USS Juneau (CL-52) and Atlanta Class Anti-Aircraft Cruisers — WWII Guadalcanal Operations

USS Juneau (CL-52), an Atlanta class anti-aircraft light cruiser commissioned February 14, 1942 at the Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company (Kearny, New Jersey), served in the Pacific theater from mid-1942 until she was sunk during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on November 13, 1942 by a Japanese Type 93 torpedo. The loss of 687 of Juneau’s 700+ crew members — including the five Sullivan brothers from Waterloo, Iowa — prompted the War Department’s adoption of the Sole Survivor Policy. During her brief operational period from commissioning through November 1942, Juneau crew members accumulated asbestos exposure from the ship’s steam engineering spaces and from the asbestos-containing construction materials in this newly-commissioned 1942 cruiser.

1942 Anti-Aircraft Cruiser Steam Plant and Asbestos

USS Juneau’s steam propulsion plant used asbestos throughout the engineering spaces:

• Main boiler insulation — Juneau’s four Babcock & Wilcox boilers used asbestos block insulation on boiler casings and asbestos-containing refractory in firebox construction from the original 1942 commissioning. Boiler Tender ratings maintaining these boilers worked in the cruiser’s fire rooms in proximity to asbestos-insulated boiler surfaces during Juneau’s Pacific service
• Main steam system pipe insulation — the main steam piping in Juneau’s hull used asbestos pipe covering from the 1942 construction. Engineering ratings in the fire rooms and engine rooms were in proximity to asbestos-insulated steam piping during underway operations in the Guadalcanal campaign
• Turbine insulation — Juneau’s General Electric geared steam turbines used asbestos-containing insulation lagging consistent with early WWII anti-aircraft cruiser construction

The Sullivan Brothers and USS Juneau

USS Juneau’s loss is one of the most significant tragedies of WWII:

• All five Sullivan brothers — George, Frank, Joseph, Madison, and Albert — serving aboard Juneau were lost when the ship was sunk. This loss, along with the loss of most of the crew, prompted the Sole Survivor Policy protecting remaining family members from service in the same unit

VA Claims for USS Juneau Veterans

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Navy anti-aircraft cruisers. Engineering ratings and crew members who served aboard USS Juneau (CL-52) prior to her wartime loss and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.

Source notes: equipment-manifest entries (where shown) are sourced from public-record BUSHIPS (Bureau of Ships) documentation, NARA archives, and the public asbestos litigation record. Manufacturer attributions link to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Nothing on this page constitutes medical or legal advice.