USS Murzim ( AK - 95 ) The USS " Murzim " ( AK - 95 ) was an ammo station ship working in the Pacific Ocean during World War II , named after Murzim , the star in constellation Canis Major . The auxiliary ship " Murzim " was manned by United States Coast Guard personnel , supplying ships with a variety of ammunition . In light of the Mount Hood tragedy , which involved the complete explosion of another ammunition ship , the , it became clear that those on the " Murzim " and other ammo ships were running the risk of nearly instantaneous death by catastrophic explosion at every moment of their stint in the Pacific Theater . Nevertheless , the crew worked even under the threat of air attack warnings , transferring their cargo to other fighting ships . Originally named SS " Brigham Young " , she was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract by the California Shipbuilding Company in Wilmington , California on 10 July 1942 and launched 17 August 1942 as a liberty ship . She was renamed " Murzim " on 17 March 1943 and was acquired by the Navy under bareboat charter from the Maritime Commission on 8 April 1943 . She was then converted for use as a naval cargo ship by the Los Angeles Shipbuilding & Drydock Corporation in Los Angeles , California and commissioned 14 May 1943 with Lieutenant J . E . King , USCGR , in command and Lieutenant Rodney W . Norman , USCGR , serving as communications officer . Another seaman on the " Murzim " was Alex Haley , who would later gain fame as the writer of " " . Her crew bears distinction for being the only US Navy ship crew in wartime to be ordered to " abandon ship " while at dockside due to an onboard fire while fully loaded with ammunition . The fire was controlled , averting catastrophe . For almost two months the " Murzim " operated along the west coast of the United States under the 11th Naval District ; thence , after loading general cargo , she departed from San Francisco 8 July 1943 and arrived at New Caledonia on 5 August . She then began cargo shuttle runs among American bases in the South Pacific and during the next year , she delivered supplies from ports in Australia , New Zealand , and New Caledonia to the New Hebrides , the Fiji Islands , and the Solomon Islands . She carried out several voyages between Nouméa and Guadalcanal , and in the spring of 1944 she extended her runs northward along the Solomon chain to Bougainville , New Georgia , Green Island , and the Russells . In mid - June she sailed from the Solomons via New Guinea to the Admiralties where she discharged cargo at Manus . After steaming to Australia for a cargo of ammunition , she returned to New Guinea 24 August . For almost two months , " Murzim " supplied antiaircraft ammunition to ships at Hollandia preparing for the invasion of the Philippines . After filling her holds with ammunition from Brisbane and Sydney Australia , she sailed without escort for the Philippines 24 October . Arriving Leyte Gulf 29 October , she began duty as an ammo station ship . During the next 3 months she supplied ships from cruiser s to LSTs with a variety of ammunition which ranged from 6 - inch to 20 mm . Despite numerous air alerts , her crew carried out the dangerous business of transferring ammunition to ships alongside . During an enemy air attack 27 November , her 20 mm guns splashed a Japanese plane attacking the cargo ship from starboard . By eyewitness account , the small plane of a type used for photographic reconnaissance was on a downward sloping path toward a broadside collision with the Murzim ’ s midsection . At nearly the last moment the plane was hit by a foredeck gun and changed course by pitching upward , rolling over on its side , careening over the ship and plunging into the water to port . A small craft was sent out look for wreckage and survivors . The only thing found was a single wheel assembly , the tire still intact and displaying the Goodyear trademark , this latter fact being widely remarked among the crew . Between 27 January 1945 and 4 February , " Murzim " steamed in convoy to Manus where she replenished her holds with ammunition . Thence , after joining a convoy at Hollandia , she returned to Leyte 22 March and resumed ammo station duty in Leyte Gulf . During the closing weeks of the war against Japan , she delivered cargo to Manus and cruised to the Philippines with additional supplies of ammunition . Following the Japanese surrender , the " Murzim " was authorized for use in atomic tests in the Marshalls , and was ordered to transfer to joint Task Force 1 , 25 February 1946 . However , she was assigned to the 14th Naval District for inactivation 11 March and she decommissioned at Pearl Harbor 7 June . She remained at Pearl Harbor until March 1947 when she was towed to San Francisco . Her name was struck from the Navy List 23 June . The " Murzim " was transferred to the Maritime Commission 5 August 1947 , and entered the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay where she remained berthed into 1969 . The " Murzim " received one battle star for World War II service .