The USS Gurke (DD-783) was a Gearing-class destroyer laid down in 1944, launched in 1945, and commissioned in 1945. Following her shakedown along the West Coast, the ship sailed for the Western Pacific, arriving at Pearl Harbor and then heading to participate in the occupation of Japan. She completed two additional WestPac cruises until the Korean War, where she was deployed to screen fast carrier task forces operating off Korea’s west coast. The vessel earned seven battle stars for service during the Korean conflict. In 1963, the destroyer commenced a FRAM I overhaul, a conversion that added a launcher for anti-submarine missiles, among other features. With the Vietnam War gaining heat in 1965, she escorted an amphibious task group. In 1966, the destroyer departed for the western Pacific again, assuming search and rescue duties in the Gulf of Tonkin. In 1975, she supported the evacuation of Saigon as South Vietnam fell. The USS Gurke was decommissioned and stricken from the Register in 1976. Given the extensive use of asbestos on Navy ships built for the Second World War effort, veterans risked inhaling or ingesting toxic asbestos dust and developing severe diseases decades after service. Regular health check-ups are essential for the timely detection and appropriate treatment of these conditions.
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