Ship blaze burns for second day — at least 59 hurt
SAN DIEGO — Flames tore through a warship for a second day Monday as a top Navy official revealed that a fire suppression system was inoperable when the blaze erupted while the ship was docked in San Diego.
Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck said the Halon gas system had been turned off while the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard was undergoing maintenance. Halon is a liquefied compressed gas that disrupts the chemical process of a fire.
The fire erupted Sunday morning in a lower cargo area where cardboard boxes, rags and other ship maintenance supplies were being stored, Sobeck said. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
At least 59 people, including 36 sailors and 23 civilians, have been treated for heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation and minor injuries. Five people who had been in a hospital under observation were released.
Sobeck said fire had spread throughout the ship Monday.
The flames were burning plastic, cabling and other material but there was still a buffer of about two decks between the fire and fuel supplies.
The fire sent acrid smoke billowing over San Diego, and local officials recommended people limit exposure.
Sobeck said there was no ordnance on board, and while the ship holds a million gallons of fuel, it was “well below” any heat source.
About 160 sailors and officers were on board Sunday when an explosion and flames sent up a huge plume of dark smoke from the 840foot vessel, which has been docked at Naval Base San Diego.