The fire that engulfed the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard for more than four days was contained Thursday, prompting the Navy to begin investigating how a fire spread so aggressively on the ship while it was in port.
The ship suffered significant damage, including to its skin, authorities said, and the fire sent plumes of smoke into the air over San Diego, where it was docked. While firefighters were fighting the fire, the 40,000-ton ship appeared on its port and starboard side, the Navy said, likely due to the huge amounts of water dumped into the hull, the Journal reported.
THE NAVY SAYS IT HAS FIRE OFF ON BOARD THE USS BONHOMME RICHARD IN SAN DIEGO
The Navy said it crossed the ship on Thursday in search of the remaining hot spots. Officials have not yet determined how the fire started and if the ship can be saved.
A helicopter from the Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 3 fights a fire aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) at San Diego Naval Base, Tuesday, July 14, 2020. A statement from the Navy says that there has been significant progress, much less On Tuesday, the USS Bonhomme Richard emits smoke. (Garrett LaBarge / US Navy 3rd Class Mass Communications Specialist via AP)
“We do not know the extent of the damage … We cannot draw conclusions until the investigation is complete,” said Rear Admiral Philip E. Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3.
The ship, commissioned in 1998, is half its expected life. Repairing it would probably take months and cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Navy officials said. If the Navy decides to dismantle the ship, it would have a major impact on its operations, as it would take years to build a replacement. Additionally, the USS Bonhomme Richard is one of the few ships that an F-35 Joint Strike Fighter can take off from, allowing it to operate as a mini-aircraft carrier.
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The Navy must also determine how much responsibility the ship’s crew and shipyard workers have for the start of the fire and the effort to contain it. The Navy is supposed to have surveillance crews for the ship while it is under maintenance, as well as nearby firefighter crews, in part because there are fewer sailors on board to detect any problems.
“This should have been completely avoided because the Navy is supposed to have good stowage practices on board ships,” said Bryan Clark, a member of the Hudson Institute. “If a fire breaks out, the Navy should be able to fight it right away.”
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