Originally Posted by
etudiant
No mention of a 'lessons learned' panel unfortunately.
It seems obvious that the US Navy fleet is poorly prepared for on board fires. The USN apparently relies on active crew intervention to block the fire from spreading. The concept of passive fire retardation seems to be unknown.
So the wiring remains flammable, the ducting remains large and generously supplied with oxygen and the crew is expected to block the ducts when fires arise.
The Bonnie Dick showed what happens when a fire happens under other than USN conditions. Not sure anyone is listening however.
As others have alluded, you are contradicting yourself and jumping to conclusions about shipboard fires. The ship was in a major dock period, with a skeleton active duty crew aboard, wide open with poor compartmentalization (miles of cable through hatches and scuttles that can't be easily closed), tons or material that would not normally be aboard, or be openly stored the way it was, if the ship was at sea , key systems were shut down or inoperable... Numerous comments have already been made that the fire would likely have been easier to contain, isolate and fight if the ship had been fully manned, operational and at sea.
Were mistakes made and lesson learned? Absolutely. Are vessels difficult to design, build and upgrade for maximum fire protection, while still being affordable? Yes. Can we jump to all your conclusions? No