A spokesman of the Royal Navy did not want to comment regarding the details but mentioned that the continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent remains unaffected.
The crew members wore their hazmat suits as heavy smoke poured out from an electrical conversion system. Even the ones who were off-duty at that time were reportedly summoned. A naval source added that the fire impaired an AC to DC electrical converter. The incident is severe. However, no one was injured, and no severe damages were brought to the submarine.
The members of the crew are expert firefighters. This helps ensure that the submarines and ships can respond to incidents efficiently and promptly, ensuring that operational outputs remain unaffected.
The 30-year-old vessel — long overdue for a significant refit — broke the surface in the north Atlantic to flush out the fumes. The 16,000-tonne sub is one of the four that offers round-the-clock nuclear deterrent patrols. However, it was understood that it wasn’t in that role then.