US Navy battles to save burning warship eNCA
Sailors and Federal Firefighters combat a fire onboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard at Naval Base San Diego.SAN DIEGO - Hundreds of firefighters battled through a second day from the air, land and water to save aat a San Diego shipyard, as the number of sailors and civilians injured in the blaze rose to nearly 60.
The USS Bonhomme Richard, an amphibious assault ship whose size ranks second in the US Navy fleet to that of an aircraft carrier, remained largely shrouded in thick, acrid smoke on Monday as the vessel began listing to its starboard side. The fire, accompanied by at least one large explosion, erupted on Sunday morning in the lower cargo hold of the 257-metre ship, docked for routine maintenance at its homeport at US Naval Base San Diego.Because it was undergoing repairs at the time, only about 160 of the ship's usual contingent of 1,000 crew members were aboard at the time, and all major munitions had already been removed from the vessel as a standard safety practice, Navy officials said.
Helicopters dropped water over the ship throughout Monday while fireboats on the perimeter streamed water on the hull to cool it from the outside. San Diego fire crews discontinued blasting water into the ship from shore, apparently out of concern for destabilising the vessel's buoyancy. The fire's cause was unknown, but a Navy spokesman told Reuters there was no evidence of foul play. The Navy said 36 sailors and 23 civilians had been treated for minor injuries, including heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation, and no personnel remained hospitalised.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Navy divers who swore at senior officer, called him 'drunk' in hot waterA road-rage incident involving two navy divers and a senior officer has left the leading seamen in deep water at the military court in Simon's Town.
Read more »
First federal execution in 17 years delayed by US judgeJudge Tanya Chutkan ordered the US department of justice to delay four executions to allow the condemned men’s legal challenges against a new lethal injection protocol announced in 2019
Read more »
Asian shares near five-month peaks on upbeat US earnings forecastsLowered expectations due to coronavirus lockdowns set bar low for results, analyst says
Read more »
Top US health official wants ‘everything done’ to contain virus as Trump finally dons maskHis comments came one day after President Donald Trump, who had long played down the importance of masks, appeared in public wearing one for the first time.
Read more »
Trump finally dons mask as US sets new virus case recordPresident Donald Trump finally yielded to pressure and wore a face mask in public for the first time on Saturday as the US posted another daily record for coronavirus cases, while Disney World reopened in a state hit hard by the pandemic.
Read more »