Fuel Oil Leak Ignites Fire on Aircraft Carrier

A fuel oil leak caused a fire in one of the four main machinery rooms aboard the San Diego-based aircraft carrier Constellation, steaming to the northern Arabian Sea and a possible war with Iraq, Navy officials said Saturday.

The fire, which took more than an hour to extinguish, caused the shutdown of part of the ship’s propulsion system.

Although officials listed the damage as minimal, they were unsure Saturday whether the carrier would have to delay its mission in order to dock at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, for repairs.

The fire occurred Friday night as the carrier was nearing Hawaii. The Constellation battle group left San Diego a week ago on its way to the Persian Gulf region, probably to relieve the carrier Abraham Lincoln.

Cmdr. Jacquie Yost, a spokeswoman for the U.S. 3rd Fleet, said that “damage control teams aggressively put all of their training to use and performed outstandingly.”

Only minor heatstroke and heat stress injuries were reported. All were treated by the Constellation medical team.

Ten warplanes were conducting night operations when the fire broke out below decks. Officials initially thought the planes would have to be diverted to Hickam Field in Hawaii, but all were able to land on the carrier.

After 40 years of service and 21 deployments, the 88,000-ton Constellation is one of the oldest ships in the Navy and is to be decommissioned in 2003. It is also one of the last carriers that is not nuclear-powered.

The carrier has 72 warplanes and is accompanied by cruisers, destroyers and a frigate.