Navy report spreads blame for carrier fire

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- The U.S. Navy faulted some two dozen members of the USS George Washington crew for a fire that caused $70 million damage to the carrier.

The San Diego Union-Tribune said Tuesday that the investigation into the May 22 blaze called the incident "entirely preventable."

While the report recommended action against 12 officers and 11 enlisted personnel, six sailors were ultimately punished while the skipper and executive officer were relieved.

According to the report obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, the fire was caused by a combination of unauthorized smoking and improperly stored compressor oil. Discarded cigarette butts were discovered in an inlet to an exhaust fan leading to the little-used compartment where at least 115 gallons of the flammable oil was stashed.

Once the fire began, the report said, it took damage-control parties some eight hours to track down the location of the blaze. The damage control department had failed three previous inspections.

By the time the fire was finally snuffed out, 37 crew members had suffered heat exhaustion or other injures, and damage was reported on eight decks.