USS Arkansas BB-33

Built in 1912, the USS Arkansas BB-33 has a long and honored history of military service in both World War I and World War II. Like many other battleships active during the beginning of the 20th Century, the USS Arkansas divided her time between training naval personnel, transporting soldiers and, during wartime, engaging in combat.

Unfortunately, however, like other battleships built during this period, the USS Arkansas was also constructed with various parts that contained toxic asbestos fibers. This means that anyone who helped build or repair the USS Arkansas during her 34 years of service likely experienced harmful asbestos exposure. Consequently, it's essential that these former shipbuilders and shipyard workers learn more about the effects of asbestos exposure.

The USS Arkansas in WWI and WWII

After starting her service as a training vessel, the USS Arkansas joined the Battleship Division 7, during which time she primarily patrolled the Virginian coastline. In July 1918, she went to Scotland and, under the control of the British Royal Navy, assumed the duties of the USS Delaware. At the end of World War I in 1921, the USS Arkansas returned to the U.S. where she resumed her role as a training vessel during the following time of peace.

With the U.S. entry into World War II nearly 20 years later, the USS Arkansas would once again play a vital role in military operations. In her first WWII duties, she went to Iceland to support marines in the area. After this mission and a short trip to Newfoundland (where she housed dignitaries), the USS Arkansas underwent extensive repairs and modernizations.

Ready again to engage in military missions, the USS Arkansas performed operations in Scotland, Morocco, Ireland and France, where she was a crucial part of the Normandy invasion. After further repairs, the USS Arkansas joined the Pacific Theater and engaged in the Battle of Iwo Jima.

While she would be later attacked by kamikaze pilots in Okinawa, the USS Arkansas survived WWII and, at the end of the war, brought nearly 800 troops home safely. Her service and performance in World War II earned the USS Arkansas four battle stars.

The USS Arkansas After WWII

The end of World War II shifted the USS Arkansas' duties from military operations to research purposes, as the U.S. selected this battleship for nuclear testing. While the first phase of this research had intended to sink the USS Arkansas with an atomic bomb, this battleship survived the explosion.

This allowed her to participate in the first ever underwater testing of atomic power. Through these underwater nuclear tests, the USS Arkansas was finally sunk. In 1946, she was officially decommissioned from the Navy.

The USS Arkansas and Asbestos Exposure on Battleships

In addition to the lives lost in war efforts, thousands more were put at risk as they worked on the USS Arkansas and were exposed to toxic asbestos fibers. Like other early 20th Century battleships, the USS Arkansas contained asbestos in nearly every part of the ship, including in:

• boilers, kilns and industrial ovens
• cements and caulking
• drywall
• engines
• hot water tanks and pipes
• insulation
• shingles
• tars
• tiles
• wallboards

Because long-term asbestos exposure can cause incurable, fatal diseases, it's vital that anyone who spent time aboard the USS Arkansas learn more about the effects of asbestos exposure. Contact us for more information and helpful resources on asbestos exposure, mesothelioma and related asbestos diseases.