The USS Gandy (DE-764) was a Cannon-class destroyer escort laid down on March 1, 1943, and launched on December 12, the same year. It was commissioned on February 7, 1944, under Lt. Comdr. W. A. Sessions’ command with the hull number DE-764 and served in the U.S. Navy for 2 years until it was decommissioned on June 17, 1946. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 216 men on board and had its main missions in Bermuda, Norfolk, Northern Ireland, Tokyo Bay, the Carolines, the Marshalls, Lisahally, and Liverpool. After the decommissioning, the ship was transferred to Italy where it was renamed Altair (F591). In 1971, it sank as a target ship during some training exercises. Asbestos thermal insulation was widely used around hot water pipes and is often referred to as asbestos lagging. Asbestos pipe lagging was a plaster-based product, manufactured with up to 90% asbestos fibers. Extremely friable, asbestos thermal insulation is considered very dangerous if damaged as the potential for fiber release is extremely high. Used from as early as the 1930s, this type of asbestos product was used on Navy ships until the 1970s.
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