[freeplancer]

I forgot to add that the reason so many people died is because there was a huge load of WWII left-over ordinance stored on deck at the time and the first blast put holes in all of the fire hoses

[7thson]

A lot of mistakes were made that day. One was the improper loading of the original missile fire. Another huge mistake was the lax attitude onboard the carrier. Many of the berthing areas had gear adrift - loose articles of clothing - which clogged up the pumps and allowed the berthing to become flooded. Also, if you watch the video, at one point a crew lays down foam which starts to smother the fire. But right behind them was another crew that washed the foam away with fire hoses and the fire reignited.

They show this film to you when they send you to firefighting school and also in boot camp. It is horrendous and scarier than a movie because it is real. There is one moment where a chief is running up with a fire extinguisher and then a horrific blast. He is gone - blown away!