USS Willard Keith DD-775

USS Willard Keith (DD-775), an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer, was built at San Pedro, California, by the steelworkers of the Bethlehem Steel Company and launched on 29 August 1944. She was commissioned on 27 December of that year, Cmdr. Lewis L. Snyder in command.

World War II

After completing training duty in mid-April 1945, Willard Keith sailed for the western Pacific, arriving at Okinawa on 29 May. Assigned screening and radar picket duties for the remainder of the Okinawan campaign. Willard Keith then joined a cruiser-destroyer task force on 24 June for anti-shipping sweeps into the East China Sea. After the Japanese surrender, she drew screening duties with the initial occupying forces until sailing for home in December.

1946 to 1949

After voyage repairs at the New York Navy Yard, Brooklyn, New York, the Keith sailed to her new home port of Newport, Rhode Island. She engaged in gunnery exercises out of that port and, upon conclusion of that first phase of her peacetime training program, returned to New York. She made five more short round trips between New York and Newport until 12 July, when she set out for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

After operations in the Caribbean, Willard Keith returned to Norfolk, Virginia, operating as an escort vessel for larger vessels and engaging in routine assignments. Eventually mothballed at the Charleston, South Carolina, Naval Shipyard, the destroyer remained inactive until 1950.

Cold War

Recommissioned on 23 October 1950, Willard Keith was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet. After a year of operations in the Caribbean, Willard Keith sailed for the Mediterranean in September 1951. She spent the next six months there, making operational visits to several ports.

From November 1951 to February 1952, Willard Keith operated in Northern Europe, visiting several ports and conducting joint exercises with British destroyers. Completing her duty in European waters early in February 1952, Willard Keith set course for home, reaching Norfolk on 6 February for leave and upkeep.

From 21 April to 12 May, the destroyer then conducted anti-submarine warfare (ASW) drills for the benefit of the observers, then sailed to Europe in June for a midshipmen's training cruise.

Returning to Norfolk via Guantanamo, Willard Keith put back into Norfolk at the end of November and spent the remainder of the year there.

Repairs and alterations at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard were carried out from 11 February to 27 May 1953, after which Willard Keith conducted refresher training out of Guantanamo Bay for the summer, then sailed for the Far East on 25 September. Returning to Norfolk on 1 May 1954, she operated from Labrador to the Caribbean, taking part in training exercises interspersed with routine upkeep periods in port.

1955 to1977

Willard Keith departed from Norfolk on 5 January 1955. For the next eight years, she operated from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea and Persian Gulf, participating in a variety of goodwill missions, midshipmen cruises, and the usual training assignments in gunnery, ASW, and amphibious landings. She also participated in the quarantine operations during the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962.

On 1 October 1963, Willard Keith began operating as a Naval Reserve training (NRT) ship, continuing this duty until 1972. By then, she was nearly 40 years old and ready for retirement. In 1972, Willard Keith was transferred to the Navy of the Republic of Colombia and renamed Caldas (DD-02). She served the Colombian Navy until disposed of in 1977.

Asbestos Risks

Aboard each Navy destroyer of the World War II era, the fibrous mineral asbestos was commonly employed for compartment insulation and as fireproofing. Sailors and technicians were most likely to be endangered by air contaminated by asbestos when working in a vessel's boiler room and mechanical compartments; nevertheless, practically all parts of the Willard Keith presented a real danger of asbestos exposure. Additional danger of being subjected to extensive asbestos exposure occurred when the ship took damage, in conflict or accidentally, because that often uncovered asbestos-containing fixtures to the air or subjected them to fire or flooding.

With asbestos, the most serious hazard of exposure happens in circumstances where items containing the mineral become easily broken; if the asbestos fibers can enter the surrounding air, the material can then be inhaled by workers nearby. History has demonstrated that dangerous medical ailments such as asbestosis, cancer of the lungs, and mesothelioma are caused by a history of asbestos inhalation.

Naval veterans with a history of exposure to asbestos should therefore definitely inform their physicians, because asbestos-caused problems are difficult to accurately diagnose. If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease as a result of working aboard a contaminated vessel and would like to learn more about treatment options or financial assistance to help pay for medical costs, please fill out the form on this page to receive a comprehensive packet in the mail.

It is one of the unfortunate realities of World War II that along with the inherent hazards of battle, sailors who fought on board ships like the Willard Keith were constantly at risk for asbestos exposure. This was the case in spite of the fact the ship underwent minimal damage in combat and required only routine reworkings and repairs. Despite the absence of large-scale damage and redesign activity, our troops who sailed on the Willard Keith were nevertheless in contact with asbestos fibers in the ordinary conduct of their loyal service.

Moreover, this danger also existed for maintenance workers such as pipe fitters and carpenters who repaired this vessel when the ship was at a shipyard. For the men who lived or worked aboard this ship at any point in their career, and those assigned to her sisters in the fleet, it is very important to become well informed about the dangers posed by their former exposure to asbestos fibers, especially in light of our increased understanding of the outcome of prolonged contact with asbestos.

Sources:

Destroyers Index