I'm confused about the reports here and elsewhere. It was declared a tragedy on the "open sea," yet it sank "20 yards from shore" --many swimming pools are 25 yards and more in length. Why was there no mention of what the crew (including the captain), who fled on an inflatable (!), tried to do to save the passengers before abandoning ship?
Wait a minute: what about the classic principle: "A captain goes down with his ship"?
The regulations appear to require two escape routes, your this ship apparently had only one. How is that compliance and seaworthiness?
What was the crew doing as the fire escalated? How did they get off the ship and others not?
2
My condolences to the families and loved ones of those who perished in this tragic accident.
Those of you who are jumping to conclusions and "smelling rats" should shut up. Not one of you playing guessing games even bothered to offer sympathy to the people whose loved ones died. I find that heartless and cruel.
Let the professional investigators determine the cause of this tragedy and keep your theories to yourself.
9
As a full time maritime safety expert working world wide, it is beyond belief that USCG regulations likely allow a vessel with a high capacity below deck passenger sleeping compartment to be arranged with single inclined stair escape access that leads to an enclosed main deck area that has a GALLEY in it. And the separate escape hatches led into the SAME interior space, guaranteeing no escape in case of fire and deadly smoke on the main deck.
While apparently allowed in the US, most other maritime nations would have no part of such a thing for a passenger vessel.
These overnite dive vessels just became uninsurable in the market, regardless of whether or not the USCG thinks the arrangements are acceptable. In any risk assessment they are not acceptable, and never, ever, ever under any circumstance should have been allowed. A true tragedy that was entirely foreseeable and avoidable.
6
It had an on-board barbecue? Sounds totally nuts to me. A gas leak that would fill the bilge with fumes would turn the boat into a 75 foot bomb. Engine room fire suppression systems would be useless. Bilge fume explosions were actually relatively common (and deadly) in gasoline powered boats just a few decades ago.
3
Isn't it odd that all of the crew survived but one, and all of the passengers have died?
When leaving terra firma the captain is responsible for all souls on ship.
There is more to find out.
5
@David
On Point.
1
The idea that 20-30 souls can be allowed to sleep on a boat this size is outrageous. It is high time for the USCG and other agencies to change the rules. Perhaps 10 people. But no way can 20 or 30 people get off a boat with a fast moving fire in the middle of the night when most are asleep and there’s only one exit.
13
Thirty four healthy and strong people trapped on the bottom deck of a boat with no escape possible below a fire which was too advanced for anyone to save them. As terrible an event as can possibly happen.
11
I would never agree to sleep in an area like that.
It was a death trap.
Anyone that considers that a normal sleeping situation is not using their heads.
The fact that the crew lived, and all the passengers died is highly suspicious.
We'll find out the facts.
Like we found out the facts about Tyler Skaggs.
It's going to be criminal.
7
Sounds like a dive tank exploded stowed below deck near the bunk room and the crew knew the passengers were goners, or they would have saved them before they attempted to fight a deck fire as more hands the better in fighting a fire on deck. And, to leave the passengers with no help to escape must have meant the crew realized the other tanks in the room would also explode and they would not be able to escape themselves as well. The fact that no authority is telling where the fire started or why the crew did not rescue the passengers , or attempt to rescue them, or why there are no burns on any of the crew members who were trying to put out the fire leads to a belief that there was an explosion and it was below deck and the crew had to make the decision to abandon ship or die themselves, as there were over 33 divers on board and that many dive tanks stowed below deck, which would explode from fire and heat. The fire boat reported as did the boat owner that rescued the crew they heard explosions after explosions when they were awaken and pulling in the crew members from the sea. IF this scenario is true, at least the passengers would have been overwhelmed by smoke rather than fire quickly from just one tank explosion, as the rule is smoke is the thing that kills first than fire.
8
I have not heard anyone mention smoke detectors. It's all well and good to have fire extinguishers and escape hatches, but to become aware of smoke in the air way before the fire becomes too large and people are overcome by smoke seems to me to be the best defense. If they had smoke detectors I don't understand why they couldn't have escaped.
2
Propane gas, which is used for bbq grills (possibly like the one on the boat), is heavier than the gas used in homes and for kitchen stoves. It may be that there was a leak. The gas would have sank to the lowest part of the boat, where everyone was sleeping and could have caused the catastrophic fire.
