Officials say a scuba diver appears to have breached a barrier at the country’s largest naval base and they have stepped up security as a result.

Navy spokeswoman Kelly Wirfel said several sailors on watch at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia briefly saw the person Monday in the water near the secured piers.

A security gate sits in the water surrounding the base and its 14 piers. Wirfel says security teams are looking for the person while restricting access to and from the piers.

Nearly 60 ships are based at the base, including the fleet’s newest and most technologically advanced aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford.

The carrier returned to its pier recently after successfully testing new equipment that launches and lands jet fighters.

(AP)