S.S. Bay State
The S.S. Bay State was originally a “Victory Ship” built in 1944 for the purpose of transporting material during the Second World War. The Victory Ships were an improvement over the earlier “Liberty Ships.” Like their predecessors, they could be built very quickly, but were faster than the Liberties – an important factor when it came to outrunning enemy submarines.
Bay State was built at the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in Wilmington and delivered to the Merchant Marine in November 1944. Following the war, it was sold to State Marine Lines, carrying freight until it was sold for scrap to Taiwan Shipbreakers, Inc. at Kaohsiung in October 1970.
Those who sailed with the Merchant Marine were at as much risk as naval combat sailors; even more so, since the merchant ships themselves carried minimal armaments and were largely dependent on the destroyers that escorted them. One of the deadliest enemies was lurking not under the waves however, but below decks.
The use of asbestos in the construction of sea-going vessels was mandated by Congress in the wake of the Morro Castle disaster in September 1934, when the cruise ship of that name caught fire off the New Jersey coast, killing about a quarter of those aboard. Members of Congress were not privy to the information that asbestos corporations and medical researchers were well aware of however – that asbestos was responsible for serious respiratory diseases like mesothelioma.
Corporations such as W.R. Grace, Raysbestos, Johns-Manville and others joined in a secret agreement in the late 1930s to suppress information about the health effects of asbestos for as long as possible – and when it was not possible, to spread lies and disinformation that would minimize any health concerns. Such propaganda was highly effective; by the time the U.S. Government started to issue advisories to war production plants in 1943, such warnings were not taken seriously by either management or workers.
This conspiracy was uncovered during an asbestos trial in 1977. The plaintiff's attorney in the case discovered documents in the office of the CEO of the Raysbestos Corporation showing that the major players in the asbestos industry had in fact been well aware of the toxicity of asbestos and had agreed to suppress the information, or spread lies and propaganda that the product was “harmless.” After this, defense lawyers for the asbestos industry could no longer claim ignorance.
A common defense today is to deny that the plaintiff's illness is caused by asbestos, or that it even is an asbestos disease such as malignant mesothelioma. If you were among those who sailed aboard the Bay State, you should know that symptoms of asbestos disease can take decades to manifest, at which point such diseases are in an advanced stage. A solid diagnosis is necessary in order to win a judgment against an asbestos manufacturer, since the symptoms of asbestos disease can mimic those of other disorders. Even if you do not show symptoms now, it is important to get regular, thorough checkups in order to get the illness diagnosed as early as possible. Early detection is key to a good prognosis in mesothelioma navy cases.
Sources
Bowker, Michael. Fatal Deception: The Terrifying True Story of How Asbestos is Killing America. New York: Touchstone, 2003.
States Marine Lines. “SS Bay State.”
http://www.statesmarinelines.com/ships/bay_state.htm
