Event Brief
Aug 16, 2026 at 3:00 PM ET
Flare fire aboard USS Oriskany killed 44 on October 26, 1966
By The BriefBrief
A magnesium flare ignited aboard USS Oriskany on Oct. 26, 1966, starting a fire that killed 44 and took 3 hours to stop.
WHO: USS Oriskany crew and Navy personnel
WHAT: An accidentally armed magnesium flare ignited in a forward locker, triggering a shipwide fire and deadly ordnance explosions.
WHEN: Oct 26, 1966
WHERE: Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin
WHY: A magnesium flare was restowed with its igniter not reset to SAFE, and the fall pulled the safety lanyard, firing the flare.
How this brief is built: The BriefBrief correlates multiple sources into one evolving event brief, updated as new facts emerge.
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