Australia - Engine fire aboard Collins submarine

Defence has admitted one of its Collins submarines experienced a small fire at sea earlier this month.

The fire on September 15 occurred as the unnamed vessel cruised back to its port on the surface.

Fuel from one of the submarine's two diesel engines leaked onto some pipe insulating material which started smouldering, igniting a small fire.

"The engine was immediately shut down in accordance with normal procedures," defence said in a "hot issues brief" posted on its website.

The small fire was quickly extinguished with a portable appliance. There were no injuries.

The boat continued its voyage back to port with engineers conducting a technical inspection to determine what happened.

Australia's six Collins submarines have experienced a range of problems which has limited their availability for operations.

Nuclear submarine fire sparks two Navy probes

Investigators aim to learn why the blaze spread so fast and to find ways to reduce in-dock hazards.

Setting sail aboard a nuclear-powered submarine that can travel deep underwater at speeds topping 30 mph with complicated equipment and an arsenal of weapons has inherent danger. But there's potential for a bigger risk when the sub is in dock for major work.

Submarines that are being overhauled, like the USS Miami, which suffered $450 million in damage in a fire in May, are often crowded with shipyard workers and equipment. Temporary systems are established and there are cables running throughout the sub. Deck plating is sometimes removed, creating holes in passageways.

"Submarines face different dangers, perhaps bigger ones, when they're being overhauled or repaired in an industrial setting," said Peter Bowman, a retired Navy captain and former Portsmouth Naval Shipyard commander.

On the USS Miami, those who battled the fire that started May 23 said it knocked out lighting, and a crew member broke ribs when he fell into a hole.

It took the efforts of more than 100 firefighters to save the USS Miami in dry dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard after a civilian shipyard worker allegedly set a fire that quickly spread through its forward compartments.

Two Navy panels are continuing wide-ranging investigations aimed at identifying factors that contributed to the rapid spread of the fire as well as ways to reduce hazards and improve firefighting response in the future.

The Navy hopes to complete the investigations by month's end.

Bowman and Jerry Holland, a retired Navy rear admiral and submarine commander, said that an industrial setting exposes submarines to hazards that normally wouldn't be present at sea, when the ship's entire crew is present and all equipment and systems are in shipshape and in full operating order.

Some of the most serious ship and submarine calamities in U.S. naval history have happened with a vessel at dock, in construction or under repair.

In 1960, another nuclear-powered submarine, USS Sargo, suffered serious damage and the loss of one crew member during an oxygen fire at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. And 50 shipyard workers died when the aircraft carrier Constellation caught fire during construction at Brooklyn Naval Shipyard later that year in New York.

The submarine Guitarro sank during construction in 1969 at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California; watertight doors and hatches couldn't be closed because of cables and hoses.

Minor problems can become big problems when a vessel's sophisticated damage control systems are offline, said Norman Polmar, a naval analyst and author.

"When the sub is not operational, you can't count on the normal tried-and-tested damage control, firefighting and other safety systems," Polmar said.

In the case of the USS Miami, firefighters reported that going into the sub was like stepping into a blast furnace, and a forensic study concluded that the temperature may have hit 1,000 degrees in areas, the Navy told The Associated Press.

The pressure hull was subjected to less heat, with isolated areas hitting 700 degrees. "However, for the most part, the hull was not exposed to temperatures above 350 degrees," said Dale Eng, a Navy spokesman.

The Navy intends to repair the submarine, which is based in Groton, Conn., with a goal of returning it to service in 2015.

Former shipyard worker Casey James Fury of Portsmouth, N.H., who's accused of setting the fire, remains held without bail while awaiting trial in federal court in Portland. Fury told Navy investigators that he set the fire because he was feeling anxiety and wanted to go home.

The criminal case could have bearing on the release of the Navy's findings.

While investigators hope to complete their work by month's end, they won't make their findings public if it interferes with the criminal case, said Pat Dolan, spokeswoman for the Navy Sea Systems Command.A forensic study concluded that the temperature may have hit 1,000 degrees, during the fire aboard the USS Miami in May.

Navy: Sub Worker Set Fire So He Could Leave Early

A civilian laborer set a fire that caused $400 million in damage to a nuclear-powered submarine because he had anxiety and wanted to get out of work early, Navy investigators said Monday.

Casey James Fury, 24, of Portsmouth, N.H., faces up to life in prison if convicted of two counts of arson in the fire aboard the USS Miami attack submarine while it was in dry dock May 23 and a second blaze outside the sub on June 16.

Fury was taking medications for anxiety and depression and told investigators he set the fires so he could get out of work, according a seven-page affidavit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Portland.

Fury made his first court appearance Monday afternoon but did not enter a plea.

People who appeared to be family members attended the hearing but declined to comment. His federal public defender, David Beneman, did not speak in court and earlier in the day also declined to comment to The Associated Press.

The Miami was in dry dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, for an overhaul when the fire damaged the torpedo room and command area inside the forward compartment. It took more than 12 hours to extinguish.

