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By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
PUBLISHED: 14:01 GMT, 24 May 2012 | UPDATED: 15:10 GMT, 24 May 2012
Seven people, including five firefighters, have suffered injuries after a fire engulfed a docked U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine.
Firefighters swarmed the USS Miami - an attack submarine docked at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine - after the fire broke out shortly before 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
It is not yet known how the fire, which has now been extinguished, started but a full investigation is underway. The nuclear reactor remained stable throughout the incident, officials said.
Fears: Smoke rises from Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Wednesday night as flames ravaged the USS Miami SSN 755. The fire, which injured seven people but caused no deaths, has now been extinguished
Scene: Footage shows billowing smoke as firefighters battled the flames for 12 hours. The cause of the fire is not yet known, but the vessel's nuclear reactor was not involved
Damage from the fire was limited to the forward compartment spaces, which include crew living and command and control spaces, Rear Admiral Rick Breckenridge said in a statement.
Breckenridge, who is in charge of submarines in the region, said the ship's nuclear reactor has been shut down for more than two months and remained safe throughout the incident.
There were no weapons on board in the torpedo room at the time of the fire, he said.
The fire spread to spaces within the submarine that were difficult to reach, Breckenridge said, making it challenging for firefighters to combat to blaze.
Hit: Of those injured, five were firefighters and two were crew members for USS Miami (file picture)
Struck: An earlier picture shows the USS Miami entering the dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in March this year. It was undergoing maintenance at the shipyard when the fire broke out
After 12 hours, the fire was brought under control by Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Fire Department and Ship's force, along with several area fire departments.
Breckenridge called their efforts heroic, saying the extreme heat and smoke in the contained spaces made it very challenging for them. "Their efforts clearly minimized the severity of this event," he said at a brief news conference.
The injured personnel included three Portsmouth Naval Shipyard fire-fighters, two crew members and two civilian fire-fighters providing support.
They were either treated on-scene or taken to a local medical facility. All have been released.
Vessel: USS Miami is a nuclear-powered attack submarine. The reactors stayed stable during the fire
The submarine, whose home port is Croton, Connecticut, arrived at the shipyard in March. The submarine typically carries a crew of 13 officers and 120 enlisted personnel.
According to the Navys Vessel Register, the vessel was commissioned in 1990, is 362 feet long, and is nuclear powered.
It was not immediately clear how many people were aboard the submarine at the time.
The shipyard is now open as usual.
USS Miami: Seven injured after fire ravages US nuclear submarine | Mail Online
PUBLISHED: 14:01 GMT, 24 May 2012 | UPDATED: 15:10 GMT, 24 May 2012
Seven people, including five firefighters, have suffered injuries after a fire engulfed a docked U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine.
Firefighters swarmed the USS Miami - an attack submarine docked at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine - after the fire broke out shortly before 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
It is not yet known how the fire, which has now been extinguished, started but a full investigation is underway. The nuclear reactor remained stable throughout the incident, officials said.
Fears: Smoke rises from Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Wednesday night as flames ravaged the USS Miami SSN 755. The fire, which injured seven people but caused no deaths, has now been extinguished
Scene: Footage shows billowing smoke as firefighters battled the flames for 12 hours. The cause of the fire is not yet known, but the vessel's nuclear reactor was not involved
Damage from the fire was limited to the forward compartment spaces, which include crew living and command and control spaces, Rear Admiral Rick Breckenridge said in a statement.
Breckenridge, who is in charge of submarines in the region, said the ship's nuclear reactor has been shut down for more than two months and remained safe throughout the incident.
There were no weapons on board in the torpedo room at the time of the fire, he said.
The fire spread to spaces within the submarine that were difficult to reach, Breckenridge said, making it challenging for firefighters to combat to blaze.
Hit: Of those injured, five were firefighters and two were crew members for USS Miami (file picture)
Struck: An earlier picture shows the USS Miami entering the dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in March this year. It was undergoing maintenance at the shipyard when the fire broke out
After 12 hours, the fire was brought under control by Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Fire Department and Ship's force, along with several area fire departments.
Breckenridge called their efforts heroic, saying the extreme heat and smoke in the contained spaces made it very challenging for them. "Their efforts clearly minimized the severity of this event," he said at a brief news conference.
The injured personnel included three Portsmouth Naval Shipyard fire-fighters, two crew members and two civilian fire-fighters providing support.
They were either treated on-scene or taken to a local medical facility. All have been released.
Vessel: USS Miami is a nuclear-powered attack submarine. The reactors stayed stable during the fire
The submarine, whose home port is Croton, Connecticut, arrived at the shipyard in March. The submarine typically carries a crew of 13 officers and 120 enlisted personnel.
According to the Navys Vessel Register, the vessel was commissioned in 1990, is 362 feet long, and is nuclear powered.
It was not immediately clear how many people were aboard the submarine at the time.
The shipyard is now open as usual.
USS Miami: Seven injured after fire ravages US nuclear submarine | Mail Online
