U.S. Coast Guard Arctic Presence Goes Up in Smoke As Icebreaker Healy Suffers Fire
August 9, 2024
By Malte Humpert (gCaptain) –
U.S. Coast Guard presence in the Arctic has taken another hit. Icebreaker Healy suffered an engineering compartment fire at the end of July during its annual summer Arctic patrol. It is now returning from its aborted patrol on a single engine in an effort to attempt repairs.
The fire reportedly damaged a starboard transformer as a result of which the starboard engine remains inoperable.
The Coast Guard’s other icebreaker, the 50-year old Polar Star, is not available during summer as it is undergoing a service life extension program at the Mare Island Dry Dock in California.
Healy departed from Seattle for its summer Arctic patrol on June 12, 2024 taking it through the Bering Strait into the Chukchi Sea. It was traveling in Canadian waters near Banks Island around July 25 when it experienced an engineering space fire.
https://gcaptain.com/u-s-coast-guard-arctic-presence-goes-up-in-smoke-as-icebreaker-healy-suffers-fire/
