USS Saint Paul CA-73 (1945-1978)
The USS Saint Paul was a Baltimore-class heavy cruiser that weighed in at 13,600 tons. It was built in Quincy and commissioned in February of 1945. It was deployed to the Pacific Ocean as soon as it completed all of its shakedown drills.
The Saint Paul was present at Tokyo Bay when Japan surrendered on September 2nd of 1945. It supported the occupation activities that were present in Japan until November of that year. It served in Chinese waters until late in 1946 and had three more tours in the Far East from 1947 until 1949.
Action in the Korean War
When the Korean War broke out in June of 1950, the Saint Paul was sent back to the Western Pacific. It operated off of the island of Formosa and entered the combat zone in July of 1950 until early in 1951. It made a few more war deployments, one of them from November of 1951 until June of 1952 and the other was in March of 1953 until the war ended.
After a 39-month deployment that started in 1959, the Saint Paul was finally modified for flagship service and was employed in this role in both the First and Seventh Fleets.
After the War
In 1965, the Saint Paul was deployed five more times. It would also end up bombing some of the coastal targets in the North. It was decommissioned in April of 1971 after 26 years of service. It was finally sold for scrapping in January of 1980.
Asbestos in Navy Ships
Although an essential component of the naval fleet, even today, naval cruisers also pose a lasting health risk to soldiers serving on them. Unfortunately, products containing asbestos were common, especially on older ships, because of the material’s high resistance to heat and fire. Despite its value as an insulator, asbestos fiber intake can lead to several serious health consequences, including mesothelioma, a devastating cancer without cure. Current and former military personnel who came into contact with these ships should seek immediate medical attention in order to detect possible health consequences associated with asbestos exposure.
