European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 15, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Authorized uhf icim publication for the . Armed forces vol. 48. No. 28 monday May 15, 1989 a i id sunday u Soho a 2 killed in Carrier blast fire America Blaze is 3rd Navy ship Accident in a month Norfolk. A. Up an explosion and fire erupted aboard the aircraft Carrier America off the North Carolina coast killing two crewmen in the third major Accident aboard a Navy vessel in a month the Navy reported sunday. Shipboard firefighters quickly extinguished the Blaze which broke out in the no. 2 fuel pump room saturday a spokesman for the Navy s Atlantic feet Headquarters in Norfolk said. The vessel remained under its own Power and was continuing on its Mission a deployment to the Mediterranean sea and Indian Ocean it. Cmdr. Steve Bur Nett said. The America based in Norfolk began its current Mission last thursday the Navy said. The vessel was in the Western Atlantic off the North Carolina coast at the time of the fire Burnett said. The fire was very quickly isolated and brought under control he said. But because of the intense heat it took several hours to Cool the pump  the flames and damage were believed confined to the pump room and no other casualties were reported. The exact extent of the damage has not been deter mined and an investigation into the incident is under Way. The  America is capable of continuing her As signed Mission Burnett said. Aircraft carriers have multiple systems and duplicate capabilities in order to be Able to sustain damage and still perform assigned  it was the third major Accident on a Navy ship in a month. Related Story. Page 2 six sailors were killed and five were injured May 9 in a fire that swept through the boiler room of the combat store ship White Plains about 100 Miles from Hong Kong in the South China sea. An explosion in a Turret housing 16-Inch guns on the world War ii battleship Iowa on april 19 killed 47 sailors during training exercises in the Atlantic. An investigation was focusing on what caused the explosion of Gunpowder that was being loaded into the tur ret s Middle gun. Panamanian pastoral letter censures Noriega american troops stand guard to provide Security for a Convoy of vehicles at Ioard fab in Panama on saturday. Panama City Panama a a pastoral letter condemning the beating of political candidates the annulment of elections and other actions of Gen. Man Uel Noriega was read sunday on govern ment controlled television and at roman Catholic masses across Panama. Church support for fair elections is a new Factor in the political equation in Panama. The opposition called saturday for unspecified displays of protest at Church services but none was reported at Early masses although Many congregations applauded the pastoral letter. The opposition has also called for a 24-hour general strike on wednesday. Meanwhile the 1,881 fresh .troops ordered in by president Bush settled into tents around Panama canal bases a few Miles from the capital. The panamanian government which has issued few statements in recent Days had no reaction to Bush s Call saturday for the overthrow of Noriega by the panamanian armed forces but said the nation was so Calm saturday that Many panamanian troops were being Given leave. In fact almost no troops were visible. Even at the Central Barracks where Noriega head of the panamanian military and the nation s do Facto Leader lives. The pastoral letter asked the armed forces not to use their arms against a defenceless people and asked for Soli daily and  letter was originally issued thurs Day by archbishop Marcos Mcgrath and other Bishops of the roman Catholic episcopal conference of Panama one see Panama on Back Page 4 gis killed 2 seriously Hurt in autobahn crash Heidelberg West Germany four soldiers were killed and two suffered serious injuries when the car in which they were Riding left autobahn a6, near Heilbronn. And crashed about 7 . Saturday usar eur reported sunday. One of those killed in the crash had been a member of the 2nd corps support come with Headquarters in incl Lingen. Near Stuttgart. One of the injured is also assigned there. Another Soldier who died had been with the 1st inf div fwd in Goppinger. A third fatally injured Soldier had been a member of the 56jh Field arty come with Headquarters in sch Sobisch a mind. One of the injured is assigned to the same unit. The fourth crash victim had been with the 512th any group in Gunzburg near Neu Ulm. The names of the dead and injured arc being with held pending notification of relatives. The cause of the Accident is under investigation by German authorities and . Military police