5
I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about this one I don’t like.
Stem to stern fire? Were they carrying flammables or explosives of some sort?
Just one inspection a year? Does the Coast Guard schedule surprise inspections?
Five crew members survived. None of the passengers survived?
Were there sufficient life boats and jackets?
Was there ever a practice abandon ship?
Were the emergency rules posted in prominent places aboard the boat?
Was anyone awake when the fire broke out? If not, why not?
Is the rule on this boat women and children first?
Or is it every man for himself?
Did anyone don women’s clothing to survive, like on the Titanic?
Just asking.
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/titanic-survivors-dress-like-women/
6
No one can be sure, but it seems very likely to have been a (cooking?) gas leak and a very rapid spreading of a fire, or an explosion. The instinct to blame the crew for surviving when the passengers didn’t is understandable, but I think they survived because they were awake and doing their jobs, and not sleeping below decks. This never seems to have been a small fire from which people could be rescued. It seems to have been rapid and overwhelming. Clearly there is blame to be placed but it’s not yet clear where.
6
@A. Stanton
Three a.m., people are sleeping. There is one ladder up from the sleeping quarters on the bottom of the ship. The fire cut off any escape.
3
I remember “In the Wake,” a novel by Per Petterson; the narrator is haunted by a ferry fire that killed members of his family.
1
I've sailed with these boats. Where were the watch standers (fire watch)? Was crew drinking? Fire suppression equipment? Even at anchor there have to be watch standers and more than likely on a 75 ft. boat there should be two. I've skippered boats and that was the first thing I did was assign watches. The skipper is wholly responsible and he will be lucky to get away with a revocation of his license. The company is dead and the USCG is going over these boats with a fine tooth comb. If no fire watch there is more than likely criminal issues
6
When the entire crew is topside and escape, and the fire breaks out with great intensity and kills everyone else, I smell a rat.
6
I wish people wouldn’t rush to judgment and vilification. It sounds as though those who know the boats and tour operators think they are responsible, and those who don’t are rushing to judgment and sinister implications. I know people want reasons, but sometimes bad stuff just happens.
11
As investigators continue to probe the proximate cause of this tragedy at sea, no one should be swayed by the recurring response that "all procedures are followed." If and when this defense manifests in multiple guises, responsible authorities and citizens should demand that the defenders of profit-over-people be taken to account for their misdeeds.
3
What’s happening ? It seems there is no end. Three major shootings and this one put together four have happened in a very short period. What to say ! I am speechless.
Except to offer sympathies to the bereaved families, I can’t but watch helplessly the tragedy being unfold one after the other.
6
Those sardine tin bunks that can sleep up to 46, with only two exits, one of them a hatch you need to find in the dark.
Way too many bunks, and impossible to escape. I think overnight diving trips are going to get more expensive, because they will have to launch with way less underdeck bunks. Perhaps bring an extra vessel or two for sleeping accommodations that can be easily exited. But the expense must be borne, because these human lives were too heavy a cost.
My condolences to the family and the diving community. Future trips will be safer, on the heels of this tragedy. This was an exceptionally conscientious and professionally run trip, apparently an excellent company, and even they could not stave off disaster.
5
Speculation and hearsay are fueling the media hype that is turning this painful tragedy into an ill-informed, dangerous blame game. Yes industry regulations are overdue for an update, but let's stop vilifying a well-established diving company before all the facts are in. And let's stop repeating misinformation.
- the media is misinterpreting the 911 call. The passengers were not "locked" in. They were trapped below when the stairway leading to the galley and the emergency egress were engulfed in flames.
- the galley ran on electricity, so propane was NOT a likely culprit if the fire did start there, as seems likely.
- the crew members did not simply abandon ship, cravenly leaving the divers, 1 crew member and the girlfriend of 1 crew member to die. 5 crew members were topside in the wheelhouse, and were unable to get back down below once the galley was engulfed in flames.
- they did send out a mayday from the ship, but once conditions topside became unbearable and prevented them from doing anything else onboard to help those below, they jumped overboard and paddled a dinghy to a nearby boat, to send out another call for emergency help.
- There were fire extinguishers onboard. Dive tanks are not filled with O2 but will explode when engulfed in flames. And diving suits are highly flammable.
