The USS Howard D. Crow (DE-252) was an Edsall-class destroyer escort laid down on February 6, 1943, and launched on April 26, the same year. It was commissioned on September 27, 1943, under Lt. Cmdr. Donald T. Adams’ command as DE-252 and served in the U.S. Navy for 19 years until it was decommissioned on August 1, 1962. During its activities, the ship carried a complement of 209 people on board and had its main missions in Texas, Norfolk, Panama Canal, Bermuda, Key West, Guantanamo, New York, Pearl Harbor, and Newport. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on August 23, 1968, and sold for scrapping in 1970. Even if there were health risks associated with the use of asbestos as early as the 1930s, the mineral continued being incorporated into virtually every aspect of shipbuilding, including maintenance and repair, until the 1970s, putting service members at risk of asbestos exposure. Inside the body, asbestos can cause inflammation, and scarring, which can lead to the development of cancer.
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