Navy Veteran From Dallas Fights Fire Aboard Warship, Leads Sailor To Safety
SAN DIEGO (CBSDFW.COM) - A 16-year Navy veteran from Dallas was recognized by his commander for his efforts while fighting a fire aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard.
Lt. j.g. Bernardo Tincoco, is a a supply officer on the amphibious assault ship.
On July 12 a fire broke out on the ship while it was moored pierside at Naval Base San Diego. Tinoco leapt into action, leading multiple teams to search for safe and stable routes for firefighting teams to navigate the ship during four days of firefighting efforts. He also led a team to safely extract a sailor in need of medical attention from the ship.
"When asked if this generation of men and women are capable of facing adversity and confronting dangerous situations head-on, just talk about the men and women of USS Bonhomme Richard, and you'll lay that debate to rest," said Tinoco.
Fire teams consisting of four federal entities as well as more than 400 sailors from 12 San Diego-based ships fought the fire for four days. Three helicopter squadrons conducted more than 1,500 water bucket drops, fighting the fire and cooling the super structure and flight deck enabling fire crews to get aboard to fight the fire. Tugboats were also used to provide firefighting support from the waterline, cooling the ships' hull.
USS Bonhomme Richard is the third ship in the United States Navy to bear this name. She was commissioned on Aug. 15, 1998, at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, and then headed to her new homeport in San Diego. On Jan. 17, 2003, Bonhomme Richard deployed with Amphibious Task Force – West, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and the Global War on Terrorism.
On Feb. 14, 2012, Bonhomme Richard departed Naval Base San Diego for a two-month western Pacific deployment and a homeport shift to Sasebo, Japan. On May 8, 2018, Bonhomme Richard returned to Naval Base San Diego after being forward deployed to Japan for the previous six years.
Bonhomme Richard is currently going through a maintenance availability, which began in 2018.