- The boat carried considerable fuel, which could explain why the flames keep reigniting after they appear extinguished.
Let's let the pros do their work & gather more facts.
18
@Ali - did the Captain and crew suffer serous burns? That is a key indicator of whether they made sincere efforts to save the passengers.
1
The answer to why the crew was sleeping on the deck is simple and will be addressed during the numerous civil suits that will follow. The charter company was not willing to sacrifice room on a berth that could be rented to a client.
9
Aside from the dimensions of significant loss of human life, there is little definite news about causation or the ability of anyone to save lives at this point--please withhold your speculative judgments about cause and culpability until the NTSB professionals and others do their jobs.
19
I don't know enough to make any kind of decision about the crew, or the boat. This noted, like any building or dwelling, at least 2 places of egress should be available. I may be making the point similar to advocating for a stoplight" tobe installed at an intersection where there have been multiple deadly accidents. That said, it is still most likely, the right thing to do. I am sure the authorities will find out why all 5 of the crew, jumped off the boat without rousing a single passenger, all of whom were sleeping downstairs in their bunks. It is entirely possible the flames were too overwhelming before the crew had enough time to do anything else. Then again, this may not be the case. It is also quite possible the crew panicked, sounded the fire alarm or not (it is probably automatic anyway, and then leaped off the ship, saving their own skins, and leaving 30-something divers to die from either smoke inhalation, being burned alive, drowning, or all of the above. As I already mentioned, the authorities, who in this case are the NTSB and the U.S. Coast Guard, will get to the bottom of this tragedy.
2
A terrible nightmare for these families.
And the time for assigning responsibility will come.
Right now let's hope the exact cause can be pin-pointed asap to prevent anymore tragedies like this.
4
Why the confusion? The boat had, or did not have, two means of unobstructed egress from the sleeping quarters.
Which is it???
10
I saw the owner on TV; he said there was an escape hatch, fire equipment, etc. The cook I think is dead. Maybe an explosion involving the grill?
4
How is that there was no night watch, and only crew members survived?
8
Santa Barbara is one of my favorite vacation spots - and, in fact, I am here now, watching this terrible tragedy unfold. Just yesterday, as we happened to drive past the marina, we couldn’t help but wonder how many of the cars in the lot belonged to the victims and would have to be claimed by next of kin. It’s all so sad.
From all accounts, it appears as though the Conception had passed all its inspections and any past call outs were quickly remedied. It sounds like it was run professionally and ethically. It’s so easy to immediately cast doubt and suspicion on the crew, since they will likely - and almost embarrassingly - be the only to survive. It goes against our concept of what is considered to be true seamanship, where the captain goes down with the ship.
However, life is full of unpredictable tragedies and always will be. There are always spiritually lessons to be learned. Always.
My gripe with all of this is, in this age of shrinking national resources, why businesses of ANY type are allowed to exploit the few remaining pristine coves and natural habitats to vanishing species? Why are companies allowed to profit at the expense of commercializing the last remaining refuges for vanishing species? Boats getting too close to whales, sea turtles, monk seals...all of whom want to exist in peace and not be constantly stalked.
Certainly not making light of this unspeakable tragedy, but maybe it’s time to take a closer look at who gets to profit by permits.
66
@Daniel I spent two nights on the Conception with a Sierra Club trip to the channel islands in October 2017. It has a main stairway from the passenger bunks below deck to the kitchen on the main deck and also a secondary escape hatch which they made sure we knew about in the Emergency Procedure Drill they held. I am also a diver and have slept on other boats and you are right, they are similar. Typically, the crew sleeps close to the wheel house, far from the passengers. I am stunned by this tragedy.
21
@Daniel Not sure where your concern about exploitation is coming from in this context. Neither Santa Cruz Island nor the channel are pristine; the island formerly was a ranch, though it’s now being restored; the channel is a major shipping way and home to many oil platforms. Nonetheless it’s rich with marine mammals and it’s the excursion boat operators are most knowledgeable about regulations and not getting too close. I would not call these diving trips exploitative.
33
@Daniel most scuba divers look and don't touch. If people hunt underwater or fish they need permits which are issued strictly.
12
The GOP "All regulations of any kind are bad" trump voters agree. People die. In numbers that always reach double digits.
Good job "America's Black-Heartland'.
