OXNARD (US), Sept 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Eight people were dead and
more than two dozen missing and feared dead Monday after a scuba diving
boat caught fire and sank off the California coast, with passengers trapped
below deck by the roaring blaze.
Fire crews in helicopters, small boats and a Coast Guard cutter battled
the fierce pre-dawn fire on the 23-meter Conception, which had been
on a diving excursion around Santa Cruz Island, just west of Santa Barbara in southern California.
But the blaze and intense heat prevented them from breaching the vessel’s
hull to search for survivors before the craft sank, the Coast Guard said. A
dense fog further complicated rescue efforts.
“Four victims have been recovered thus far as deceased,” Santa Barbara
County Sheriff Bill Brown told a news conference.
“Rescue and recovery efforts on the scene have located an additional four
victims on the ocean floor in close proximity to the vessel,” Brown said,
while 26 people are missing.
Five Conception crew members were awake and jumped into the water when flames burst out around 3:15 am, Coast Guard Captain Monica
Rochester said, putting the total number of people aboard the boat at 39.
The five were rescued by people on a pleasure craft called the Grape
Escape, Rochester said.
Rochester of the Coast Guard said all the passengers were believed to have
been sleeping at the time. The Conception had a crowded cabin with three-high bunks below decks.
The Conception sank 20 meters off the island’s northern shore,
leaving only its bow exposed.
Rochester said the Conception, which was launched in 1981 by a Santa
Barbara-based company called Truth Aquatics, “has been in full compliance” with safety regulations, and that its owner was cooperating with investigators.
The Truth Aquatics website said the Conception, listed as having bunks for
up to 46 people, had been scheduled to return Monday from a three-day trip
after visiting several diving spots around Santa Cruz Island.
The area is popular for a variety of water and outdoor sports. — NNN-AGENCIES
