U.S. temporarily loses contact with nuclear sub this morning

[Brent]

OFF THE FIRST COAST -- A few heart-stopping hours for the US Navy overnight. The Navy believed the submarine USS San Juan, along with almost 140 sailors, had sunk in the waters off the First Coast.

The sub was on a training mission off the coast of Jacksonville, but failed to check in at the time that commanders on the surface expected, around 10 p.m. Tuesday.

Ships on the surface were able to communicate with two other submarines involved in the exercise, but the USS San Juan was silent. A lookout on a nearby ship also reported seeing a red flare in the sky, which ships use as a sign of distress.

Surface ships failed to find any surface debris or distress buoy that may have
been launched by the sub -- leading some to believe the submarine may have
suffered catastrophic mechanical failure and sunk to the floor of the Atlantic Ocean.

A full-blown search operation began.

Approximately seven hours after the reported sighting of the flare, at 3 a.m., the Navy issued what's called a "sunk sub message" asking for international help. The Navy started notifying family members at around 4 a.m. Wednesday that search and rescue efforts were underway, and that the San Juan was believed to have sunk.

At around 5:30 a.m., the San Juan climbed to periscope depth and signaled the USS Arleigh Burke. The submarine's crew believed 5:30 was the correct time to check in, a Navy spokesman said.

Navy officials say it was difficult to contact or locate the San Juan with sonar because as part of the exercise the sub had gone into "full evasive mode." According to one Navy official, "The San Juan didn't want to be found, and we couldn't find it."

It's believed the flare sighted was a yellow flare being used as a normal part of the naval exercises being conducted by the USS Enterprise Carrier Strike Group.

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