The Navy will provide an update on the nuclear-powered submarine after three separate investigations are completed in two to three weeks, Patricia Dolan, spokeswoman for the Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, D.C., said Tuesday.
Based in Connecticut, the $900 million Los Angeles-class submarine was in dry dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for an overhaul when a fire broke out last week, damaging forward compartments including the torpedo room, command and control, and crew quarters, officials said.
An investigation by the military’s legal arm, the Judge Advocate General Corps, will get to the bottom of what caused the fire, while a separate investigative team is looking at safety procedures and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service is looking into whether a crime was committed.
Paul O’Connor, president of the Metal Trades Council, said that based on what he knows, he’s hopeful the Miami will be repaired at Portsmouth and returned to the fleet.
“Our plan is get that boat back to the Navy, and back on deployment,” Connor said Tuesday.
Insulation and wiring fueled the stubborn fire and the metal hull trapped heat, turning the forward part of the sub into a superheated oven. More than a hundred firefighters worked in shifts to douse the blaze.
Much of the USS Miami’s sensitive equipment had been removed and the fire didn’t damage any nuclear components, both factors that work in favor of repairing the vessel, officials say.
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