[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8626-8627]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   COMMENDING THE FIREFIGHTERS AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE PERSONNEL--USS 
                             ``MIAMI'' FIRE

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed 
to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 488.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 488) commending the efforts of the 
     firefighters and emergency response personnel of Maine, New 
     Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, who came together 
     to extinguish the May 23rd, 2012, fire at Portsmouth Naval 
     Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise today in support of a resolution 
recognizing the incredible courage and tremendous skill of the 
firefighters and emergency first responders who extinguished the fire 
aboard the USS Miami (SSN-755), a Los Angeles-class nuclear-powered 
submarine, 2 weeks ago at Kittery-Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, 
ME.
  At approximately 5:41 p.m. on Wednesday, May 23, 2012, a four-alarm 
fire broke out inside the forward compartment of the USS Miami, which 
was 3 months into a 20-month overhaul at Kittery-Portsmouth. More than 
100 first responders from 23 locations in 4 separate States responded 
to successfully contain the damage of the blaze and ensure that there 
was no tragic loss of life.
  With nothing less than fearless determination in the face of what has 
been called the most significant emergency to strike the shipyard in 
decades, brave firefighters battled zero visibility in tight, 
obstructed quarters filled with noxious smoke and searing heat for more 
than 10 hours to limit the fire to the forward quarters of the ship and 
eventually extinguish it entirely.
  Due to the unimaginably challenging space constraints, Kittery-
Portsmouth firefighters, in a command capacity and with a succinct 
collaborative effort with shipyard project team personnel, directed the 
rotation of multiple waves of groups of only three or four firefighters 
at a time to descend two stories into the ship to push back the flames. 
Their critical decision to immediately request assistance from mutual 
aid communities up and down the

[[Page 8627]]

coast ensured sufficient manpower to sustain the continuous delivery of 
roughly three million gallons of water and fire suppressants needed to 
tame the blaze.
  The integration of firefighters from so many seacoast communities was 
seamless, and should be held as an example of successful inter-
jurisdictional cooperation that could be used as a model for similar 
emergencies in the future. Furthermore, the fact that each and every 
one of these exceptional firefighters, many of whom had no prior 
experience aboard a submarine, could walk into such an extraordinarily 
difficult situation and perform so successfully is a testament to their 
exhaustive training, remarkable abilities and undaunted valor.
  Due to their inspirational efforts, with only seven responders 
suffering minor injuries, the fire and all subsequent damage was 
greatly limited, and the ship's nuclear reactor remained safe and 
stable throughout. After the fire, I had the privilege of meeting some 
of the firefighters who summoned unparalleled bravery and demonstrated 
such tenacity and skill in preventing the potentially catastrophic 
escalation of this fire. These men and women represent the very best of 
their field, and it is an honor to sponsor this resolution recognizing 
them.
  Indeed, it is largely thanks to these able firefighters and emergency 
first responders that we have the opportunity to repair the USS Miami. 
When I spoke with Navy Vice Admiral McCoy, commander of Naval Sea 
Systems Command, after the fire, he said, ``We're determined to send 
the Miami back to sea.''
  I join Admiral McCoy in this sentiment. With a growing shortage of 
submarines in our Navy, it is vital that the USS Miami and its crew are 
able to quickly return to their vital work of keeping this country safe 
and secure, as the boat has done since its commission in 1990. Indeed, 
in the coming weeks and months, I look forward to working with the 
Navy, the men and women of Kittery-Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and my 
colleagues in the Senate to ensure that the USS Miami is quickly 
returned to service.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution 
be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider 
be laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 488) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 488

       Whereas the USS Miami (SSN-755), a Los Angeles-class 
     nuclear attack submarine with a crew of 13 officers and 120 
     enlisted personnel, arrived at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on 
     March 1, 2012, for 20 months of scheduled maintenance;
       Whereas at 5:41 p.m. EDT on May 23, 2012, a 4-alarm fire 
     occurred in the forward compartment of the USS Miami;
       Whereas emergency response personnel, led by the 
     firefighters of Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, worked for nearly 
     10 hours in tight, obstructed quarters filled with noxious 
     smoke and searing heat--
       (1) to prevent any loss of life;
       (2) to bring the fire under control; and
       (3) to successfully prevent the flames from reaching any 
     nuclear material and allow the nuclear reactor to remain 
     unaffected and stable throughout;
       Whereas 23 fire departments and emergency response teams 
     from the States of Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and 
     Connecticut provided mutual aid support during the fire, 
     including--
       (1) Pease Air Force Base, New Hampshire;
       (2) York County Hazardous Materials Response Team, Maine;
       (3) Massachusetts Port Authority Logan Airport Crash Team;
       (4) South Portland Fire Department, Maine;
       (5) Eliot Fire Department, Maine;
       (6) Lee Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (7) Dover Ambulance, New Hampshire;
       (8) Portsmouth Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (9) Hampton Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (10) Kittery Fire Department, Maine;
       (11) Newcastle Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (12) American Medical Response Ambulance, New Hampshire;
       (13) Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts;
       (14) Naval Submarine Base New London, Connecticut;
       (15) Rye Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (16) Greenland Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (17) York Fire Department, Maine;
       (18) Newington Fire Department, Connecticut;
       (19) Somersworth Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (20) Rollinsford Fire Department, New Hampshire;
       (21) South Berwick Fire Department, Maine;
       (22) York Ambulance, Maine; and
       (23) York Beach Fire Department, Maine; and
       Whereas the heroic actions of those firefighters, emergency 
     response personnel, and the USS Miami crew and shipyard 
     firefighters, 7 of whom suffered minor injuries during the 
     fire, directly prevented catastrophe, and greatly limited the 
     severity of the fire even in the most challenging of 
     environments: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commends the exemplary and courageous service of all 
     the firefighters and emergency response personnel who came 
     together to successfully contain the fire, minimizing damage 
     to a critical national security asset and ensuring no loss of 
     life; and
       (2) expresses support for the Navy and the exceptionally 
     skilled workforce at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, 
     Maine.

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