No injuries, radiation leak as n-submarine catches fi

Nashville Herald Thursday 29th December, 2011

MOSCOW - A massive fire engulfed a Russian nuclear submarine at an Arctic shipyard Thursday, but there has been no radiation leak, or injuries, officials said.

The fire broke out while the nuclear submarine Yekaterinburg was undergoing repair at the Roslyakovo shipyard in the Murmansk region, said Irina Gretskaya, a spokeswoman for the Emergencies Ministry's branch in the area.

The K-84 Yekaterinburg nuclear submarine is one of seven Delta-IV class submarines in service, all deployed in the Northern Fleet.

The core of the naval component of the Russian nuclear triad at present, Delta-IV submarine carries 16 Sineva (NATO classification "Skiff") submarine-launched ballistic missiles.

"No deaths or injuries have been reported. There is no threat of nuclear pollution," the department said in a statement.

Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov explained that since all weapons onboard had been unloaded from the sub and its reactor had been shutdown for safety before the repairs, there was little chance of any radiation leak.

Fire safety violations during routine maintenance works are seen as the most likely cause of the fire at a floating repair dock.

Wooden scaffolding around the submarine caught fire and spread to the submarine's light outer hull, Northern Fleet spokesman Capt. 1st Rank Vadim Serga said.

"There is no possibility of fire burning through the hull and no threat to on-board equipment," Serga said.