The USS Angler SS-240 was the only ship ever named for the predator anglerfish in the U.S. Navy. Built by the General Dynamics/Electric Boat Company in Groton, Connecticut and launched in 1943, the Angler had a crew of 54 enlisted men and six officers.
Six World War II Patrols
A Gato-class submarine, the Angler completed six World War II patrols and received six battle stars for her service. For example, in 1942 off the east coast of the Philippines during the Angler’s second patrol, General Douglas MacArthur was told that the Japanese were massacring all civilians on the island of Panay, and the Angler was ordered to the rescue. Fifty-eight men, women and children were rescued by the Angler and taken to Fremantle, Australia.
The Battle of Leyte
In October of the same year, the Angler’s reports about Japanese forces were instrumental in the Allied invasion of Leyte in the Philippines.
Overhauls, Scrapped in 1974
The Angler was decommissioned in 1952 and underwent an overhaul and conversion at the General Dynamics Corporation yard in Groton, Connecticut. She rejoined the Atlantic Fleet, and in 1958 the Angler was overhauled again at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. In her final years, the Angler was sold for scrap to the Union Minerals and Alloys Corporation, of New York City.
The USS Angler and Asbestos
Like other submarines and naval vessels of its day, the Angler had asbestos-containing components. Asbestos is naturally present in the environment, but when it is mined and processed into machinery parts and other products, it can be very dangerous.
Asbestos is composed of millions of microscopic-sized fibers that can become loose when an asbestos product is manipulated, damaged or in deteriorating condition. The fibers are easily inhaled by individuals in the vicinity. Once inhaled, the fibers can initiate a disease process that culminates in:
 lung cancer
 asbestosis
 mesothelioma (cancer of the mesothelium, a thin tissue lining in the chest)
Seek Legal Help
If you helped build, repair, overhaul, or scrap the USS Angler, or if you served aboard the Angler, you may have ingested toxic asbestos fibers. See an attorney in your area who represents the victims of asbestos poisoning.
