A major fire broke out early Wednesday morning at BAE Systems’ shipyard in Barrow, Cumbria, where new nuclear submarines are currently being constructed.
The incident triggered a rapid response from emergency services, with two individuals hospitalised for suspected smoke inhalation. Authorities have confirmed there is no nuclear threat to the area.
So BAE is currently on fire. That’s kinda worrying pic.twitter.com/qNszyMi0zd
— jeffholt81 (@jeffbarrow81) October 30, 2024
The fire reportedly originated within Devonshire Dock Hall, the facility’s primary assembly site, where a £1.6 billion Astute-class submarine is under construction. Footage captured by local residents shows heavy smoke billowing from the building, prompting officials to urge those nearby to keep windows and doors shut and avoid the area.
🚨🇬🇧🔥 The Devonshire Dock Hall, part of BAE System’s Barrow-in-Furness facility, is on fire.
DDH produces the Royal Navy’s nuclear submarines. pic.twitter.com/ZPGYCDKweo
— Colby Badhwar 🇨🇦🇬🇧 (@ColbyBadhwar) October 30, 2024
Cumbria Police released a statement at 4 AM, stating: “Emergency services are currently in attendance at BAE at a significant fire at the site… there is no nuclear risk.” They also confirmed that all personnel within the affected area have been evacuated and accounted for.
Emergency services are currently in attendance at BAE at a significant fire at the site.
There is no nuclear risk. However, people living nearby are advised to remain indoors and keep doors and windows closed.
More: https://t.co/rTHCsiwsuL pic.twitter.com/4AG1wyllxb
— Cumbria Police (@Cumbriapolice) October 30, 2024
Residents expressed concerns on social media, noting the blaze could be seen for miles around. One local described hearing a “loud thump” prior to the fire, while another commented on the unsettling sight of flames at a facility of such significance. Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service has advised residents to remain indoors while firefighters work to contain the blaze.
Hoping that the 2 hospitalised are OK. Sounds serious, a lot at stake here, not just for UK security but NATO as well.
Thankfully, at least no one has been killed or is missing.
And Agamemnon is no longer in the hall.
accident or more sabotage? :/
indeed. while welding is known to have caused many fires in shipyards, like La Perle sub in France not long ago, it does seem odd to have a fire cause by work on ship at around midnight (maybe not if that shipyard runs 24/7, idk). without being a conspiracy theorist by nature, the current geopolitical context is ripe motivation for activists and foreign state actors. there have been plenty of incidents in recent years targeting western military industry. the next big question is the effects on submarine production due to damage. no matter what happened, I expect the situation will… Read more »
+ proven sabotage of naval group shipyard in Lorient last year and suspicions in the us…
yes France’s FDI frigate cables were cut in 2023, just a couple of months after a similar incident happened to Type 26 in Glasgow
Also french underwater cables were cut south of Toulon, France in 2022. Not a simple thing to do since it requires special equipment not avaliable to public.
Plus recent suspected Russian assassination attempt against Rheinmetall CEO in Germany.
Not to mention recent attacks in UK against military companies, Elbit, Leonardo and Thales.
Sabotage will obviously be part of post-fire investigations, however more likely to be an internal factory system failure.
First thought I had when I read the headline.
There have been a number of suspected and mostly proven cases of sabotage at military production facilities across Europe, not to mention the foiled assassination of Rheinmettal’s CEO. Not to mention that MI5 and MI6 have been warning about this from Russia for some time.
If it does turn out to be sabotage, an appropriately robust response should be made- I’m sick of bending over backwards and pretending that this is not material escalation from the other side that should be responded to.
I doubt the truth will come out if it is. I can see the headlines coming out of Miscow though, caused by a cigarette. They are going to have a field day. It’s certainly going to put our programmes back though. Do BAE have any fullback options?
They’ll certainly be happy to see it, will be interesting to see if there’s any claim to it, vague threats about what happens to those who cross Russia, or just some criticism of lax standards.
No, I’m 99.9% certain there aren’t any other facilities for sub manufacture in the UK. Hopefully it’s just a lot of oil smoke, and not much structurally damaged.
Someones head is going to role for this one. Hope everything and everyone is ok.
