject to damage from enemy fire, during severe weather or in a collision with another ship, it usually exposed asbestos-containing material and allowed it to be exposed to the elements, creating hazards on top of the obvious ones. And even when not faced with crisis conditions, those who served on ships like USS Pictor still faced at least a certain level of exposure since virtually all areas of the vessel contained parts made with asbestos. In addition, a sailor who spent time in enclosed spaces where asbestos was present, such as a ship's boilers or engine room, was especially at risk. Even shipyard personnel such as electricians were subject to coming down with asbestos-related diseases if they repaired vessels like USS Pictor without using safety equipment and procedures.

Mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases are difficult to distinguish from other illnesses, as they share symptoms with such conditions. However, being aware of a patient's history of asbestos exposure can help a physician in being able to accurately diagnose conditions like mesothelioma. Naval veterans who serviced or served aboard USS Pictor should therefore discuss their service history with their physicians.

Sources:

Auxiliary Vessels Index