Toilet war on US warship amid Iran tensions raises a stink
India Today
The US may be planning a strike on Iran, but aboard its largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, the crew are preoccupied with a more pressing issue -- finding a working toilet.
As war drums grow louder in the Middle East after Donald Trump's threat to Iran, the US Navy's leading aircraft carrier is battling a war that is far less dramatic. Clogged toilets and a sewage system failure have thrown life out of gear for the over 4,500 sailors aboard the nuclear-powered USS Gerald R Ford, which is at the heart of US overseas attack operations. That's not all. The extended deployment of the warship, now in its eighth month, has only added to the mental woes of the sailors.
The USS Gerald R Ford has been at sea since June 2025. In January, it played a crucial role during the US's Venezuelan strike, where President Nicolas Maduro was captured. Now, amid tensions with Iran, the warship has been deployed in the Middle East -- further extending the period for exhausted sailors from the typical six months.
However, what has made matters worse is the clogged toilets and a breakdown of the sewage system in what has been billed as the world's most expensive warship ($13.3 billion). According to a report in the Wall Street Journal and interviews with sailors, most of the 650 toilets in the warship are out of commission. This is due to a lack of routine maintenance, as the warship has been on the move continuously.
Such is the dire situation that the shortage of toilets has led to queues of up to 45 minutes daily. Frequent tussles between sailors and hull technicians, responsible for plumbing and repair operations, have complicated matters. In fact, technicians are working 19 hours a day to clear the mess.
This is, however, not the first time that the issue has been flagged. Last year in March, there were 205 toilet breakdowns in four days on the warship.
The problem basically stems from a key engineering defect. Despite having all state-of-the-art facilities, the warship relies on a fragile vacuum-based sewage system. It basically means that a single valve failure can disable all toilets in an entire department.
Indian Railway staff's swift action turned a medical emergency involving a toddler into relief aboard a train from Bengaluru to Gujarat.
Leon Panetta said Iran war was not an unexpected risk. He pointed out that for years, US security officials have known Iran could disrupt global oil supplies by blocking the Strait of Hormuz. According to him, this was a well-known danger, but one that appears to have been overlooked in the current conflict.
Sri Lanka raised fuel prices by about 25% for the second time in a week as the Gulf conflict disrupts global oil supplies via the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has warned it is ready to respond. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that if Iran's infrastructure is targeted, then key facilities across the region could be "irreversibly destroyed."
Indian Railway staff's swift action turned a medical emergency involving a toddler into relief aboard a train from Bengaluru to Gujarat.
In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump said ICE personnel would assist Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers who have continued to work despite uncertainty over funding.
In the viral video, a bus driver named Harish is seen stopping his bus mid-route, not for a passenger, but for a group of hungry puppies waiting by the roadside.
An NRI's creative replica of the Statue of Liberty in Jalandhar sparks cultural interest and local pride.
In a city reshaped by war and displacement, survival in Beirut now rests on quiet acts of care. Each morning, strangers show up — not with answers, but with what little they can carry.
A pricing sheet inside an auto rickshaw has gone viral for being practical and running a good side hustle.
Kremlin said that Kyiv wants to keep the "questionable activities" of its citizens under wraps, after Ukraine issued a statement on the arrests of six Ukrainian citizens in India.
A version that came within minutes is now being questioned days later. As new evidence emerges from Bahrain, the gap between first claims and fresh findings is raising difficult questions.