The MDP provide security at this site I believe.
If this is Russian Grey Zone they’d better grip this and up security.
I assume all the new BAES staff are being correctly vetted?
I have never heard of MDP protecting commercial premises, but it is possible.
I believe MDP is present at several non MoD facilities, from CNI Gas Terminals to at one time the Royal Mint.
I need to check later, but GCHQ, Raynesway and Barrow are also listed.
M8 I’m not going down any Rabbit holes re sabotage, nor saying this could be calamitous to U.K submarine production. By nature I’m rather cautious about these things, (years spent on accident investigations) so I’ll play devils advocate. Barrow is a simply massive site and to 100% secure it physically you would need a small army. But if you’ve ever been there or at quite a lot of the U.K. nuclear establishment you quickly realise just how insular and generational it is staffing recruitment wise ! Bit like your line of work you have families of Railway bods 😉. When… Read more »
Thanks for that mate. Yes, I remember the Kegworth disaster. I hope it is indeed just an accident.
Morning mate, at present, given what’s happened across Europe over the last couple of years, I think there’s a very strong possibility that this is Russian grey zone. I’m hoping for an appropriate response if shown to be the case.
Morning Joe.
It’s natural to speculate and to jump to that conclusion given the other fires that have occurred.
Agree, It’s quite possible.
Yes, if so, I’d hope to see Russian factories going up in smoke.
The West can play in the grey zone too, and I’m sure we do. It’s just not openly acknowledged.
Indeed, I do wonder how many of those ‘smoking accidents’ in Russia are the result of sabotage- although Russia has plenty of potential enemies who may have carried them out.
It certainly is beginning to feel a lot more unstable across Europe, and it does frustrate me that a large part of the media and public don’t seem to care.
Pride in nation diminished. “Nationalism” vilified by parts of the left and their media thralls. Is anything taught in schools beyond the wrongs of Empire?
No wonder wider issues don’t resonate with so many.
When it starts to directly affect them, if sabotage hits utilities and food, they will be hollering looking to partition blame.
I think they have a presence there due to the nuclear materials and the need for armed security that renta-sleepy-bloke-in-cabin cannot offer. The problem with all of this is that CCTV, sensors and fences only get you so far with the mass of defence related site we have in the UK. In the past there would have a rapid response from Plod. However, now there are more Plod than army this cannot happen…the way public sector staffing operates is for the birds given the huge numbers employed in NHS / Police etc – more bodies than ever but less output.… Read more »
Agreed.
And if this was sabotage, what if it was an inside job? You coukd have all the MDP and physical security you desire but it won’t stop that.
Which was why I mentioned effective vetting earlier.
I’ve no idea, but I assume workers involved with hands on or access to the build areas at Raynesway and Barrow are DV or enhanced?
Correct ! I can’t speak for Barrow but at Derby it’s very thorough, different levels for different zones within the overall plant. It’s a big like a Russian doll, plants within plants. As for MDP they have a presence but it varies depending on threat levels and material / component deliveries.
Thanks mate.
Of course it could be someone who feels their own country needs to be taught a lesson on its stance in the Middle East and Israel.
Oh yes. We have plenty of 5th columnists.
Some are in the party currently in power and there are plenty amongst the wider populace who don’t support their countries position on a range of issues.
In Germany, we recently had a fire at a Dynamit Nobel plant producing explosives… Not saying it is russian interference, but who knows… Its all speculation, of course.
Who knows indeed, but even if it’s not Russian meddling, I bet they love the fact they’re getting in our heads.
Hope Agincourt is safe.
One way or the other, significant delay for her and AUKUS.
Important thing at this present time is that everyone is accounted for.
Hope the two casualties with smoke inhalation will be O.K.
MDP may well patrol the site. Police statement is from Cumbria police.
Pure hypothetical speculation on my part, but what IF this were proven to be Russian/China/NKorea/Iranian sabotage, what should the UK’s response be?
Or will the UK just cover up/put head in sand?
What do you think? Didn’t do a lot after Salisbury did we! And that was proven.
Agreed. I saw the Salisbury incident as an act of war personally. IF this incident at Barrow is proven to be ruzzian sabotage etc a tough response must be taken.
But they wont cause they dont want to “escalate” things.
