USS Barbel (SS-316)
History of the USS Barbel Submarine
The USS Barbel (SS-316) was ordered for the U.S. Navy during World War II. Her keel was laid down by the Electric Boat Company in Connecticut on March 11, 1943. She was launched on November 14, 1942 and commissioned on April 3, 1944 under the command of Commander R.A. Keating.
The USS Barbel arrived at Pearl Harbor on June 21, 1944. Her first war patrol began on July 15 in the Ryukyu Islands. She sank the Japanese cargo ship Miyako Maru on August 5 and the Sakura Maru No. 11 two days later. On August 9, she sank the enemy cargo ships Yagi Maru and Boko Maru. Four days later, she sank the guardboat Koan Maru before her patrol ended at Majuro on August 21.
After refitting at Majuro, the USS Barbel sailed for her next war patrol in the East China Sea on September 13. In an encounter with a Japanese convoy on September 25, she scored a confirmed kill of the cargo ship Bushu Maru and claimed the unconfirmed sinkings of a freighter and a destroyer escort. On October 13, she damaged a tanker and sank a destroyer, but neither was confirmed. She headed back to Saipan for a brief refitting on October 24.
Headed for the South China Sea, the USS Barbel departed Saipan for her third war patrol on October 30. Her only successful combat action of the patrol, she sank Japanese troop transports Misaki Maru and Sugiyama Maru on November 15. This patrol ended at Fremantle, Australia on December 7.
Having spent the Christmas holiday in Australia, the USS Barbel sailed for the South China Sea in her fourth and final war patrol on January 5, 1945. She spent time as part of two wolf packs during the month of January, guarding the area near Balabac at the end of the month.
On February 3, the USS Barbel reported making numerous aircraft contacts. In her report to the USS Tuna, USS Blackfin, and USS Gabilan, she stated that she had been attacked three times by aircraft depth charges, and that she would send another transmission the next night with more information. That transmission never came. On February 6, the USS Tuna reported that she had been unable to make contact with the USS Barbel for 48 hours. She was officially reported lost on February 16, 1945. Reports from the Japanese later determined that the submarine had been sunk by aerial bombs on February 4, southwest of Palawan, claiming the lives of 81 men. The USS Barbel earned three battle stars for her service in World War II.
The use of asbestos was common in shipbuilding components for much of the 20th Century because of its resistance to heat, fire, water and corrosion. Because of their asbestos exposure onboard ship and in the shipyards, seaman, shipyard workers and longshoreman are at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma.
Sources include:
Asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences, by John Hedley-Whyte and Debra R Milamed
