page_title: USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6)
section_title: July 2020 fire
hierarchical_section_title: USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) / Construction and career / Incidents / July 2020 fire
caption_attribution_description: English: SAN DIEGO (July 12, 2020) The U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) on fire at Naval Base San Diego, California (USA), on 12 July 2020. On the morning of 12 July, a fire was called away aboard the ship while it was moored pier side at Naval Base San Diego. Base and shipboard firefighters responded to the fire. Bonhomme Richard was going through a maintenance availability, which began in 2018. The fire was extinguished on 16 July.
context_page_description: USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship of the United States Navy commissioned in 1998 as the sixth ship of her class. She is the third ship of the United States Navy to bear the name. She was named in honor of John Paul Jones' famous frigate, which he had named in French "Good Man Richard", in honor of Benjamin Franklin, the U.S. Ambassador to France at the time; "Richard" is derived from Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac.
  The primary mission of Bonhomme Richard is to embark, deploy and land elements of a Marine landing force in amphibious assault operations by helicopter, landing craft and amphibious vehicle, and if needed, to act as a light aircraft carrier.
  Bonhomme Richard was the flagship for Expeditionary Strike Group Three.
  On 12 July 2020, a fire started in a lower deck while the ship was undergoing maintenance at Naval Base San Diego. It took four days for firefighters to extinguish the fire, which injured at least 63 sailors and civilians. The cause of the blaze is under investigation. The damage was extensive and the future of the ship remains uncertain.
context_section_description: On 12 July 2020, an explosion occurred about 8:50 a.m. aboard Bonhomme Richard while in home port at Naval Base San Diego undergoing maintenance. The resulting fire was fueled by paper, cloth, rags or other materials, not fuel oil or other hazardous materials, Rear Admiral Philip Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3, told reporters that evening. Since the ship was in maintenance, on-board fire-suppression systems had been disabled, delaying the onset of firefighting efforts, according to Admiral Sobeck. The fire was reported to have started in an area that is normally used to park military trucks while the ship is at sea, but where shipyard workers might have temporarily placed other items including combustible materials.
  The day the fire erupted, 17 sailors and four civilians were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries; all but five were released by morning of the next day, Navy officials said. By 14 July, the number of injured had risen to 61, as more people were treated for minor injuries, including heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation, the following day.
  On 14 July, extensive firefighting efforts continued aboard the burning ship. Sobeck expressed confidence that firefighters would be able to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading to a section of the ship where fuel is stored. The United States Coast Guard had established a safety zone 1 nautical mile (1.9 km) in diameter and 3,000 feet (910 m) in altitude around the warship, while civilian authorities were advising local residents to remain in their homes to avoid the billowing acrid smoke.
  On 16 July, five days after the explosion, the Navy announced that all fires had been extinguished. The minor injury total had risen to 63 total (40 sailors and 23 civilians). Admiral Michael Gilday, Chief of Naval Operations, said the event was "a very, very serious incident" and that the Navy would address any systemic problems. He said the firefighting efforts had involved sailors from many ships and units in San Diego, including the helicopter squadron HSC-3, which dropped water on the ship.
  The Navy will remove the aft mast of the damaged ship to ensure it will not collapse.  Fire and water damage were sustained on 11 of 14 decks.  Sections of the flight deck and other decks were warped and bulging, while the island was nearly gutted.  According to the Heritage Foundation "for now, however, the ship’s future remains in question."  On August 26 it was revealed that a sailor from the ship is being investigated for arson, but no motive has been identified and no-one has been charged.
caption: USS Bonhomme Richard on fire at Naval Base San Diego on 12 July 2020.
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