A gas leak aboard the destroyer USS Mustin injured two sailors in San Diego last week, according to the U.S. Navy.
USS Mustin is undergoing a depot maintenance availability at the BAE Systems yard in Barrio Logan. The scope includes hull work, reconditioning the engineering spaces, upgrading the ship’s command and control equipment, and refurbishing the living spaces. The $95 million work package began in May and is scheduled to continue through November 2023.
On Thursday morning at about 10 AM, a release of “hazardous fumes” was reported aboard the destroyer. San Diego Fire-Rescue responded to the scene, and two sailors were provided medical care. One of them was transported to a nearby hospital, according to local media. A Navy spokesperson did not provide further information about the nature of the leak or the extent of the injuries.
USS Mustin is the 39th vessel in the Arleigh Burke-class series and the second vessel named for the Mustins, a family with longstanding Navy ties. The warship is known best for a widely-circulated photo of her CO and XO on the bridge wing with China’s first-in-class carrier Liaoning under way in plain view.
Fatality aboard carrier USS Carl Vinson
On Sunday, a sailor was found unresponsive aboard the carrier USS Carl Vinson, which was moored at a pier in Coronado, San Diego. Fed Fire responded and pronounced the sailor dead at the scene, according to Navy Times.
There are “no indications of suicide or foul play,” the Navy said in a statement, and the service is investigating the circumstances of the death. The sailor has been identified as Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Darren Collins, 22.
“My deepest condolences go out to the Collins family in this time of tragic loss,” said Vinson CO Capt. P. Scott Miller in a statement. “As shipmates we grieve the untimely passing of a talented young man. We will continue to provide support to the Vinson crew and the Collins family.”
USS Vinson has had a challenging year. In January, an inbound F-35C fighter suffered a ramp strike and slid off the deck, injuring seven crewmembers. A salvage operation was launched to recover the plane’s sensitive wreckage.
Source: https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/two-injured-in-gas-leak-aboard-destroyer-uss-mustin