Appeasement is sleep walking us into a WW3
Even if outrageous and clear Russain contempt for the UK rule of law and sovereignity, I don’t see Salisbury as an act of war. Afterall, it was not targetted at the UK nor a UK citizen, but rather a Russian one, and most importantly no one died.
If it turns out to be the Russian involvement behind the Barrow fire, then I think the UK should seize the Russian funds in the UK as compensation for any damages and delays, a much better alternative than war.
my 2 cents
No one died from Novichok? Er yes they did even if not the intended targets.
thanks i did not know that Sturgess died after finding a perfume flask. RIP
Ultimately it will be hard to prove, Russia always looks to design attacks so there’s plausible deniability in the non aligned worlds eyes. So action by we would look like the aggressor.
Good start 🙂
UK should have seized property assets ages ago but City/estate agencies/MPs have too much to lose with noses in trough.
Is it not the intent & the action that is the act of ear not the outcome.? Attempted murder is in my opinion the same as murder it was just you didnt do a proper job.
So Dawn Sturgess is still alive and well, wasn’t killed by discarded Novichuck and there isn’t a public enquiry going on about it ? Only person killed was a British citizen.
How have you missed the fact someone did die? An unrelated member of the public. Also a police officer suffered life changing affects that rendered him unable to continue working. Are you even from the UK?
….yes, like a child. Actions should have consequences else it will just get worse.
The UK didnt cover up the sabotage of Type 26 in Glasgow. Even if details are not shared, the UK is fairly open abouts its issues, like most western countries and unlike Russia which does nothing but lie internationally and its people on a continual basis.
Response will be to condemn it, but the UK (just like any sane western democracy) isnt going to war, invade or launch nukes over sabotage. Instead it will learn what went wrong and increase security measures to avoid this in the future.
A good response would be to give Ukraine permission to use Storm Shadow against select Industrial targets in Russia.
Could be an ITAR issue tho?
not really. France replaced the ITAR component on Scalp/Storm Shadow when US blocked sale of missile to Egypt when they bought Rafale in 2015. So Egypt has ITAR free missiles, and it stands to reason that all missiles produced since then are ITAR free.
Nope !
How would they launch them?.
Ukraine can launch Storm Shadow from their SU24. They have used Storm Shadow multiple times in Crimea, Luhansk, Donest. in May 2024, Macron has said Ukraine could strike Russian soil but limited to military targets in Russia directly used to attack Ukraine. I think Starmer made a similar statement in July 2024 where he said “UK would allow defensive use of missile on targets within Russia”. So in theory Ukraine can use Storm Shadow on Russian soil limited to military targets involved in the war (ie airfields where Russian aircraft launch) Whether Ukraine has actually used the missile on Russian… Read more »
What if Ukraine has no operational SU 24’s left – which is the case now I believe ?.
then they have to wait for the first batch of Mirage 2000, which is scheduled to start delivery of a few planes in Q1 2025.
From Su-24 or in future Mirage 2000?
Since the UK is retiring T1 Typhoon, why not give them to Ukraine? unless there are other buyers I am not aware of.
Typhoon could always get some rudimentary mods like SU24 did to carry Storm Shadow, since Storm Shadow gets its target info and terrain maps etc…pre-programmed before take off.
T1 Typhoon with gun + Asraam would be very good combo to protect Ukrainian skies from cruise missiles and drones like Shahed.
They’ve been stripped for parts
That is a good idea for starters.
Russia is very obvious suspect and already has form.
I doubt it would be Iran, the UK stance on Gaza/ Lebanon is starting to align to their objectives re Isreal with talk now of full arms embargo so they’re not going to do anything that might cause UK government to change direction. N.Korea we’re not a main actor for them and I think China will be looking to see how they can work politically with the new government they would do anything that might upset that.
Yep indeedee.
UPDATE
according to Sky News, the enquiry is focusing on faulty equipment as the cause of the fire. It seems incident has no links with foreign entities.
pictures on Sky News site taken this morning show the outside with limited black smoke traces but nothing looking very serious, and most importantly it appears fire has been extinguished
hard to get much info since all news are focused on budget 2024
anyway seems the wost has been avoided.
🤞