“There is a potential suspect,” said one official, stressing that no one has been charged and the investigation is continuing. The Navy declined to comment on an active investigation.
The fire on board the billion-dollar warship was extinguished after four days of rage. The ship was docked in San Diego for maintenance when the fire broke out. Sailors began fighting the fire when a subsequent explosion caused the ship to be evacuated.
The amphibious assault ship was upgraded to accommodate some of the newest and most sophisticated warplanes in the U.S. arsenal, Marine Corps F-35Bs.
It would be one of only four ships in the U.S. fleet with the capability to handle the F-35Bs. For now, the USS America – a newer version of the amphibious assault ship capable of deploying F-35s – fills in for the Bonhomme Richard, operated from the US Navy base in Sasebo, Japan.
“As tensions escalate with China in the South China Sea, as well as with North Korea, the loss of this ship and its capabilities will make it more difficult for the Navy to meet all of its war-fighting requirements,” CNN military analyst John Kirby said last month.
Still, despite all the problems the fire has created, Kirby said they can be overcome.
“My goodness, if our strategy in any part of the world depends on the availability of one particular ship, then we have much bigger fish to fry,” Kirby said.
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