Captain Lenard C Mitchell has been relieved as the commanding officer of the USS Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams (ESB 4), due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command after the ship ran aground off Gabon earlier this year.
Making the announcement on 8 July, the US Navy said Mitchell had served as commanding officer since 20 November 2022.
“The relief occurred as a result of an investigation into the soft grounding of Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams near the port of Libreville, Gabon on 9 May 2024.” The ship managed to free itself at high tide four hours after running aground. No injuries or major damage were reported from the grounding.
“While the investigation is still open, sufficient findings of fact emerged during the investigation to warrant the relief of the commanding officer,” the US Navy added.
It said it holds commanding officers to the highest standard and takes action to hold them accountable when those standards are not met. “Naval leaders are entrusted with significant responsibilities to their sailors and their ships.”
Mitchell will be temporarily assigned to Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic. Captain Michael Concannon will assume duties as interim commanding officer onboard Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams.
The Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams, a Lewis B. Puller-class expeditionary mobile base, is currently forward deployed to US Naval Forces Africa. Before running aground off Gabon, the vessel took pace in Exercise Obangame Express 2024.
Navy Times reported that the ship is not the only US Navy one to encounter such a mishap in the past year. The dry cargo ship Alan Shepard ran aground in Bahrain in July, while the guided-missile destroyer Howard also experienced a soft grounding in August as it pulled into Bali, Indonesia, for a scheduled port visit.
Navy officials have previously said the sea service relieved 15 commanding officers in 2023 over a loss in confidence.
