BATTLEFORWORLD.COM | January 31, 2023: In a surprising move based on a study, the US Navy announced that it shutdown four drydocks in the Seattle area out of concern over the safety risks if a major earthquake strikes the region. The US Navy shipyard is already struggling to keep up with the maintenance and repair needs for its nuclear-powered attack submarines.

The drydocks certified for nuclear submarine maintenance include three located at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, and one slot at the Trident Refit Facility in nearby Bangor, and all have suspended submarine docking for further evaluation and upgrades, the US Navy announced in a statement.

No information has been provided yet regarding what officials saw in the recently completed seismic study; and the estimated duration as to how long the drydocks will be out of commission was not revealed.

The seismic assessment study "identified potential issues associated with the remote possibility of a large-scale earthquake occurring simultaneously with a submarine maintenance availability," said the US Navy. And "With this new information, the Navy is taking additional measures to further ensure the safety of the shipyard workforce, sailors, the local public, the environment and the submarines."

The Cascadia subduction zone near the Pacific Northwest lies a fault line that runs 700 miles along the coast, from Vancouver Island to northern California. And scientists are warning that the fault is capable of unleashing a "megathrust" earthquake registering somewhere in the magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale, as it did on Jan. 26, 1700, and that the fault has a 37% chance of causing a quake in the magnitude of 7.1 within the next 50 years.

Continue at BATTLEFORWORLD.COM

Washington state, the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Naval.

END