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Did you serve aboard the USS Lester? This destroyer carried asbestos in nearly every compartment. Here is where it was, and who is responsible. The USS Lester, hull number DE-1022, was a destroyer, built by Defoe Shipbuilding Company and commissioned in 1957. She served through Cold War Atlantic Fleet, Mediterranean deployments, and NATO operations. Public naval references list this equipment aboard the USS Lester, DE-1022 — insulated and sealed with asbestos. Each shipyard overhaul and major repair meant asbestos insulation was torn out and replaced — peak-exposure work for the yard workers and the crew aboard. Exposure was worst in the engineering spaces, where the snipes worked — but asbestos lined the whole ship, so all hands were exposed. The companies that made the asbestos equipment aboard — not the Navy — are who asbestos claims are brought against. According to asbestos litigation records, the equipment aboard the USS Lester from makers such as Foster-Wheeler, and De Laval allegedly contained asbestos. If you served aboard the USS Lester and were later diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have a legal claim against the companies that made the asbestos products used aboard your ship. This is educational information from an independent publisher — not a law firm — and is not legal advice.

USS Lester (DE-1022) is a documented U.S. Navy destroyer escort. The equipment reference below was extracted from the publicly-available Wikipedia article on this vessel, which cites the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS) — the U.S. Navy’s official ship-history publication maintained by the Naval History and Heritage Command.

Equipment Reference

Equipment Manifest — USS Lester (DE-1022). 2 machinery/equipment entries identified through ship-specific BUSHIPS documentation. Manufacturers in bold link to documented asbestos-product history on AsbestosIndex.com.
EquipmentManufacturerQtyNotes
BoilerFoster-Wheeler2per Wikipedia infobox propulsion
Geared turbineDe Laval1per Wikipedia infobox propulsion

Source: this equipment reference was extracted from public Wikipedia/DANFS records for USS Lester (DE-1022). These are secondary-source records — not primary BUSHIPS design documents. For litigation purposes, this data is a starting point; a ship-specific BUSHIPS Material Inspection Report or commissioning book would provide gold-standard verification.

Source on Wikipedia ›

Product & Manufacturer Reference

The asbestos-containing products documented on U.S. Navy vessels and at shipyards are catalogued by manufacturer on AsbestosIndex. These records cross-reference which companies supplied which materials and to which facilities.

Pipe Covering & Block Insulation Thermal insulation applied to steam lines, valves, and equipment in engine rooms and fire rooms Marine Products Insulation, gaskets, and packing products specified for naval and commercial marine applications Boilers & Steam Equipment Boiler manufacturers and insulation products — central to the fire room exposure pathway Gaskets & Packing Sheet and ring gaskets used throughout piping flanges, valve bonnets, and pump housings Electrical Products Wire insulation, switchgear arc chutes, and panel liners used throughout electrical spaces Full Product Index Search all 200+ manufacturers and 1,500+ documented asbestos products on AsbestosIndex™

Navy Ratings Most Exposed to Asbestos Aboard Lester

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the public asbestos litigation record document that the following Navy ratings worked routinely in spaces where ACM was installed, maintained, ripped out, and replaced:

VA Disability Claims for Asbestos-Related Disease

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs evaluates asbestos claims individually. A veteran generally needs medical evidence of a current asbestos-related disease, service evidence supporting in-service asbestos exposure, and a medical opinion connecting the two. Ship assignments, Navy ratings, and equipment records can help document the exposure history but do not create automatic service connection.

Approved claims may provide monthly disability compensation and related benefits. Survivors may separately qualify for Dependency & Indemnity Compensation when the applicable requirements are met. Civil lawsuits and asbestos-trust claims use different standards; claimants should obtain individualized advice about how the processes interact.

How to file a VA disability claim: VA claims are filed directly with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — not with a law firm. Start at VA.gov › Hazardous Materials Exposure, call 1‑800‑827‑1000, or get free help filing from a Veterans Service Organization: DAV, VFW, or American Legion.

VA Claims Guide on This Site › Compare: VA vs. Civil Lawsuit

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.