USS Heywood L. Edwards DD-663

USS Heywood L. Edwards (DD-663) was a Fletcher-class destroyer named in honor of the captain of USS Reuben James (DD-245), which was the first U.S. Navy ship sunk in World War II (by a German U-Boat five weeks before Pearl Harbor).

Heywood L. Edwards was built at the Boston Navy Yard, launched 6 October 1943, and commissioned on 26 January 1944 under the captaincy of Cmdr. J. W. Boulware.

To the Pacific

Heywood L. Edwards commenced shakedown off Bermuda on 25 February 1944. Following gunnery exercises off the New England coast, she sailed for the Pacific, reporting to Pearl Harbor on 8 May. After three weeks of training for the amphibious force that was to advance across the Pacific, Edwards and her task group sailed from Pearl Harbor for the Marianas.

During the initial landings on Saipan on 15 June, Edwards patrolled the seaward side of the invasion beaches. From 21 June to 2 July, her crew provided fire support for the advancing Marines; she continued to operate in the Marianas until leaving for Eniwetok on 30 July.

With the Marianas secured, the next objective was to establish advance bases for the invasion of the Philippines. Heywood L. Edwards left for Florida Island (Nggele Sule, near Guadalcanal) on 18 August for training exercises with amphibious forces, then proceeded to the Carolines, arriving on 11 September. Edwards performed antisubmarine patrols around the heavier bombardment vessels for two days before she was detached in order to cover underwater demolition teams (UDTs, forerunners of the modern-day SEALS). On the day of the assault, Edwards furnished fire support by day and illumination fire at night.

On the night of 23 September, Edwards encountered a group of barges loaded with enemy reinforcements. After illuminating them with starshell, her crew opened fire, sinking 14 of the barges.

The Philippines Campaign

Following the Carolines operation, Heywood L. Edwards proceeded to Manus Island off the coast of New Guinea, making port on 1 October. Joining Admiral Oldendorf's fire support and bombardment group, she sailed for Leyte on 12 October 1944 for pre-invasion bombardment, followed by gunfire support for the landings on 20 October. After operating in the thick of the fighting during the decisive engagement at Surigao Strait, Edwards escorted the cruisers in search of damaged enemy stragglers, then took up her assigned position in Leyte Gulf.

On 29 November, Edwards put into Manus for repairs and shore leave for her crew. She got underway again on 15 December for training exercises in the Palau Islands in preparation for the January invasion of Lingayen Gulf. Fighting off kamikaze suicide planes the entire trip, Edwards and her task group arrived Lingayen Gulf on 6 January 1945. She took up her fire support duties for UDTs landing troops three days later.

Iwo Jima and Okinawa

The next objective was Iwo Jima, a necessary base for aerial operations against the mainland of Japan. The Heywood L. Edwards participated in landing rehearsals between 12 and 14 February and screened the heavier combat vessels during the pre-invasion bombardment. As the Marines landed on 19 February, she began a week of shelling enemy positions, after which she sailed for Saipan and preparations for the coming invasion of Okinawa.

On 25 March, Edwards covered the UDTs during their reconnaissance of Japanese Naval Base on Kerama Retto. As the base was captured two days later, the Edwards found herself in the midst of unrelenting kamikaze suicide attacks.

For the next four months, Edwards' crew continued under some of the worst combat conditions of the war. Amazingly, she emerged from the worst of the Okinawa campaign relatively unscathed when on 28 July she sailed for Leyte Gulf.

After the surrender, Heywood L. Edwards covered the initial occupation of the Ominato on the northern island of Hokkaido, then sailed for home on 22 October. She arrived in Seattle on 10 November, and was decommissioned 1 July 1946.

Her Former Foes

Heywood L. Edwards was taken out of mothballs in 1959. By then, the old, militaristic Japanese Empire was dead and gone, and a new, democratic Japan had been born from its ashes. Edwards and her sister ship Richard P. Leary were loaned to America's former foe and current ally under the Military Assistance Program. She served in the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force as JDS Ariake (DD-183) - possibly crewed by some who had fought her fourteen years earlier.

Ariake was broken up for scrap in 1976.

Asbestos Risks

On board each American navy vessel through the war era, asbestos, a fibrous mineral, was widely utilized for insulating pipes and for fire control. The vessel's engine room and engineering compartments usually were where a crewman or shipyard worker was apt to inhale air contaminated by asbestos; nevertheless, essentially all sections of a ship like the USS Heywood L. Edwards offered a significant level of asbestos risk. When the craft was damaged in combat, by Mother Nature, or through misfortune, it almost inevitably exposed asbestos-containing fixtures to the air or subjected them to fire or water; this meant more risk of experiencing high levels of asbestos exposure.

The greatest risk of exposure when dealing with asbestos occurs in circumstances where strands deteriorate, become friable, and go into the air, as the material can then be inhaled by people near the hazard. Historically, asbestos proximity is known to be strongly linked with pericardial mesothelioma, asbestosis, tumors, and other life-threatening medical disorders.

All those exposed to asbestos should immediately tell their health care providers, since many asbestos-induced problems are tricky to accurately diagnose. To learn more about the diagnostic process, available treatment options and financial assistance to help pay for medical costs, please fill out this form to receive a comprehensive packet in the mail.

As is the case with servicemen on other vessels of this era, the sailors who lived and worked aboard the Edwards were, on top of the inherent hazards of enemy encounters, imperiled by asbestos fiber inhalation. This was true in spite of the fact the Edwards suffered remarkably little damage in combat and went through mostly routine refits and overhauls. Despite the absence of large-scale damage and retrofit work, sailors who lived and worked aboard the Edwards were still in contact with asbestos in the ordinary course of their service. Moreover, this danger also existed for port-based workers such as pipefitters and carpenters who repaired the ship when she spent time dry-docked.

For the troops who sailed and labored aboard this destroyer at any time in their career, and those assigned to other naval vessels, it is vital that they become fully aware of the hazards raised by their former exposure to asbestos fibers, especially in light of what we now know about the result of prolonged contact with asbestos.

Sources:

Destroyers Index