The USS Pharris (FF-1094) was originally a destroyer escort ship laid down and launched in 1972 and commissioned in 1974. The vessel was later reclassified as a Knox-class frigate with the designation FF-1094. In 1986, she assisted in Operation El Dorado Canyon while assigned to the USS America (CV-66), earning her the Navy Expeditionary Medal and the Navy Unit Commendation award. Between 1987 and 1988, the frigate was deployed to the Mediterranean to escort Mighty Servant 2 carrying USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) in Operation Earnest Will, an American military protection of Kuwaiti-owned tankers from Iranian attacks. It was the most significant naval convoy operation since World War II, and the USS Pharris (FF-1094) was awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Meda for her part. The ship was decommissioned in 1992, stricken from the Naval Register in 1995, and donated to Mexico. Asbestos was widely used throughout the Navy ships built before the 1980s, mainly as insulation. Asbestos-containing products were generally in the boiler and engine rooms, but the toxic material protected all heat-producing equipment on the ship. As a consequence, Navy veterans who served on these ships risked asbestos exposure and developing severe diseases stemming from it decades after service.
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