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Tugs tow Sammy B to port after exercise

A Navy frigate had to be helped into port along the coast of central Argentina on Friday, where the ship remains pending investigation.

Lt. Cmdr. Jon Spiers, a spokesman for Naval Forces South, said the frigate Samuel B. Roberts experienced “engineering difficulties” May 11 while U.S. and foreign ships were wrapping up the annual UNITAS Atlantic exercise off the South American coast. Spiers would not confirm the ship ran aground, but noted tugboats pulled the ship into port at Puerto Belgrano. There were no injuries onboard, he added.

“The incident occurred inside the channel leading to Puerto Belgrano less than a mile from the port. The U.S. Navy is investigating the cause of the incident,” the spokesman said.

Navy investigators arrived in Argentina over the weekend, Spiers said, and plan to have the investigation and assessment of the ship’s condition completed as quickly as possible.

The Roberts is part of Task Group 40.0, along with the dock landing ship Pearl Harbor, guided missile destroyer Mitscher and the Chilean frigate CS Almirante Latorre. The task group is in the process of circumnavigating South America, Spiers said. No other ships experienced problems, he added.

Cmdr. Marc Weeks is the frigate’s commanding officer.

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