The USS Belmont (AGTR-4) was a Belmont-class technical research ship laid down on January 25, 1944, and launched on March 25, the same year. It was commissioned on November 02, 1964, under CDR. Jerome E. Henderson’s command, with the hull number AGTR-4 and it served the US Navy for 6 years until it was decommissioned on January 16, 1970. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 358 people on board and most of the asbestos exposure aboard this ship occurred in engineering spaces and boiler rooms. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Naval Register in 1970 and sold for scrapping on June 04, 1970, to Boston Metals Co., Baltimore, MD. Due to the enclosed structure of ships, the majority of crew members were exposed to asbestos fibers at some point. Asbestos-containing products such as pumps, valves, boilers, generators, tanks, and other propulsion equipment were often found aboard ships. Workers in confined areas, such as boiler rooms and engine rooms, were subjected to much higher risk. Asbestos-related illnesses such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer struck many of these employees.
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