"Moldy Showers" After 9 Months of Deployment... Leading to Attempted Suicide

Concerns are growing over the mental health of crew members as the deployment of the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, deployed to the war in Iran, has been extended.

Citing a report by the naval specialty publication Navy Times, the UK's Guardian reported that some crew members aboard the Lincoln, which has been at sea for nine months, attempted to jump overboard.

At a meeting between naval officers and the families of crew members held in San Diego last week, the wife of one crew member said she received a text message from her husband saying, "I hope I don't wake up tomorrow."

The wife of another crew member said her husband, exhausted by continuous deployment extensions, tried to jump into the sea, while another wife shared that her husband pulled a fellow crew member back onto the deck after an attempted jump.

The USS Lincoln, carrying approximately 5,000 sailors and Marines, is currently on its ninth month of deployment. It set a modern US aircraft carrier record by operating at sea for 250 consecutive days without making a single port call.

The deployment of the Lincoln, which departed San Diego on November 21 of last year, was originally scheduled to end last May, but has been extended multiple times as the war in Iran prolonged.

Families claim that the prolonged deployment, compounded by poor living conditions, has pushed the stress levels of the crew to their limits.

Crew families also raised issues regarding poor conditions such as moldy showers and broken toilets, disrupted hot water supplies, and shortages of food and daily necessities.

Representative Mike Levin, a Democrat, criticized the situation, stating, "We must at least provide service members who serve our country with warm water, properly functioning toilets, and normal meals."

In response, the Navy countered that it has not been confirmed that suicidal urges or suicide attempts have increased aboard the USS Lincoln, stating, "Currently, normal food is being provided on the Lincoln, including clean water and air conditioning."

(Reported by Kim Taewon | Video by Lee Dain | Graphics by Yang Hyemin | Produced by SBS Digital News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.