The USS Brackett (DE-41) was an Evarts-class destroyer escort laid down on February 12, 1943, and launched on August 1, the same year. It was commissioned on October 18, 1943, under Lt. John H. Roskilly’s command with the hull number DE-41 and served in the U.S. Navy for two years until it was decommissioned on November 23, 1945. During its activities, the ship carried a complement of 198 people on board and had its main missions in Pearl Harbor, Eniwetok, Majuro, Okinawa, Saipan, Ulithi, Guam, Wotje, Taroa, and the Marshalls. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on December 5, 1945, and sold for scrapping to the National Metal and Steel Corporation in Terminal Island in 1947. For years, asbestos was used widely in the shipyards and shipbuilding industry of the United States, thus, those who worked in shipyards between World War II and the Korean War were very likely to be exposed to asbestos. The mineral was used to insulate pipes, boilers, incinerators, and other areas requiring high-temperature insulation. In many cases, these areas were not ventilated very well, meaning asbestos dust was trapped in these poorly ventilated spaces and inhaled by crew members.
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