US Navy ship intentionally discharged fuel into the ocean, resulting in unintended contamination of its own water supply.
An investigation was conducted into the USS Boxer, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship, which revealed that it unintentionally contaminated its own water supply during a deployment in 2016.
Fuel Disposal Contaminates Water on Stationary Navy Ship
The Navy ship disposed of fuel tanks suspected of contamination by discarding them into the water while the ship was stationary, causing the intake systems to draw the polluted water back into the vessel. According to a Marine veteran from that deployment, the crew consumed and used the contaminated water for a period of several weeks.
After the Boxer acquired roughly 400,000 gallons of fuel from the supply ship USNS Wally Schirra in the Sea of Japan, the incident happened on March 15. Later that day, sailors were instructed to dispose of diesel fuel, although the reasons for this action remain unclear, although it is reported that such disposal typically occurs when fuel is believed to be contaminated.
The fuel was dumped on one side of the Boxer, while on the other side, water intakes drew in seawater, which was then heated and condensed to produce drinking water.
Assurances Versus Crew Concerns
While these systems are designed to remove salt and sediment, they are not capable of removing fuel. As a result, the fuel evaporated along with the water and contaminated the drinking water supply.
To prevent self-contamination, the ship needs to remain in motion; however, after the fuel was dumped, the engine’s thrust was reduced. The crew of the Boxer soon detected the smell of fuel in the drinking water, although the ship’s leadership assured the Marines and sailors that the water was safe to consume.
According to Machinist’s Mate Chief Michael Gonzales, who was the leading chief petty officer in the oil lab at the time, there were no indications that the Boxer’s drinking water had been contaminated.
However, Daniel Martin, a Marine assigned to the ship at the time, strongly disagreed. Martin recalls that the ship’s commanding officer acknowledged the presence of fuel in the water in parts per million during a crew address, leading the crew to purchase all available water bottles from the ship’s store due to the pollution.
A spokesperson from the Naval Surface Force confirmed that traces of fuel were indeed identified in the Boxer’s water supply during its deployment in 2016.
The Boxer is not the only US Navy ship to have experienced water contamination in recent years. The service discovered that water on the aircraft carriers USS Nimitz and USS Abraham Lincoln was polluted with jet fuel and bilge water, as well as bacteria, respectively.
According to several veterans, sailors on US Navy flattops have been consuming and bathing in contaminated water across various ships, including aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, for decades.
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