A fire that broke out in a dry-docking nuclear-powered submarine at a naval shipyard in the U.S. state of Maine was put out on Thursday, but no radiation leak was reported.
Firefighters from the shipyard and coastal departments in Maine and New Hampshire spent Wednesday night and early Thursday fighting the blaze in 'USS Miami.' Seven firefighters and crew members were injured, local media reported.
Rear Adm. Richard Breckenridge, commander of Submarine Group Two, said firefighters isolated the flames from spreading to the submarine's nuclear propulsion spaces. There was nuclear fuel on board the sub, but its reactor had been shut down for two months and was unaffected.
The fire broke out on Wednesday evening while the sub was on dry dock for a 20-month overhaul at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Authorities said nuclear components were not threatened.
Officials on Thursday vented smoke and noxious fumes from the sub so they could get inside to assess the damage from the fire that took hours to put out.
Praising the submarine's crew and firefighters, Breckenridge said the fire spread to spaces within the submarine that were difficult to access, presenting a challenging situation for initial responders. "But they persevered in incredible heat and smoke conditions, demonstrating exceptional courage," the Admiral told reporters at the entrance of the shipyard.
In a statement on Thursday, Senator Susan Collins, R-Maine, said "in situations like this, we see just how brave our first responders are."
The submarine, which has a crew of 13 and 120 enlisted personnel, was undergoing maintenance at the shipyard since March. Commissioned in 1990, the Los Angeles-class attack submarine's home port is Groton, Connecticut.
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