Former Navy captain Charles Schuster gave his viewpoint on the incident, himself having been in the same situation for four hours in an incident near Puerto Rico.

USS Benfold endured an "engineering casualty" last month, leaving about 300 sailors without potable water, galley services, toilets or air conditioning.

Incidents in 2026 include a destroyer without power for four days, a fire aboard another destroyer and a minor collision during refueling at sea.