USS Juneau (CL-52)
History of the USS Juneau Cruiser
The USS Juneau (CL-52) was ordered for the U.S. Navy before the United States entered World War II. Her keel was laid down by the Federal Shipbuilding Company in New Jersey on May 27, 1940. She was launched on October 25, 1941 and commissioned on February 14, 1942 under the command of Captain Lyman K. Swenson.
After shakedown, USS Juneau took up blockade patrol off Martinique and Guadeloupe in May 1942. She returned briefly to New York for alterations before conducting patrol and escort duties in the North Atlantic and the Caribbean throughout the summer. On August 22, her orders changed, and she departed for the Pacific.
On September 10, the USS Juneau rendezvoused with Task Force 18, which then combined the next day with Task Force 17 to become Task Force 61. Her task force was charged with ferrying fighter planes to Guadalcanal. Their flagship, the USS Wasp, was sunk by the Japanese submarine I-19 on September 15; the cruiser and screening destroyers rescued nearly 2,000 survivors and carried them to Espiritu Santo. On September 16, she rejoined Task Force 17 to support the raids on Buin, Fasi, and Tonolai.
USS Juneau took part in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands on October 26 as a member of the reformed Task Force 61. The cruiser helped splash nearly 20 attacking Japanese aircraft, but the USS Hornet was badly damaged by the attack and sank the next day. She then headed for the screening force built around the USS Enterprise, which she helped protect by splashing 18 enemy aircraft.
As part of Task Force 68, the USS Juneau departed Nouméa on November 8 to escort reinforcements bound for Guadalcanal. She arrived at her destination four days later, providing a screen around the transports and cargo ships. That afternoon, the Japanese launched an aerial attack of about 30 aircraft. The cruiser splashed six torpedo planes herself.
The next day, USS Juneau became involved in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal when two Japanese battleships, one light cruiser, and nine destroyers headed for the island. She was struck by a torpedo on her port side, leaving her dead in the water. Later that morning, she sailed for Espiritu Santo for repairs on one screw. Along the way, the cruiser was struck by another torpedo for Japanese submarine I-26. An explosion broke her in two, and she sank in 20 seconds. More than 100 sailors survived the sinking, and all but 10 lived to be rescued eight days later. The ship earned four 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