10
@Denise -- What does your comment have to do with the article?
1
As tragic and horrific as this situation was and continues to unfold, I would bet anything that at this very moment, there are other similar commercial and privately owned fishing boats out there on the water, under similar conditions - "sleeping compartment on the bottom deck of the ship" with only one, narrow set of stairs.
At the very least, I would hope or expect some kind of fire drill would be done on board before ever leaving the dock.
5
It strikes me that if a boat in which all passengers sleep below deck with limited exit paths is "in compliance", then the definition of "compliance" needs to change.
33
At this point, interminable speculation.
The crew was apparently sleeping on deck, which is all that enabled them to escape. I'm guessing the "built-in barbecue" was also on deck somewhere, hooked up to propane. The O2 tanks and likely the compressor would also have been on deck.
If the galley stove ran on propane and something blew there, you apparently had to pass through the galley to reach the exit stairway. An explosion and fire there would have blocked the principal exit. Finding the secondary exit, a single ladder leading to a hatch forward, in an area consumed by smoke and panicked, sleepy, confused passengers, would have been extremely difficult. I await the Coast Guard report to see if that hatch was locked from above.
I've been diving all over the world for more than 30 years, and the only dive boat I've ever been on that had a setup like this one, with packed-together bunks, was a rented shrimper. The arrangement may pass CG inspection, but in a situation like this it is, sadly, a death trap.
23
@Alan Dean Foster. Another commenter here, @SonomaWriter says there was a hatch accessible from one of the bunk beds in the sleeping quarters.
It’s not O2, it’s air.
1
Santa Barbara is one of my favorite vacation spots and, in fact, I am here this week, watching this terrible tragedy unfold. Yesterday, as we drove past the marina, we were struck with the thought that some of the cars there likely belonged to
2
I have been diving from Conception at least three times and several times from her sister vessel, which is almost identical.
Those boats are well run by professional crew and owner.
This tragedy shattered, devastated and depressed me and many of my dive buddies very much.
It is not only blow to families of unfortunate ones who were aboard Conception, but also severe blowback to California diving community.I would appeal to everyone to constrain from speculations, especially if they do not know reality of being on dive boat like one who just burnt. I personally observed and helped crew of Truth Aquatics in emergency situations before (as a physician) and find them the utmost professional and compassionate crew. I trust that formal investigation should give some answers and hopefully lead to preventing tragedies like this to happen again.
151
The investigators who come in after these transportation tragedies have what always seems to be an impossible job of studying wreckage and identifying causes and potential corrective actions. How they do it is a mystery to most of us. Maybe we’ll see some documentaries on how this is done, whether rocket explosion, building collapse, airplane crash, or boat fire. Over time the systems become safer and more reliable. Hopefully these efforts remain well funded and not drained of resources to build stupid walls or provide needless and senseless tax cuts to trillionaires and billionaires as they seek to suck up every last penny for their greedy selves.
11
The crew survives. The customers are crammed together on low deck without adequate escape routes. They do not survive. Thanks to my claustrophobia, I would not have been there. This scuba company is now out of business. That is for the best.
7
The crew survived but all the passengers died horrible deaths? All? Trapped below decks? No effort made by the captain and crew to save them? Every crewman jumped ship at once?
Did the captain survive?
Did the dive master?
I was almost killed scuba diving a quarter-century ago; “almost” as in “at-death’s-door” almost. How close is “close”? I know what it is to be dead. That revelation was followed by scenes out of that old TV show “ER”. Emergency helicopter medevac followed by two “soaks” in a decompression chamber. A week in a hospital ward bed followed by a month in a post-recovery unit. Took me years to recover my cognitive abilities to the extent that I could. Definitely missing a few marbles upstairs. And some sequelae hobble me even now.
I’m not the same person I was before the catastrophe, more like a recreation out of spare and salvaged parts.
The people who nearly destroyed my life that day were slapdash, careless and indifferent to their duty of care. I don’t think my sorry experience with them then was the least bit unusual for that business and I suspect it’s the same here.
42
@Steve Singer sorry you had a dive accident and disability. Without more information your speculations are just your opinions. What precisely makes you certain that your one accident is indicative of decades of commercial recreational diving safety?
50
@Steve Singer. Based on what I have read at least one crew member did not make it out . Also, a surviving crew member's girlfriend was sleeping and did not get out. Further, the head of dive co. that chartered boat did not survive.
