USS Nevada Vs. Tugboat

A submarine news source I've come to trust, the Kitsap Sun, is reporting (registration required for main article, but not for this blog entry) that USS Nevada (SSBN 733) may have "snagged and severed the tow cable of a tug boat while submerged in the Strait of Juan de Fuca late Tuesday or early Wednesday". No injuries were reported, but the Nevada, which apparently returned to port yesterday, reportedly suffered some damage to the "fiberglass portions" of the sail. From the article:

The Nevada’s Gold crew, led by Cmdr. Stan Robertson, was on board at the time of the accident. Each Trident has two crews of about 150 sailors and officers.
The tug, with a six-member crew based in La Conner, was towing two barges loaded with empty containers from Honolulu to Seattle, said Cmdr. Chris Woodley of Coast Guard District 13.
When the sub snapped the line to one of the barges, it drifted away from the tug, said Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Paul Roszkowski. Another tug later retrieved the barge.
Tow lines, especially the length of the 500-foot lines on the Phyllis Dunlap, commonly dip below the surface of the water, Roszkowski said.

Staying at PD...

Update 2345 08 Aug: From the Military Life blog, here's some more on the accident.