A staff member was taken to hospital following an incident at Babcock’s site at Devonport dockyard
08:13, 10 Apr 2026Updated 08:15, 10 Apr 2026
General file image of an Astute-class nuclear-powered submarine crossing Plymouth Sound last summer(Image: Ian Lott)
A Babcock employee was taken to hospital with what are understood to be serious injuries following an incident on a nuclear submarine dry docked at Devonport naval base.
A source told PlymouthLive the injured person was an apprentice at the engineering firm, who was said to be working on HMS Audacious when he was injured. His hand and face are thought to have sustained injuries.
Babcock has not confirmed these details but said an incident took place on April 2 and a worker was taken to hospital. It did not elaborate on the nature of the incident, the worker involved nor the extent of the person’s injuries.
An investigation has been launched into the circumstances and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the independent regulator for work-related health and safety incidents, is aware.
A Babcock spokesperson told PlymouthLive: “On April 2, a Babcock colleague was taken to hospital following an incident at our Devonport site and our focus is on their wellbeing. An investigation is underway to establish the cause of the incident.
“The health and safety of everyone working across our operations is our absolute priority.”
The HSE has confirmed it is making enquiries into the incident. A spokesperson said: “We are aware of this incident and making enquiries.”
PlymouthLive has reached out to the Ministry of Defence for comment.
HMS Audacious, a member of the Royal Navy’s Astute-class submarines, arrived in Plymouth in 2023 and docked into Devonport’s dry dock last year, according to Navy Lookout. She is the fourth submarine in the Astute range and was launched in April 2017.
During the vessel’s 11-month patrol in the Mediterranean in 2023, divers had undertaken complex underwater repairs on a partially flooded ballast tanks – critical for keeping the sub afloat.
She then came to Plymouth for further maintenance work which commenced while Audacious was docked in a tidal berth, while waiting to be refitted in the dry dock.