Setting the standard for fire safety on NNSY's waterfront

SETTING THE STANDARD FOR FIRE SAFETY ON NNSY’S WATERFRONT

BY ANNA TAYLOR • PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST PHOTOS BY SHAYNE HENSLEY • NNSY PHOTOGRAPHER Nothing is more important than safety when it comes to fulfilling our mission to safely repair U.S. naval warships to on time and at cost.

For Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), fire safety is a particularly important aspect of ship repair and construction activities. They released a new fire safety and prevention manual in early 2014, and Norfolk Naval Shipyard employees are hard at work implementing the new regulations.

The manual integrates existing shipboard fire safety requirements with 24 • SERVICE TO THE FLEET • JUNE 2016

Rhode Island Zone Manager Leeroy Runion, Bosché, ETC Bancroft Parker, and Viance Rowell review the daily inspection sheet. Below: Runion and Bosché inspect material on Rhode Island.

lessons learned from the major fire that occurred on USS Miami (SSN 755) at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in 2012.

Known locally as the “8010,” the manual provides requirements for fire detection and firefighting equipment, guidance for minimizing flammable and combustible materials onboard ships, and establishes daily fire prevention and safety inspections.

At Norfolk Naval Shipyard, the policies set by the manual require significant changes on the waterfront when it comes to how we conduct work during maintenance

availabilities. For example, it requires the installation of a temporary automatic fire detection system during submarine availabilities along with internal water hose reels for immediate fire suppression.

Among these changes is the addition of a regularly scheduled inspection on each project.

“There’s a daily drumbeat of inspections,” said Lt. Cmdr. Kerry Bosché, USS Rhode Island (SSBN 740) ship safety officer. “The ship safety officer, zone manager, and duty chief all conduct a walk through. We go on this inspection every day. We correct things immediately if we can, and we track the things we can’t fix right away to make sure they get done.”

The 8010 contains more than 150 pages of requirements and policies, but the biggest part of improving fire safety at NNSY is more personal.

“It’s about bolstering our fire prevention and protection culture in the shipyard and on the waterfront,” said Bob Brinkac, head of the Emergency Management Planning Division (Code 1130). “The idea is that

every person down there working a project is looking out for things and understands the base requirements of the protection and prevention piece.”

Fire safety experts at NNSY are in the process of creating training related to the 8010 manual so everyone at the shipyard will be aware of what it mandates.

“We’re fulfilling the technical requirements, but it’s about the culture,” said Bosché. “It’s a change. There’s a whole communication piece we are trying to improve.”

For now, Bosché and Brinkac are applying the familiar Operational Security (OPSEC) mantra, “See something, say something,” to fire safety.

If something doesn’t look quite right, or if you’re unsure whether fire safety regulations are being properly followed, make sure you notify a zone manager or supervisor so the situation may be remedied as soon as possible.

“The biggest part of this is the day-today,” said Bosché. “It’s about keeping your eyes open and not living with deficiencies.”

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