The USS Suffolk (AKA-69) was a Tolland-class attack cargo ship laid down on July 11, 1944, and launched on September 15, the same year. It was commissioned on October 23, 1944, under Comdr. E. C. Clusman’s command and served in the US Navy for 2 years until it was decommissioned on June 27, 1946. It carried a complement of 395 men on board. During World War II, the ship operated in Manus, New Guinea, Hollandia, the Philippines, Samar, Leyte, and Kerama Retto. After decommissioning, the USS Suffolk was struck from the Naval Register on July 19, 1946, and was sold to the Maritime Commission where it was renamed SS Southport. Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous mineral that was commonly used before the 1980s in the building of battleships and destroyers. The health problems linked to asbestos exposure can take years to show up, so even if it's been a decade or more since you worked with or around asbestos, you may not be out of the woods yet when it comes to potential health problems.
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