The USS Thomas E. Fraser (DD-736/DM-24) was a Robert H. Smith-class destroyer minelayer laid down on January 31, 1944, as DD-736 and launched on June 10, the same year as DM-24. It was commissioned on August 22, 1944, under Comdr. Ronald Joseph Woodaman’s command and served in the US Navy for 11 years until it was decommissioned on September 12, 1955. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 363 people on board and had its main missions in Bermuda, Norfolk, Eniwetok, Saipan, the Marianas, Ulithi, Ryukyu, and Iwo Jima. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on November 1, 1970, and sold for scrapping in 1974. For the services brought to the country during World War II, the USS Thomas E. Fraser received 3 battle stars. Asbestos exposure aboard these vessels was extensive. Much of the asbestos exposure suffered aboard these vessels occurred in the boiler rooms, engine rooms, navigation rooms, weapons and ammunition storage rooms, and even mess halls and sleeping quarters. If you served on the USS Thomas E. Fraser (DD-736/DM-24), even if you were not in high-risk areas, this doesn’t mean that you were not exposed to asbestos fibers.
760-621-6147
