Sat, May 24, 2008
Ship Now Steaming Home To San Diego
At approximately 0750 local time on May 22, a fire was detected
in the vicinity of the aft air conditioning and refrigeration space
and auxiliary boiler room aboard the aircraft carrier USS George
Washington (CVN 73).
The fire spread to several spaces via a cableway and caused
extreme heat in some of the ship spaces, but it was contained and
extinguished by the crew without any serious injuries to personnel.
It took several hours to completely contain and extinguish the
fire.
The ship had been conducting a routine replenishment at sea in
the Pacific Ocean with USS Crommelin (FFG 37) when smoke was
observed and an emergency breakaway was initiated.
There were no serious injuries. Twenty-three Sailors were
treated for heat stress, and one Sailor was treated for first
degree burns. The ship's crew was at general quarters for
approximately 12 hours.
"There's only one word for the effort this team made to combat
the fire and that is heroic," said USS George Washington Commanding
Officer Capt. Dave Dykhoff. "The effectiveness of the damage
control effort also clearly demonstrated the quality of our
training, procedures and systems."
The ship's propulsion plant was not damaged, and there were no
reactor safety issues as a result of the fire. The ship has full
propulsion capability.
George Washington is continuing as scheduled to San Diego prior
to relieving the USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) as the forward deployed
aircraft carrier in the Western Pacific this summer.
An investigation into the cause and full assessment of damage
caused by the fire is ongoing.
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