Posted at 5:46 p.m., Thursday, December 7, 2006
Sailor dies of burns received in shipboard accident
Associated Press
One of eight sailors injured when a steam pipe ruptured aboard the Guam-based submarine tender USS Frank Cable died today at an Army hospital in Texas after being transferred from Honolulu, Navy officials said.The name of the fireman assigned to the ship's engineering division was withheld pending notification of his family.
"Our Navy is deeply saddened by this tragedy," said Rear Adm. Joseph Walsh, commander of the Pacific Submarine Force. "We are grateful for his service to our country, and offer our deepest sympathies to his family."
The accident occurred Dec. 1, after the Frank Cable returned to Apra Harbor, Guam, Navy officials said.
During routine preventive maintenance checks of steam safety valves, a major steam leak occurred, sending pressurized steam into the fire room, they said.
The eight injured crew members were taken to Naval Hospital Guam, where two were treated and released.
The remaining six were flown the next day to Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, where they were met by the Burn Special Medical Augmentation Response Team, a nine-member unit comprised of the military's leading burn trauma experts.
After initial treatment and evaluation, the six sailors were transferred to Brooke Army Medical Center in Fort Sam Houston, Texas, for specialized burn trauma care.
Four remain in very serious condition, and one has been released for outpatient follow-up, the Navy said.
The USS Frank Cable remains in Guam while damage is assessed and the accident is investigated, officials said.
