Halibut Hangar

Originally Published November 08, 2008; Last Updated December 28, 2009; Last Republished December 28, 2009:

BBC is reporting a forward fire¹ in a an unnamed Russian submarine undergoing sea trials (Yuri Dolgoruky?) has killed twenty submariners².

The unnamed submarine has been ordered to ceased sea trials and head for port, likely at Vladivostok.

Post will be updated as more information becomes available.

Web:

• UPDATED 12/28/2009 RIA Novosti, Nerpa nuclear attack submarine enters service with Russia's Navy and RIA Novosti, K-152 Nerpa: Russian Akula II class nuclear attack submarine. Nerpa commissioned after lengthy post fire repairs.
• UPDATED 11/25/2008 TimesIndia, Sailor charged for Nerpa nuclear submarine mishap.

• UPDATED 11/12/2008 AFP, Sailor charged in deadly Russian nuclear sub accident: inquiry. How is this possible—where are the safety locks, interlocks, and submariner training?!

  Apparently defective emergency breathing masks increased the number of deaths:

  "I saw people in convulsions ripping off their masks. I also had a breathing apparatus on, but it only worked from seven to 15 minutes," --Warrant Officer Yevgeny Ovsyannikov--

  "Some of the dead were found with their gas masks on. The breathing apparatuses simply didn't work,"--Dmitry Usachyov--

• UPDATED 11/12/2008 AFP, Homage paid to victims of Russian submarine accident.
• UPDATED 11/11/2008 AFP, Survivors recall panic on Russian submarine: newspapers. Survivors are not reporting any fire as a trigger that activated the deadly Freon fire suppression system.
• UPDATED 11/10/2008 Reuters, Poor training behind Russian sub deaths: ex-officer. Includes nice video of sub and port panorama.
• UPDATED 11/10/2008 BBC, Russia investigates sub disaster.
• UPDATED 11/10/2008 Newsweek, Tragedy Under The Sea.
• UPDATED 11/10/2008MoscowTimes, Nuclear Submarine Accident Kills 20. Includes Reuter's partial list of recently reported major submarine incidents.
• UPDATED 11/09/2008 AP, Accident on Russian nuclear sub suffocates 20. Includes a few previous pictures of an Akula³ and a short video of the Akula entering inlet (presumably Bolshoy Kamen (Encarta Map), Russia—notice the dense greenery in background).
• UPDATED 11/09/2008 CSM, Russian sub accident points to Navy's shortcomings

• UPDATED 11/09/2008 AP, Russian navy: sub accident kills at least 20

  
  Akula Submarine at Zvezda Russian Far Eastern Shipyard, near Bolshoy Kamen, Russia, across the bay from Vladivostok.

• AFP, More than 20 killed in Russian nuclear sub accident: spokesman Speculating that it might be Project 971 (Nerpa, K-152), Shchuka-B (NATO designation; Akula, Typhoon class)
• Twenty die on Russian submarine

-----notes-----

1. UPDATED 11/09/2008 It is unclear whether an actual fire or a malfunctioning fire suppression system or both caused the submariners deaths.

Whether triggered by an actual fire or malfunction, Freon foam displaces the oxygen which suffocates the fire and any submariners without a protected oxygen supply to breath.

One wonders why our nations' armed forces are still using environment-damaging chlorofluorocarbons (aka Freon)?

UPDATED 11/11/2008 Pentagon spokesperson Lieutenant Commander Tamsen Reese is quoted as saying:

“The U.S. submarine force relies on traditional fire-fighting technologies [not Freon suppression systems] and continually trains our crews to ensure that any fire is rapidly extinguished,”--Kitsap Sun, Navy: Russian Tragedy Couldn't Happen on U.S. Submarines--

2. UPDATED 11/09/2008 Reportedly 17 "yard-birds", three crew, and 21 injured (no details give; UPI and Pravda are reporting 14 and six deaths, respectively).

3. The jet-engine-looking structure on the stern is a device to prevent the retractable towed sonar array from becoming tangled in the submarine's propeller.