USS Biddle DD-151

The USS Biddle (DD-151) was one of several Wickes-class vessels to serve in World War II even though ships of this class were well into their third decade of operation (naval vessels are considered old at age 20). She was a product of William Cramp and Sons Ship and Engine Building Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a company that was responsible for the construction of several Wickes-class destroyers. The Biddle was completed in less than six months between April and October 1918. She was commissioned six months later and placed under command of Commander C. T. Blackburn.

Her first tour of duty took her to the Mediterranean until July 1920 and for the next two years, she completed routine patrols along the Atlantic coast until she was placed in reserve at the Philadelphia Navy Yard in June 1922. She remained in mothballs for the next 17 years.

She was reactivated six weeks after hostilities broke out in Europe in 1939 and assigned to patrol with the Atlantic squadron and training duties with the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps. Between November 1940 and May 1941, she patrolled the Caribbean, then was attached to a destroyer squadron based out of Key West, Florida.

The Biddle spent most of the remainder of the war escorting convoys in the Caribbean but spent six weeks in early 1944 as part of an anti-submarine Task Group. This was followed by a six-week mission escorting a convoy to North Africa. While in the western Mediterranean, she saw her only combat action when strafed by a fighter of the Luftwaffe.

From March to July 1945, she participated in training exercises with torpedo boats along the Atlantic seaboard. She was then ordered to the Boston Navy Yard on 15 July for conversion to a general-purpose auxiliary ship though the Japanese surrendered before the work was completed. The Biddle stayed on at the Boston yard until she was decommissioned in October.

The USS Biddle was sold and scrapped in December 1946.

Asbestos Risks

The substance known as asbestos was widely utilized on ships and vessels constructed for the U.S. Navy. The mineral's natural resistance to heat and fire made it ideal for use as insulation and fireproofing aboard destroyers like the USS Biddle. A vessel's engine room and mechanical spaces were often the sections where those aboard vessels were most likely to be exposed to asbestos though practically all parts of a ship like the USS Biddle presented a real danger of asbestos exposure. Further risk of high levels of asbestos exposure occurred when a destroyer incurred damage, in conflict or through daily operations, as this may have caused asbestos fibers to break off and enter the air where they could be inhaled or ingested by anyone nearby.

Those who served aboard the USS Biddle or worked during the construction or repair stages may have been exposed to asbestos. Exposure to asbestos may result in the development of serious asbestos-related illnesses such as asbestosis or mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer. When asbestos fibers enter the body they can become lodged in body cavities or organs, causing inflammation or infection. Overtime, this can cause mesothelioma to develop. Patients with mesothelioma may not demonstrate symptoms of the cancer for 20 to 50 years after initial exposure to asbestos occurred. If you worked on the USS Biddle, served aboard the vessel or have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and wish to learn more about treatment and legal options available to those with the cancer, please click here and Asbestos.com will send you a complimentary comprehensive packet.

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Destroyers Index