USS Dewey DD-349

The USS Dewey (DD-349) was the second of the Farragut-class destroyers to be constructed. Her keel was laid at the Bath Iron Works in Maine on 16 December 1932 and she launched on 28 July 1934. The vessel was commissioned a little more than eight weeks later under the command of Commander H. W. Hill.

Dewey's initial duties involved training cruises to ports in the northeastern Caribbean, after which she was stationed out of San Diego where she remained, operating primarily along the west coast from Alaska to Peru (as well as three Hawaiian excursions) and participating in war games and other exercises. She was then ordered back to the Atlantic for a battle simulation known as a "fleet problem" for the first three months of 1939.

Dewey was posted to Pearl Harbor in October 1939, where she participated in the same capacity until 7 December 1941.

War Service

When the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred, Dewey was undergoing repairs to her fuel storage system. In the days following the attack, she patrolled the local waters, with one trip to Wake Island to relieve the Marine garrison stationed there.

The Dewey saw heavy action in the months ahead, and was present at the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942, as well as the Battle of Midway a month later. Her crew was responsible for the rescue of dozens of men from sinking ships as well as the destruction of a substantial number of enemy aircraft.

Although she escaped major battle damage, Dewey's machinery was well worn by September after several months of hard action. She returned to San Francisco at the end of the month for an overhaul that lasted until December.

At the end of 1942, Dewey was ordered to Alaska, where she remained for the next nine months, periodically escorting other ships down the coast to California. She returned to San Francisco on 19 September 1943.

In January 1944, Dewey was ordered back to the South Pacific, where her primary duty for the next several months was to "screen" carriers and other larger, less mobile vessels. After major participation in the invasion and subsequent securing of Guam, Dewey sailed for Bremerton, Washington, for an overhaul at the Puget Sound Naval Yard.

Dewey returned to the Philippines on 10 October, screening oilers and supply ships during the invasion of those islands. On 18 December 1944, she and the rest of the Third Fleet encountered a typhoon and the Dewey lost power, as well as her forward stack, and rolled up to 75 degrees. Repairs at the nearby base on Ulithi took more than six weeks to complete.

Until the end of the war, Dewey played major roles in supporting the invasions of the Japanese home islands both as an escort vessel and in providing covering fire for landing troops. Shortly after the Japanese surrender, Dewey sailed for home, reporting to the Brooklyn Navy Yard on 25 September. Decommissioned a month later, she was sold for scrap in December 1946.

Asbestos Risks

On each U.S. Navy vessel through the 1960s, the fibrous mineral asbestos was widely used for insulation and as a fireproofing material. Though practically every part of destroyers such as the USS Dewey presented a risk of asbestos exposure, a ship's engine room and engineering sections were generally the spaces where crewmen or dockworkers were in the greatest danger of inhaling asbestos fibers. Even greater risk of undergoing high levels of asbestos exposure resulted when a ship was damaged, often through battle or routine operations, since wear and tear to a vessel could cause asbestos-containing materials to release the toxic fibers into the air where anyone nearby could inhale or ingest them into the body.

Asbestos exposure can cause the development of serious asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, a rare cancer that typically affects the lining of the lungs. Mesothelioma develops when asbestos fibers enter the body and become lodged in organs and body cavities, causing inflammation or infection. Patients with mesothelioma may not present symptoms of the cancer until 20 to 50 years after initial asbestos exposure occurred. Veterans comprise approximately 30 percent of mesothelioma patients and those who served during the middle of the 20th century continue to be diagnosed with the cancer today. If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or served aboard the USS Dewey and wish to learn more, please click here and Asbestos.com will send you a complimentary comprehensive packet.

In addition to those who served aboard ships and vessels, workers who repaired ships or worked on the construction of destroyers may also have been exposed to asbestos. If you served aboard a destroyer like the USS Dewey or worked in a shipyard, you may wish to alert your doctor of your potential exposure to asbestos. Informing your doctor may lead to an earlier diagnosis should an asbestos-related disease be present, which may aid in greater treatment options to combat the illness.

Sources:

Destroyers Index