The fire suppression system aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard was not operating and was under maintenance at the time that the ship caught fire.

Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, the commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3, told the Hill on Monday that the Halon gas system “was not in operation just because it was being worked on” while the Bonhomme Richard was in the shipyard undergoing maintenance. Halon gas, or bromotrifluoromethane, is a chemical fire suppressant that is used on Naval vessels in order to contain blazes.