A new fire on board the nuclear attack submarine Perle, in Toulon – Ouest-France

On June 12, 2020, a fire ravaged the nuclear attack submarine Perle while it was in Toulon undergoing maintenance and repairs by Naval Group. A second fire was reported by the French Navy this Monday, September 26. The combustion “a priori of insulating materials” was detected around 12:45 p.m. in a food storage compartment, at the front of the submarine, said the spokesman for the maritime prefecture Pierre-Louis Josselin. The fire was confined to the premises, according to an official press release which specifies that there were no injuries and that no radiological risk is to be feared. As soon as the alert was given, specialized teams of marine firefighters from the Toulon naval base and reinforcements from the battalion of marine firefighters from Marseille intervened. Under surveillance Later in the evening, the maritime prefecture indicated that “the hot spots have been extinguished”, specifying in a press release that “as a precautionary measure, the submarine remains under surveillance of the intervention teams”. The Marseille firefighters had left the scene. “There was no radioactive risk, the submarine being in cold shutdown”, that is to say loaded with nuclear fuel in its rear part, “but the reactor stopped”, had specified more early in the evening Pierre-Louis Josselin, indicating that samples were taken to ensure the absence of risks. Junction of hulls After the first fire, the SNA was repaired in Cherbourg where a perilous operation to rebuild the SNA took place. Cutting and joining operations of the hull of the Perle with that of the SNA Saphir were carried out there. He then set sail for Toulon where he is still undergoing work before setting sail again in 2023. The causes of the incident have not been determined at this stage, according to the spokesman for the maritime prefecture, who could not specify if there would be consequences on the return to the operational cycle of the submarine. “This disaster was not comparable to that of 2020, which was an industrial fire, with significant flames”, he added. The refit of the Perle is an important element of the Navy’s strategy, which is based on the presence of six nuclear attack submarines, one of whose missions is to support the nuclear launcher submarines. gear (SNLE), but also to escort the Charles-de-Gaulle aircraft carrier, key elements of French deterrence. chevron_leftchevron_right