The USS Abraham Lincoln strike group makes its way into San Diego Bay as it returns from deployment on Aug. 11, 2022. (Nelvin C. Cepeda, The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS)

WASHINGTON — Nine sailors were recovering from injuries on Wednesday after a fire broke out aboard a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier off the West Coast, Navy officials said.

The Nimitz-class USS Abraham Lincoln was performing “routine operations” on Tuesday roughly 30 miles off the Southern California coast when the blaze began, according to a statement from the Navy’s 3rd Fleet. The Navy did not say precisely where the Lincoln was located off California at the time.

“The fire was quickly identified and extinguished through the crew’s firefighting efforts,” the 3rd Fleet said. “Nine sailors aboard are reported to have suffered minor injuries and have been treated aboard the ship.”

A spokesman for the 3rd Fleet said six of the injured sailors showed signs of dehydration.

Officials said the cause of the blaze is not yet known, but they noted it didn’t force the Lincoln to return to port.

The sudden fire is the second safety-related incident to occur aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln in the last few weeks. In September, E. coli bacteria was found in several of the ship’s potable water tanks, but the Navy said no sailors were sickened by it.

The Lincoln was built during the 1980s and commissioned in 1989. It’s based at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego.