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KY_EnviroGuy

(14,483 posts)
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 01:47 PM Jul 2020

Inferno on San Diego Navy ship rages into second day

Source: San Diego Union Tribune

A fire ravaging the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard continued into its second day Monday as sailors and federal firefighting teams continue attacking the blaze from air, land and sea.

Firefighting teams battled the blaze overnight, bringing in helicopters which dumped water on the ship late Sunday. Fire reached the ship’s island superstructure overnight. Images from the scene appear to show a portion of it — the bridge and forward mast — had collapsed.

The fire began Sunday morning in the ship’s lower cargo hold, Sobeck told reporters at a Sunday news conference. Sobeck said then he was confident the ship will be saved and that no ordnance was onboard. There are 1 million gallons of fuel on the ship, but Sobeck Sunday night it was “well below” any heat source.

Some observers, including former sailors and Naval experts, have questioned on social media whether the Navy will scuttle the ship, but Sobeck said Sunday night he believes the Navy will ultimately repair the ship.

Read more: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/military/story/2020-07-13/inferno-on-san-diego-navy-ship-rages-into-second-day



Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3, will address the media Monday at 11:00 a.m. with an update (I assume that's Pacific time)

See: https://www.10news.com/ (CBS TV San Diego)

or: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/
25 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Inferno on San Diego Navy ship rages into second day (Original Post) KY_EnviroGuy Jul 2020 OP
Can't imagine if they were considering scuttling, they wouldn't have been at off-loading some ... marble falls Jul 2020 #1
"Everything trump touches dies." Rick Wilson BComplex Jul 2020 #2
The draft-dodging Republican Golfer-in-Chief is toxic to our Armed Forces Champp Jul 2020 #9
From what I saw on CNN yesterday, it was in a maintenance work period OnlinePoker Jul 2020 #3
True. It'd be impossible to set Condition Zebra to help isolate the fire. Kaleva Jul 2020 #6
I'm still waiting for the Navy to say cojoel Jul 2020 #4
It's a metaphor for military coronavirus cases, unchecked bounties soothsayer Jul 2020 #5
What is actually burning on a ship like this? SledDriver Jul 2020 #7
It is full of flammable liquids, storerooms full of who knows what, weapons, paper hack89 Jul 2020 #8
The paint film is flammable, and people drip flammable on the decks jmowreader Jul 2020 #10
Think of the many dozens of WWII ships that were lost to fire. Kaleva Jul 2020 #11
Yes, I would like to see some ex-Navy guys chime in. KY_EnviroGuy Jul 2020 #13
Ex Navy here - Its the thousands of miles of cables and wire Ray Bruns Jul 2020 #16
YES! That's what I smelled! BigmanPigman Jul 2020 #18
And then there's the Galley fryer. Crowman2009 Jul 2020 #23
It can be smelled all over the county.... haele Jul 2020 #12
Could burn for days "down to the water line."... Ghost Dog Jul 2020 #14
Fuck--I was wondering what kind of ship it was.... lastlib Jul 2020 #15
Lower vehicle storage? Crowman2009 Jul 2020 #24
Yeah. Of course, according to the official report Ghost Dog Jul 2020 #25
I could smell it at my apt last night/this morning. BigmanPigman Jul 2020 #17
Official: Firefighting system was inoperable on Navy ship Judi Lynn Jul 2020 #19
That procedure would be expected where they had holds opened up for work... KY_EnviroGuy Jul 2020 #22
Monday night Navy Tweet..... KY_EnviroGuy Jul 2020 #20
Historic Tweet with video for your bookmarks.... KY_EnviroGuy Jul 2020 #21

marble falls

(56,359 posts)
1. Can't imagine if they were considering scuttling, they wouldn't have been at off-loading some ...
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 01:59 PM
Jul 2020

of that 1,000,000 gals of fuel.

BComplex

(7,984 posts)
2. "Everything trump touches dies." Rick Wilson
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 01:59 PM
Jul 2020

As Commander in Chief of the military branches, this is just another one of his dominoes to fall.

This country is doomed if we don't get rid of this guy. Really soon, preferably.

Champp

(2,114 posts)
9. The draft-dodging Republican Golfer-in-Chief is toxic to our Armed Forces
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:45 PM
Jul 2020

with malignant vengeance.

OnlinePoker

(5,702 posts)
3. From what I saw on CNN yesterday, it was in a maintenance work period
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:00 PM
Jul 2020

This means there would be vent trunking through doors and hatches and deck plating removed to allow easier access to certain areas on the ship. Unfortunately, this makes it very difficult to effectively contain a fire once it starts and one of the reasons it would spread so rapidly.

SledDriver

(2,049 posts)
7. What is actually burning on a ship like this?
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:29 PM
Jul 2020

It's metal bulkheads and doors and floors. This isn't a wooden ship from the Age of Sail, so there's no wood beams or planks. What is allowing the fire to spread throughout an all metal ship?

Genuinely curious.

hack89

(39,171 posts)
8. It is full of flammable liquids, storerooms full of who knows what, weapons, paper
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:34 PM
Jul 2020

It is a self contained city full of flammable materials.

jmowreader

(50,453 posts)
10. The paint film is flammable, and people drip flammable on the decks
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:49 PM
Jul 2020

Plus, if there’s any aluminum or magnesium, both of those are flammable. Titanium is also a flammable metal, but may not be on this ship.

KY_EnviroGuy

(14,483 posts)
13. Yes, I would like to see some ex-Navy guys chime in.
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:58 PM
Jul 2020

I can think of aircraft (magnesium and aluminum), fuels and lubricants, spare tires for aircraft, a huge amount of cable and wiring, paints and solvents, lots of paper goods, then all the bedding and clothing for crew and their quarters.

An article yesterday said they believed the bulk of the fire was in a huge lower-deck storage facility (sort of like the ship's warehouse) and it spread from there.

Quote from The San Diego Union-Tribune:

The fire began Sunday morning in the ship’s lower cargo hold, Sobeck told reporters at a Sunday news conference. Sobeck said then he was confident the ship will be saved and that no ordnance was onboard.


From Reuters:
The blast was believed to have been triggered by the rapid initial release of heat from a confined space under pressure, as opposed to an explosion of fuel or ordnance, Rear Admiral Philip Sobeck told a news conference on Sunday evening.

While the precise source of the blaze was unknown, the fire originated in a lower cargo hold of the ship and spread into the decks above it, consuming materials that typically burn in an office or apartment fire, Sobeck said.


KY

Ray Bruns

(4,023 posts)
16. Ex Navy here - Its the thousands of miles of cables and wire
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 05:41 PM
Jul 2020

insulation on the bulkheads, overhead, whatever is still in the berthing spaces. Flammable storage. etc.

BigmanPigman

(51,432 posts)
18. YES! That's what I smelled!
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 06:09 PM
Jul 2020

I just wrote that on a post further down. I live in the area and I thought there was electrical wiring burning in my apt early this morning, then realized it was coming in from outside.

Crowman2009

(2,478 posts)
23. And then there's the Galley fryer.
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 09:53 PM
Jul 2020

Do the galley's still use gas for the stoves and ovens?

I still think some construction worker dropped an acetylene torch next to a dirty fryer, or left the gas on.

haele

(12,581 posts)
12. It can be smelled all over the county....
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 02:52 PM
Jul 2020

A horrid, acrid, burning transformer smell that gets in your throat and bronchial passages.
We went out past the Veijas grade, about 30 miles away and 2k ft up to see Comet Neowise last night, and that nasty, hazy smoke was still all around us.

This morning I had to make a quick early morning "grandkids put an empty milk carton back in the fridge" grocery run, and while it wasn't as strong as yesterday, the air was still hazy and acrid.

It's pretty much a mandatory stay indoors order for the region for the next few days. I'm glad I have vapo-rub, lemon zinger and honey at home; that was my "working the shipyards" lung and throat relief routine back in the day. And that we have a good AC filter at home.

Haele

 

Ghost Dog

(16,881 posts)
14. Could burn for days "down to the water line."...
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 03:06 PM
Jul 2020

... San Diego Fire Chief Colin Stowell told CNN's Erica Hill that the USS Bonhomme Richard could burn for days "down to the water line."...

... Flames were being fueled by office supplies and other items from the lower vehicle storage area where the fire started, (Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group Three) Sobek said...

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/07/13/us/uss-bonhomme-richard-fire-monday/index.html

... The cost of replacing the Bonhomme Richard would be about $4 billion, said Todd Harrison, an expert on military budgets at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. It would take several years to build.

"And it’s worth noting that despite the fact that the Navy calls it an amphibious assault ship, it’s really a small aircraft carrier," Harrison said...

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/07/13/navys-uss-bonhomme-richard-blaze-continues-57-injured-fighting-fire/5427001002/

Here's the press conference :



lastlib

(22,981 posts)
15. Fuck--I was wondering what kind of ship it was....
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 05:02 PM
Jul 2020

didn't get the answer til I read your post.

For the life of me, I couldn't imagine why it was taking so long to extinguish until I read that. Now I understand. And realize it will take a LONG time to put it out completely. I remember the Forrestal fire in 1967--this could be about as bad, though maybe (with some luck) not so many casualties.

Crowman2009

(2,478 posts)
24. Lower vehicle storage?
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 09:55 PM
Jul 2020

Definitely a lot of flammable liquids in that area. Could be propane, hydraulic fluid, or motor oil that caught on fire.

 

Ghost Dog

(16,881 posts)
25. Yeah. Of course, according to the official report
Tue Jul 14, 2020, 04:52 AM
Jul 2020

on Sept 11 2001 events, these fires should have turned the whole ship to sudden dust long before now.

BigmanPigman

(51,432 posts)
17. I could smell it at my apt last night/this morning.
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 06:04 PM
Jul 2020

It smelled like an electrical fire and burning plastic. I live about 15 miles away too. At first I thought it was inside my home and got nervous that something was burning in an electrical outlet.

Judi Lynn

(160,219 posts)
19. Official: Firefighting system was inoperable on Navy ship
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 06:23 PM
Jul 2020

Julie Watson, Associated Press
Updated 3:21 pm CDT, Monday, July 13, 2020

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A fire suppression system was inoperable when a blaze erupted aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard in San Diego, so sailors fought the blaze with water, a top Navy official said Monday.

Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck said the Halon gas system had been turned off because it was being worked on while the amphibious assault ship was undergoing maintenance work.

The fire erupted Sunday morning and continues to burn. It broke out in a lower cargo area where cardboard and drywall supplies were stored and firefighters initially fought it with water until they had to withdraw, Sobeck said. Halon is a liquefied compressed gas that disrupts the chemical process of a fire.

At least 57 people were treated for heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation and minor injuries. Five remained in hospitalized under observation.

More:
https://www.chron.com/news/article/21-injured-in-fire-aboard-ship-at-Naval-Base-San-15403854.php

KY_EnviroGuy

(14,483 posts)
22. That procedure would be expected where they had holds opened up for work...
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 09:53 PM
Jul 2020

because Halon is mostly effective for confined spaces.

Recalling from my experience in the fire service and in heavy industrial work, a meticulous plan is usually put in place anytime fire protection systems are disabled, usually in the form of fire watches and temporary suppression equipment such as fire hoses and water connections, and emergency communications maintained with the fire watches. This is strictly followed where cutting, burning and welding is being done and "hot work" permits must be in place.

In this case, it's possible workers followed proper procedures but somehow opened a combustible supply pipe or tank accidentally and it got lit off and went quickly out of control so they had to evacuate.

Regardless it will be interesting to watch the reports on damage and cause of the fire and it's certain many heads will roll.

KY

KY_EnviroGuy

(14,483 posts)
20. Monday night Navy Tweet.....
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 09:19 PM
Jul 2020


Text:
Naval Surface Forces @SurfaceWarriors

As of 3:30 p.m. Pacific time July 13, firefighting teams continue operations on board @LHD6BHR. 59 personnel, 36 @USNavy
Sailors and 23 civilians, have been treated for minor injuries including heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation. Currently, there are no personnel hospitalized.


6:53 PM · Jul 13, 2020


KY

KY_EnviroGuy

(14,483 posts)
21. Historic Tweet with video for your bookmarks....
Mon Jul 13, 2020, 09:30 PM
Jul 2020


Text:
U.S. Navy @USNavy

Helicopters from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 3 combat a fire aboard the amphibious assault ship #USSBonhommeRichard (LHD 6). On the morning of July 12, a fire was reported aboard the ship while it was moored pier side at Naval Base San Diego.

5:07 PM · Jul 13, 2020·


KY
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