24
@Steve Singer MY initial reaction was similar--why didn't the crew make some effort to wake up the passengers? It seems they were only interested in saving their own lives.
6
The reporting is disappointing on this tragedy. There is no mention of what the Coast Guard requirements actually are for such a vessel, e.g. smoke detectors, fire alarms (sounding), abandon ship alarms (sounding), the number of exits from the berthing area, watertight (airtight), fire suppression systems, live fire watch etc. It is difficult to believe that the Coast Guard allows so many people to sleep in a confined area below deck without more safety protections. There is also some preliminary radio traffic indicating the exit was blocked - was it, how and why.
84
@Ed I spent two nights on the Conception in October 2017. I heard the radio traffic that was broadcast on network TV. There were two exits from the passenger quarters below deck. Both exits were likely blocked by the raging flames on the main deck. We saw the pictures. I am sad that so many viewers are going straight to blame before finding out more about how dive boats work.
92
@Ed Poor reporting? Every story so far says they were in compliance with a positive history all around concerning regulations. Do you really expect a newspaper to list the CA Marine Vessel regs? If it was a bus accident would you expect them to list the regs for commercial vehicles or would you expect the more curious to go to the State of CA website and click on Marine Regs? Just curious.
16
I’m curious about Coast Guard regulations as well, as they pertain to recreational diving. I have spent many years representing seamen injured offshore, usually on MODUs (mobile offshore drilling units), and the Code of Federal Regulations Coast Guard regulations are comprehensive. The Coast Guard regulations apply to certified vessels, such as the one involved in this tragedy. But according to a June 2012, Coast Guard Marine Safety Advisory I came across, the CG does not regulate recreational diving. If that’s still the case, I would not be surprised to see that change.
5
I don't understand how a boat like this was legally designed to have a single entry and exit point for all the people sleeping deep inside. This tragedy was completely preventable.
67
@Markymark Many reports note a second egress, but describe it just as a hatch. If using the hatch required a ladder... were the passengers informed of its location, trained, rehearsed, etc? Eventually that detail will drift up to the surface.
6
@Markymark and how was it preventable? Just by having a second exit for 34 people?
8
@sonnel I spent two nights on that boat. The hatch was accessible from a bunk and did not require a ladder. We were all informed of the hatch's location during Emergency Procedure instruction held promptly after we launched, before anyone slept on the boat. The hatch opened to the main deck cabin, which we all saw was engulfed in flames.
31
The crew lived. The passengers died, locked inside the berthing area, according to news reports. Anyone else find this highly suspicious?
9
@Radicalnormal exactly where does it say they were locked inside?!
9
@Radicalnormal. ‘Locked’?! Nonsense! You obviously have never been aboard a dive boat. Name the source of your ‘news reports’ — if you can. Good grief!
10
@Radicalnormal Owner on TV says they were not locked in The CG person on radio said inaccurate things.
4
According to published reports, the fire started with an explosion in the propane-fueled the galley, directly above the only egress from the cabin below. The only other exit was a small hatch with ladder aft, which was unlikely to be much help to 32 panicked souls at 3 a.m. Any vessel carrying this many passengers and using explosive gas needs to have at least two clear exits, as is required in building codes on shore. It sounds like the crew did what they could before jumping.
10
I was on the Conception and I thought it was tight with a narrow staircase all passengers slept in bunks downstairs and it was clean, nice staff but, a death trap. They designed it poorly it was built to maximize bunks and make money as most commercial diving boats. I hope it is investigated and we get safer boats and protocols in place. Something went terrible on this trip. We Santa Barbarians lost good people yesterday.
134
@Marlis
As I said on my own post I do believe that 40 persons on a 75ft boat is way too much if they plan to do anything more than a two hour sightseeing ride along the coast.
Now I understand the boat had two hatches. In other words clearly not enough when 34 persons need to escape : in the best of situation that mean 17 persons pressing in a panic per hatch.
this is something almost impossible.
9
@Marlis. Guess you should lobby Monique, Hannah Beth and Salud to change the regulations because the Coast Guard Captain said the Conception was in compliance.
No mention of oxygen tanks that were surely on board. Were those the source of the explosions?
@Barrie Grenell
SCUBA divers utilize air tanks, not oxygen tanks.
