Navy will decommission warship built at Ingalls in Pascagoula damaged in suspected arson

By ELLIOT SPAGAT

Associated Press

SAN DIEGO (AP) – The Navy says it will decommission a warship docked off San Diego after suspected arson caused extensive damage, making it too expensive to restore.

Officials said Monday that fully repairing the USS Bonhomme Richard to warfighting capabilities would cost $2.5 billion to $3 billion and take five to seven years.

The amphibious assault ship burned for more than four days in July and was the Navy’s worst U.S. warship fire outside of combat in recent memory.

A senior defense official said in August that arson is suspected as the cause of fire and that a sailor was being questioned as a potential suspect