The USS Edward H. Allen (DE-531) was a John C. Butler-class destroyer escort laid down on August 31, 1943, and launched on October 7, the same year. It was commissioned on December 16, 1943, under Lt. Cmdr. M. M. Sanford’s command as DE-531 and served in the U.S. Navy for 10 years until it was decommissioned on January 9, 1958. During its activities, the ship carried a complement of 215 people on board and had its main missions in Bermuda, Norfolk, Boston, Miami, Green Cove Springs, France, Portugal, England, and the Azores. After decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on July 1, 1972, and sold for scrapping in 1974. Navy veterans used to serve on military ships most of the time, which put them at very high risk of asbestos exposure. Apart from always being around asbestos when staying on ships, Navy veterans sometimes did repair work and maintenance to various parts of the ship. Destroyers - equipped for attacking with torpedoes - were constructed with a significant amount of asbestos. The engine room, navigation room, boiler room, and other areas of the ship that involved propulsion had the highest concentration of asbestos.
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