1954 — May 26, U.S. Carrier Bennington explosions and fire off Quonset Point, RI — 103

— 107 Nash, Jay Robert. Darkest Hours. 1977, pp. 47 and 704.
— 106 NFPA. “Large Loss Fires of 1954.” Quarterly, Vol. 48, No. 3, Jan 1955, p. 316.
— 103 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 412.
— 103 National Fire Protection Association. Key Dates in Fire History. 1996.
— 103 Naval Historical Center, Dept. of Navy. USS Bennington (CV-20, later…), 1944-1993.
— 103 NFPA. U.S. Unintentional Fire Death Rates by State. December 2008, p. 25.
— 103 US Dept. Navy. “Casualties: US Navy…Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured…”
— 102 Edwards, Christopher. “Fire Down Below!” Naval History Magazine, V25/N1, Feb 2011
–>100 Pope, Richard S. “USS Bennington. 26 May 1954 Explosion.” (Memorial Website)

Narrative Information

Nash: “The 32,000-ton, United States aircraft carrier Bennington, which boasted a 2,300-man crew, was seventy-five miles off Newport and in the process of launching planes on May 26, 1954. Captain William F. Raborn, Jr., was on the navigation bridge directing operations when, at 6:20 S.M., he noticed smoke billowing from both sides of the ship. Seconds before, had had received a report that the starboard catapult had malfunctioned. Then a huge explosion rocked the ship.

“Below, the third deck was awash with fire and smoke. The blast tore through dozens of wardrooms, corridors and mess areas, where scores of sailors were eating breakfast. A gaseous mixture filtered through the ventilating system and those in the immediate area not killed outright by the explosion dropped to the deck as the poison filled their lungs.

“Before the fire was brought under control, 107 sailors and officers were dead. The cause of the explosion was left in doubt, but several officers claimed that had smelled ‘hydraulic oil’ just after the catapult system failed, an occurrence that had spelled disaster on United States carriers.

“The loss of life on board the Bennington made it one of the worst noncombat disasters in United States Naval history up to that time…” (Nash, Jay Robert. Darkest Hours. 1977, p. 47.)

NFPA: “May 21 [26], 75 miles south of Newport, R.I, United States Government, $2,000,000; 106 killed, 119 injured.

“27,100-ton aircraft carrier. As aircraft were being catapulted from the flight deck of the carrier an explosion occurred in the internal hydraulic circuit in the port catapult room. A series of violent explosions (apparently in¬volving hydraulic liquid in mist form released from the damaged hydraulic equipment) then occurred which shook the ship.

“All metal joiner bulkheads, ventilation ducts, and furniture on the second deck, and a considerable amount on the third and fourth decks were destroyed. Metal ladders and ac¬cess hatches were twisted and torn into shreds. The flame from the blast was of such intensity as to penetrate the flame-tight doors on the bomb elevator hatch on the second deck.

“The duration of the fire was very short and most personnel casualties were caused by flash burns, fractures or carbon monoxide poisoning. The most likely cause of the inci¬dent was compression ignition similar to the action taking place in a Diesel engine. How¬ever, other causes of ignition cannot be dis¬regarded and, therefore, very extensive tests and research are being conducted. This incident was very similar to the USS Leyte explosion which occurred in October of 1953 killing 39. (January 1954 Quarterly, page 317.).” (NFPA. “Large Loss Fires of 1954.” Quarterly of the NFPA, Vol. 48, No. 3, Jan 1955, p. 316 within pp. 201-326.)

Naval Historical Center: “USS Bennington, a 27,100-ton Essex class aircraft carrier built at the New York Navy Yard, was commissioned in August 1944…. She…suffered two major accidents: a boiler room explosion in April 1953 and a terrible hydraulic catapult explosion and fire on 26 May 1954. After the latter tragedy, which cost the lives of 103 officers and men, she entered the shipyard for further modernization, which gave her an angled flight deck and enclosed bow….” (Naval Historical Center. USS Bennington (CV-20, later CVA-20 and CVS-20), 1944-1993. Washington Navy Yard, Washington DC: Department of the Navy, 4-3-2001.)

USN: “While off Narragansett Bay, a catapult hydraulic fluid explosion, followed by secondary explosions, killed 103 aircraft carrier USS Bennington (CV-20) crewmen and injured 201 others. 26 May 1954.” (USN. “Casualties: US Navy…Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured…”)

Sources

Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982.

Edwards, Christopher. “Fire Down Below!” Naval History Magazine, Vol. 25, No. 1, Feb 2011. Accessed 6-13-2013 at: http://www.usni.org/magazines/navalhistory/2011-01/fire-down-below

Nash, Jay Robert. Darkest Hours – A Narrative Encyclopedia of Worldwide Disasters from Ancient Times to the Present. New York: Pocket Books, Wallaby, 1977, 792 pages.

National Fire Protection Association. Key Dates in Fire History. 1996. Accessed 2010 at: http://www.nfpa.org/itemDetail.asp?categoryID=1352&itemID=30955&URL=Research%20&%20Reports/Fire%20statistics/Key%20dates%20in%20fire%20history&cookie%5Ftest=1

National Fire Protection Association. “Large Loss Fires of 1954.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 48, No. 3, Jan 1955, pp. 201-326.

National Fire Protection Association (John Hall, Jr.). U.S. Unintentional Fire Death Rates by State. Quincy, MA: NFPA, 31 pages, December 2008.

Naval Historical Center. USS Bennington (CV-20, later CVA-20 and CVS-20), 1944-1993. Washington DC: Department of the Navy, 4-3-2001. Accessed 6-13-2013 at: http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-b/cv20.htm

Pope, Richard S. “USS Bennington. 26 May 1954 Explosion.” (Memorial Website) Accessed 6-13-2013 at: http://www.uss-bennington.org/history26may1954.html

United States Department of the Navy, Naval Historical Center. “Casualties: US Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured in Selected Accidents and Other Incidents Not Directly the Result of Enemy Action.” Washington, DC: Washington Navy Yard. Accessed at: http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/NHC/accidents.htm