The ships carried 225 long tons (229 t) of fuel oil which was intended gave them a range of 2,500 nautical miles (4,600 km; 2,900 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).

After her arrival in June, the destroyer spent the remainder of the war protecting ships bound for the battle zones in Europe from the British Isles.

She departed Queenstown, Ireland, 26 December; and, after arrival Boston 8 January 1919, Kimberly engaged in training operations along the coast.

In May the destroyer served as a lifeguard ship in New England waters during the world's first transatlantic flight—that of the Navy's NC-4 hydroplane commanded by Lt. Comdr.

In August 1918, Kimberly, with Undersecretary of the Navy Franklin D Roosevelt and the First Lord of the Admiralty Sir Eric Geddes on board, took a short cruise from Pembroke to Queenstown, escorted by the cruiser HMS Patrol.