The USS S-18 (SS-123) was a first-group S-class submarine of the United States Navy, laid down on 15 August 1918 by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation's Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts, launched on 29 April 1920 sponsored by Miss Virginia Bell Johnson, and commissioned on 3 April 1924 with Lieutenant Elliot M. Senn in command. This submarine was laid down just when asbestos began being used as insulation for military ships, so the risk of having been exposed while serving on it is quite high. The USS S-18 won a battle star during World War II. It was decommissioned in 1945 and later sold for scrap. Asbestos was used for all kinds of reasons in the military, however, its primary use was to fortify Navy ships. Unfortunately, those performing routine maintenance tasks or while the ships were being repaired in dry dock wouldn’t have been using the appropriate protective gear to guard against the inhalation of asbestos fibers, due to the lack of awareness of the dangers of the substance.
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