USS Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams Suffers Soft Grounding Off Gabon

The expeditionary sea base USS Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams (ESB-4) grounded off the western coast of Africa on Thursday, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa confirmed to USNI News on Friday. Williams “ran aground May 9, 2025, around 1p.m. [GMT], shortly after leaving port from a routine port visit to Libreville, Gabon. The ship broke free about 5p.m. [GMT] at high tide. No injuries or major damage were reported from the grounding,” reads the statement from NAVEUR. As of Friday afternoon, the ESB was operating in the Gabon estuary just south of Libreville, according to AIS data. The Navy will undertake an additional