SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- Nearly one year after it was gutted by a massive fire, the San Diego-based ship USS Bonhomme Richard will be decommissioned by the Navy.
A ceremony to honor the vessel was scheduled to be held at Naval Base San Diego Wednesday morning, before it is towed to a scrap yard in Texas.
On the morning of July 12, 2020, a fire erupted aboard the warship as it was docked at the base. The firefight dragged on over four days, filling the San Diego air with smoke.
More than 60 people, including sailors and civilians, were treated for injuries such as heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation as a result of the blaze.
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About a month later, multiple sources with close ties to NCIS told ABC 10News the fire was being investigated as arson and the person suspected of starting the fire was a Navy sailor.
To date, Navy officials have only confirmed that the cause of the ship fire was still under investigation.
Because of the damage caused by the fire, Navy officials said it would not be cost effective to bring the USS Bonhomme Richard back. Officials stated it would take an estimated $3 billion to restore the ship and require up to seven years of work.
The ship was commissioned in 1998.
