USS Lynde McCormick (DD-958/DDG-8)

The USS Lynde McCormick (DDG-8) was a Charles F. Adams-class destroyer constructed by the Defoe Shipbuilding Company, Bay City, Michigan, between April 1959 and June 1960. She was launched on 28 July 1959 and commissioned at Boston on 3 June 1961.

Early Service History

Lynde McCormick departed Boston on 23 August 1961 for her assigned home port of San Diego, arriving on 16 September. Early in 1962, she tested her missiles and antisubmarine weaponry in the Pacific missile range in preparation for deployment to the Far East, for which she sailed on 19 November. She returned to port in June 1963.

After undergoing a major overhaul and weapons upgrades at Hunter's Point early in 1964, Lynde McCormick departed on 5 August for a six-month deployment along the Vietnamese coast in the wake of the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. She returned to San Diego on 6 February 1965, spending the remainder of the year conducting coastal exercises, tests and training missions.

After antisubmarine exercises with the Canadian Navy in January 1966, Lynde McCormick prepared for a third tour of duty in Vietnam. Leaving on 1 March, she returned on 26 October. The following day, she entered the Long Beach Navy Yard for a thorough overhaul, which was completed on 23 March 1967. She got underway for the Far East again on 17 August.

McCormick returned to the west coast on 6 April 1968 and operated in local waters into 1969.

The 1970s - 1980s

Regular deployments to Vietnam continued into 1972. In 1973, she was deployed to the eastern Mediterranean with the carrier USS Hancock during the Yom Kippur War.

During the summer of 1983, Lynde McCormick was ordered to Central America to conduct training and flight operations in areas off the coasts of Nicaragua, El Salvador and Honduras as part of major military exercises planned for that summer.

In 1985, McCormick was deployed to the Persian Gulf in order to protect U.S. merchant shipping during the Iran-Iraq war. Three years later, she was one of many ships of the U.S. 5th Fleet engaged in operations against the Iranian Navy. This included minesweeping operations, prevention of small boat attacks against Persian Gulf shipping and countering of tactical operations by Iranian warships near the Strait of Hormuz.

Her last overseas deployment commenced on 15 September 1989 as she joined the USS New Jersey Battle Group, initially during Operation PACEX 89 in the northern Pacific; she later escorted the New Jersey into the Persian Gulf.

Fate

The ship was decommissioned on 1 October 1991 and was sunk as a target ship on 14 February 2001.

Asbestos Risks

Through the ages, solders and sailors in armies and navies have understood that they are faced with many perils. What many were not aware of during most of the 1900s, however, was a danger that had nothing to do with explosions or attacks by the enemy: the danger of contracting a disease brought on by asbestos exposure.

To safeguard those aboard a ship, along with the vessel itself, from fire and excessive heat, materials with excellent insulating properties are necessary when constructing a ship. With asbestos' excellent imperviousness to flames, it was seen as eminently suitable for use in the construction of ships, and when ships like USS Lynde McCormick were built, insulation materials made from asbestos were common. Unfortunately, what wasn't always clearly understood or was at times overlooked was that ingestion of asbestos is the primary cause of debilitating conditions such as pleural plaques and mesothelioma. Asbestos harms the human body when the mineral is friable (that is, easily broken up into microscopic shards) since it is then able to enter the body through the respiratory system.

The consequences of inhaling asbestos were probably not uppermost in the minds of many people while they were busy engaging in battle or dealing with accidents. Asbestos exposure was definitely an additional hazard when a vessel was damaged in battle, however, since such circumstances frequently exposed asbestos to people nearby. In addition, because practically all spaces in destroyers like USS Lynde McCormick contained asbestos, sailors typically were faced with some amount of asbestos exposure even as they performed their everyday tasks. In addition, a navy file who spent time in enclosed spaces where asbestos was present, such as a ship's mechanical sections or engines, was especially in danger. People who repaired McCormick or other destroyers like her when she was in port for upgrades were subject to the possibility of inhaling asbestos as well.

Many asbestos-related diseases take two or three decades to develop. However, understanding a patient's experience with asbestos contact can help a healthcare professional in being able to determine if a patient is likely to have mesothelioma. If you served on USS Lynde McCormick for any period of time, you should find out about the symptoms of diseases associated with asbestos and discuss any concerns you have with your doctor. 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.

Sources

Destroyers Index