USS Burns DD-588

One of 175 Fletcher-class destroyers built during World War II, the USS Burns (DD-588) was built in 1942 at the Charleston Navy Yard. She launched on 8 August of that year, and was commissioned in April 1943 with Commander D. T. Eller serving as the ship's captain.

The Fletcher-class vessels were the mainstay of the U.S. Navy for more than 20 years. Nonetheless, initial "shakedown" runs could take months before a captain would declare his ship fit for duty, and the USS Burns took the remainder of the spring and most of the summer of 1943 before she was deemed ready for operation.

She reported for operations training in Pearl Harbor on 17 September and went on to serve with distinction in virtually every major Pacific campaign over the next year and a half. Her first extended tour of duty culminated in an encounter with a Japanese convoy on 30 January 1944, in which her crew managed to sink four enemy vessels over the course of a 34-minute battle.

During her last combat assignment, the USS Burns was ordered to hunt down and destroy a Japanese sub chaser that had been harassing U.S. operations. She caught up with it west of Truk (now Chuuk) Island.

After the victory over Japan, the USS Burns remained in the region providing support for U.S. occupation forces in Asia until December 1945. She returned home to San Francisco on 8 January 1946, and was then assigned to the "19th Fleet" in San Diego, where she was decommissioned and put into reserve on 25 June. She ended her days as a training target and was sunk on 20 June 1974.

Asbestos Risks

Through the 1960s, ships used by the United States Navy commonly utilized the toxic mineral known as asbestos for insulation and fire control. Though practically all parts of a ship such as the USS Burns presented a measurable level of asbestos contamination, a ship's engines and mechanical spaces were usually the areas where those aboard a vessel were at the greatest risk of inhaling or ingesting asbestos particles. Even greater danger of asbestos exposure occurred whenever a ship or vessel was damaged, whether in battle or during the daily course of operation. This could cause asbestos fibers to break off and become airborne. Anyone nearby may have been exposed to the toxic fibers and inhaled them into their body

Exposure to asbestos can cause the development of a serious asbestos-related illness such as mesothelioma, asbestosis or lung cancer. Mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer, can develop when asbestos fibers become lodged in organs or body cavities, causing inflammation or infection. Navy veterans with a history of exposure to asbestos fibers should inform their medical professionals about this history to aid in the detection of an asbestos-related disease since diagnosis can be difficult.

Since symptoms often resemble more common illnesses such as influenza, many are unaware of the severity of their condition. If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or served aboard the USS Burns or worked on the construction or repairs of the vessel and wish to learn more about the cancer, treatment and legal options, please click here and Asbestos.com will send you a complimentary comprehensive packet in the mail.

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Destroyers Index