{"id":22765,"date":"2020-07-12T18:53:29","date_gmt":"2020-07-12T18:53:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2020\/07\/12\/amphibious-assault-ship-ablaze-in-port-san-diego\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:02:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:02:18","slug":"amphibious-assault-ship-ablaze-in-port-san-diego","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/naval\/2020\/07\/12\/amphibious-assault-ship-ablaze-in-port-san-diego\/","title":{"rendered":"Admiral: Bonhomme Richard fire believed to have started in the \u2018Deep V\u2019 cargo hold"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Most of the sailors injured in a massive fire aboard the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard Sunday suffered from smoke inhalation, Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3, told reporters Sunday evening in San Diego, where the ship had been burning for nearly 12 hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sailors were in stable condition, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMost of them are attributed to smoke inhalation,\u201d Sobeck said. \u201cI don\u2019t have the facts of all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seventeen sailors and four civilians were injured in the blaze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the precise cause remained unknown Sunday night, Sobeck said there was \u201cnothing toxic\u201d in the ship, and that the black smoke billowing from the amphib all day was caused by office and berthing items burning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fire is believed to have started below those spaces, in the lower cargo hold of the ship, known as the \u201cDeep V,\u201d Sobeck said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is a \u201chuge open area where you store a lot of (Marine Corps) equipment and everything else,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s where we believe it was started.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This screenshot provided by KGTV-TV in San Diego shows the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard ablaze at Naval Base San Diego Sunday. (KGTV-TV via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bonhomme Richard had 1 million gallons of fuel onboard but it is \u201cwell below where any heat source is,\u201d Sobeck said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sobeck noted that some sort of internal explosion had occurred earlier in the day aboard the ship, but said that \u201cwhat we cannot ascertain is what that explosion was caused from.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The explosion may have been a backdraft, he said, which occurs during a fire when oxygen rapidly floods an oxygen-depleted environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sobeck said firefighters were onboard the ship battling the blaze as he spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The remainder of the Bonhomme Richard\u2019s crew was safely evacuated and accounted for, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At about 5:20 p.m. local time Sunday, Naval Base San Diego\u2019s official Twitter account ordered non-first responders to \u201cshelter in place\u201d in sector A, wet side, north of pier 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naval Surface Forces spokeswoman Lt. Cmdr. Patricia Kreuzberger said the shelter-in-place order was not in response to any specific threat and was intended to keep the area cleared as first responders battle the fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to an ashore safety perimeter, maritime traffic in the area was being kept away as well, officials said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were about 160 sailors on board the ship at the time of the fire. About 1,000 sailors are assigned to Bonhomme Richard, though on weekends a small duty section is in charge of running security and overseeing contractors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explosion with at least one injury at the USS Bonhomme Richard. #shipfire<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/snidqq0ttw<\/a><\/p>— News Jockey (@jockey_news) July 12, 2020<\/a><\/blockquote>