USS Segundo (SS-398)
History of the USS Segundo Submarine
The USS Segundo (SS-398) was ordered for the U.S. Navy during World War II. Her keel was laid down at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in New Hampshire on October 14, 1943. She was launched on February 5, 1944 and commissioned on May 9, 1944 under the command of Lieutenant Commander James D. Fulp, Jr.
The USS Segundo arrived at Pearl Harbor on July 25, 1944. She began her first war patrol on August 21 in the Philippines as part of a small wolf pack. This patrol ended on October 21 at Majuro without making a single attack.
After refitting, the USS Segundo departed Majuro for her second war patrol on November 16 in Luzon Strait. On December 6, her torpedoes damaged the Japanese merchant cargo ships Kenjo Maru, Yasukuni Maru, and Shinto Maru. All three ships were finished off by other American forces by the next day. The submarine put in at Guam on January 5, 1945.
On February 1, the USS Segundo sailed for her third war patrol in the East China Sea. Her torpedoes sank the Japanese merchant cargo ship Shori Maru on March 11. She ended her patrol on March 26 at Pearl Harbor.
The USS Segundo got underway for her fourth war patrol in April, and she assumed lifeguarding duties until May 16, when she moved on to the East China Sea. On May 29, she sank seven Japanese sailing vessels with her gunfire. The submarine moved on to sinking the merchant sailing vessel Anto Maru No. 94 on June 3 and a small vessel four days later. She sank two more small ships on June 9. Two days later, she sank the merchant cargo ship Fukui Maru No. 2. The submarine ended her patrol at Midway.
Her fifth and final war patrol commenced on August 10 in the Sea of Okhotsk, just five days before the war ended. On August 29, she intercepted the Japanese submarine I-401, the largest submarine in the world at the time. The I-401 accepted a prize crew onboard, and both subs proceeded to Tokyo Bay, where the American flag was raised on the Japanese vessel.
After the Japanese surrender ceremony, the USS Segundo headed home to San Diego, California via Pearl Harbor, now assigned to Submarine Squadron 3. Over the next several years, she operated out of San Diego and made cruises to such places as Australia and China.
When the Korean War broke out, the USS Segundo was deployed to the Far East in support of United Nations forces. The submarine then underwent Fleet Snorkel conversion in 1951 before operating locally out of San Diego. She made another Korean War deployment from August 15, 1952 until February 16, 1953.
For the remainder of her career, the USS Segundo operated along the West Coast and in the Western Pacific. She was decommissioned on August 1, 1970, struck from the Naval Vessel Register seven days later, and sunk as a target on the same day. The submarine earned four battle stars for her service in World War II and one battle star for her service in the Korean War.
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
