The U.S. Navy has confirmed that one of its destroyers was left without power for four days in the Pacific Ocean last month. The USS Benfold, carrying about 300 sailors, suffered a generator failure on July 24, according to Navy spokesman Cmdr. Matthew Comer. The crew went without drinking water, meals, functioning toilets, and air conditioning for days. The incident only became public on Friday when it was first reported by USNI News. This comes as the Pentagon faces serious questions about the quality of life aboard naval vessels and the military's ability to supply ships during the conflict with Iran. Democratic lawmakers are calling for investigations into conditions aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, which has spent a record 250 days at sea and has experienced shortages of food and hygiene products, with crew members suffering from stress and poor mental health.
Comer stressed that there were no injuries to the crew of the Benfold, who demonstrated resilience, grit, professionalism, and unwavering steadiness in their response, but the ship needed assistance from the George Washington carrier strike group. The cruiser USS Robert Smalls provided meals to the stricken destroyer.
Ultimately, the Benfold had to be towed to Subic Bay in the Philippines for repairs, arriving on July 28. The crew was provided food and lodging off the ship. On August 8, the Benfold left port with all engineering, combat systems, and crew support systems functioning normally.
Meanwhile, ships from the George Washington strike group, including the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, were spotted heading toward the Middle East. The carrier was expected to replace the Lincoln, which acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao said last week would be returning home soon. This would leave the Pacific without a U.S. carrier presence for an unknown period. The Trump administration sees China, the dominant power in the region, as a settled force that only needs to be deterred from dominating the U.S. or its allies, not as the top global adversary it was under the Biden administration.