spacetoday.net: Small fire breaks out at VAB

Posted: Thu, Dec 2, 2004, 8:09 PM ET (0109 GMT)
VAB damage from Hurricane Frances (NASA)

A small fire burned at the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center early Thursday afternoon, but no injuries or significant damage was reported. The fire broke out within the VAB at around 1 pm EST (1800 GMT), forcing an evacuation of the building. The fire was quickly brought under control, and NASA officials reported no injuries and no damage to space hardware. The giant building, which dates back to the Apollo era, is used to mate space shuttles to its external tank and solid rocket boosters. The first of two SRBs that will be used STS-114, on the first post-Columbia shuttle flight, is under assembly in the VAB. The building suffered some external damage during the series of hurricanes that pounded Florida this fall.