Guilty plea in Maine nuclear submarine fire

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - A former shipyard worker accused of setting a fire that caused about $450 million in damage to a nuclear submarine has pleaded guilty.

U.S. Attorney Thomas Delahanty II said 24-year-old Casey James Fury of Portsmouth, N.H., waived indictment and pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of arson.

Delahanty told The Associated Press that he will announce details of the plea agreement at noon. Federal officials said Fury admitted to setting the May 23 fire on the submarine USS Miami. He has said he has anxiety and set the blaze because he wanted to go home.

It took more than 100 firefighters to save the Miami in dry dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, after the fire quickly spread through forward compartments. The Navy intends to repair the Los Angeles-class sub, which is based in Groton, Conn., with a goal of returning it to sea in 2015.