The Navy originally said the first fire started when an industrial vacuum cleaner sucked up a heat source that ignited debris inside.

Fury said he set the second fire after getting anxious over a text-message exchange with an ex-girlfriend about a man she had started seeing, according to the affidavit. He wanted to leave work early, so he took some alcohol wipes and set them on fire outside the submarine. There was no damage and no injuries in that incident.

Fury, who was working on the sub as a painter and sandblaster, initially denied starting the fires but eventually acknowledged his involvement, the affidavit states.

He admitted setting the May 23 fire, which caused an estimated $400 million in damage, while taking a lie-detector test and being told by the examiner he wasn't being truthful.

Fury told Timothy Bailey, an agent for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, that "his anxiety started getting really bad," so he grabbed his cigarettes and a lighter, walked up to a bunk room and set fire to some rags on the top bunk.

Fury said he initially lied about setting the fires "because he was scared and because everything was blurry to him and his memory was impacted due to his anxiety and the medication he was taking at the time," according to the affidavit.

Fury told NCIS agent Jeremy Gauthier that he was taking three medications for anxiety, depression and sleep, and a fourth for allergies. He checked himself into an in-patient mental health facility on June 21 and checked himself out two days later, the affidavit reads.

If convicted of either charge, Fury could face life imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000 and be ordered to pay restitution, officials said.

Magistrate Judge John Rich III scheduled a combined detention and probable cause hearing for next month. The U.S. attorney's office has filed a motion asking that Fury be held without bail.

New Hampshire firefighters honored for response to submarine blaze

Firefighters from numerous Seacoast New Hampshire fire departments were honored Monday by their U.S. senators for bravery in fighting the fire aboard the USS Miami on May 23.

Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Kelly Ayotte spoke before a group of about 40 firefighters and other first responders at Prescott Park.

They also presented the fire departments with a copy of a Senate Resolution, passed unanimously last month, honoring all the firefighters who responded that day.

It took more than 100 firefighters from many area and New England fire departments more than 10 hours to bring the blaze aboard the Miami under control. The Miami was at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for an overhaul when the fire occurred in the ship's forward compartment.

Shaheen and Ayotte talked about the courage of fighting a fire under incredibly difficult conditions. Firefighters went into the sub in 15-minute shifts, encountering black and toxic smoke that rendered them unable to see.

In fact, said acting shipyard Cmdr. James Kalowsky, the fire aboard the Miami was "the most significant event ever experienced at the shipyard."

"The efforts of the rank and file firefighters" from area towns, who were not trained to fight a sub fire, "were astounding and in many cases heroic. We're blessed beyond measure" to have Seacoast-wide fire response teams, Kalowsky said. "We're honored to be part of the Seacoast family."

The two senators, who came to the shipyard within days of the fire, said they were stunned by what they heard.

"Listening to those stories was really amazing," said Shaheen, who added there were 75 rotations down into the submarine that night. "I can't imagine what it was like — the dense smoke, the heat, the fumes from burning insulation. It's incredible no one lost their lives. The smoke was so thick they couldn't see in front of them."

"It's just incredible what firefighters did on May 23, not only from New Hampshire but from throughout New England, as they came together as a team," Ayotte said. "It reminds us not only of what they did on May 23, but of the difficult job that first responders have every single day."

Ayotte said she looks forward to the day when the USS Miami can be rebuilt, as it and all the Navy's submarines are "critically important to national security."

And she reminded the firefighters that the Senate Resolution is not just from New England's senators: "This is a commendation from the United States of America."

The Seacoast New Hampshire fire departments that received a copy of the resolution Monday were Dover, Greenland, Hampton, Lee, New Castle, Newington, Pease Air National Guard, Portsmouth, Rollinsford, Rye and Somersworth.

Portsmouth Assistant Chief Steve Achilles said he appreciated both senators honoring the local firefighters.

"It's important. We worked extremely hard that night. It was one of the Seacoast fire departments' shining moments," he said.

"Some folks say they're heroic," said Dave Lang, president of the Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire. "Our guys say they were just doing their job."

Navy announces delay in report on USS Miami fire

KITTERY, Maine — Navy officials said Wednesday that it will be several more months before the investigations into the USS Miami fire are complete.

The Judge Advocate General manual and the safety investigations will not be completed until late summer or early fall, said Gary Hildreth, public affairs officer at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.

In the days after the May 23 fire, Navy officials said the investigations should only take two or three weeks to complete.

Hildreth said that neither document can be released to the media. However, the Navy will provide information periodically as the investigation work continues.

The fire broke out in the forward compartment of the USS Miami just before 6 p.m. on May 23. More than 100 area and shipyard firefighters worked over a 10-hour period to bring it under control.

According to subsequent Navy releases, the fire was caused when hot material was sucked into a vacuum cleaner. The vacuum was unplugged when the fire occurred.

Damage to the nuclear powered submarine has been estimated at $400 million.

The investigations will result in a determination of whether the Miami should be repaired or scrapped.