The USS Moale (DD-693) was an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer laid down on August 5, 1943, as DD-693 and launched on January 16, the following year. It was commissioned on February 28, 1944, under Commander Walter M. Foster’s command and served in the US Navy for 29 years until it was decommissioned on July 2, 1973. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 336 people on board and had its main missions in Bermuda, Norfolk, Luzon, San Pedro, Saipan, Okinawa, San Diego, and Korea. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List and sold for scrapping. For the services brought to the country during World War II, the USS Moale received 5 battle stars and another one battle star for the activity during the Korean War.
The shipbuilding industry was a heavy user of asbestos particularly prior to the 1980s. Asbestos was used in many products because it was proven thermally inert - didn’t burn and could withstand extremely high temperatures without combusting. On military ships, asbestos could be found in hundreds of applications including fireproofing, pipes, pumps, boilers, condensers, evaporators, distillers, turbines, deck material, and electrical equipment.
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