9
@Maggie
true, but the Conception also carried Nitrox and propane, both of which are flammable and potentially explosive, the latter especially so.
5
@Maggie Non divers don't understand that air is 70% nitrogen and not flammable.
3
Reading this and the majority of comments, I am really embarrassed to be a human being. Meaning, all the accusations from people who know nothing, just letting their dark side project the worst onto the crew, in particular. Suggestions of arson, that the crew is guilty of some as un yet determined crime, etc. It reminds me of Spiro Agnew's "Nattering nabobs."
As one who has lived "on the water" most of my life, (Thank you Dad, ex-Coastie!) and an ex-Californian, this hits home.
But, please, let the Coast Guard do it's work before all you crazies let loose.
68
@Jus' Me, NYT Excellent point. For many of us Californians, this is not a time to point fingers. Accidents happen, and tragic ones like this. During his younger years as a marine biologist for CA Fish and Wildlife, my husband was a certified scuba diver. He went on drills regularly, and he always said that so much can go wrong whether diving or on-board. Yes, something happened. However, it is obvious that it certainly was not an intentional act. Those who died suffered a horrible death. That is our focus now, and to their loved ones left behind.
8
@Jus' Me, NYT It's crazy. I'm not going to pretend I have any idea what happened on that night and no one will, perhaps not even the five survivors. I'm just disgusted that people immediately jumped to blame the survivors who are probably dealing with their own guilt. The survivors should not be blamed for anything - the fire certainly wasn't their fault and we have no idea how fast it spread. In such tight quarters, it could have been a matter of seconds or minutes.
2
@Kn0 we do not know that the fire was not the fault of the crew. We don't know act actions they took to warn and evacuation passengers. It appears that none of them suffered severe burns trying.
I don't mean to get political, but this type of accident is exactly why we have State and Federal safety laws, certifications, and inspections. Yes, it does cost the owners money to comply with these regulations, but that is the cost of doing business. Loosening or eliminating business regulations may sound economically and ideologically attractive to some, but the lack or insufficiency of them can have catastrophic consequences. The Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942 lead to many new safety laws and regulations. Let us hope this tragedy will have the same legacy.
26
@Purple Spain - I agree, but suspect that the diver and boating communities are heavily Libertarian and opposed to government regulation.
1
If you want to read what owner had to operate by, look up Subchapter T in cfr.
Part 177 applies to size of accommodations, number and sizes of exits, aisles, and so on. Website Vessel plan for folks planning a trip shows exit going into forward deck cabin, not onto deck. No aft exit or any emergency exit is shown. With legal capacity, 46 passengers and 5 crew on a 75’ foot boat make for a full vessel, especially during meals. I’ve worked T boats and wonder if the OCMI will weather this inquiry with career left when it is said and done. One vessel I used to work on East Coast now works out of Oxnard and she should have no certificate but continues to work as an inspected vessel. She is wood too.
I also wonder if resin used in construction was grandfathered in or if current flame safety rigs applied in 1981.
Last but not least, nothing has been said whether any crew stood watch 24-7. That is a given for vessels carrying passengers for overnight trips. Fire safety is primary reason, plus vessel safety from leaks, weather, etc.
” Eternal vigilance is the price of safety” is a mantra we stay alive by and hope will apply to the inquiry that may ensure this does not happen again. Those who perished, God rest their souls.
25
Horrible book end to what seemed like a summer of distressing and disturbing news....mass shootings, Trump nonsense every other day, cruelty to little children instigated by people who are allegedly "parents' themselves... detention camps for the less fortunate ( can't beleive I just wrote that,in OUR country no less...), a devastating hurricane seeming to mock our climate blindness....
A terrible motorcycle accident in New Hampshire to start the summer ( Randolph) and now this tragedy to end it.....
The summer of depressing discontent on so many levels....
What a tragic loss of lives.....
12
@Ignatz all that has zero to do with this accident. Next.
5
I feel you...
This is horrible and very close to home. I live in Santa Barbara and over the years have been on a number of trips with Truth Aquatics, including overnight scuba diving trips to the Channel Islands (Santa Cruz is one of them) on the Conception. Many of my friends & neighbors have as well. We've known people who worked there for years and loved the work and their employer.
From my perspective as a paying customer (and scuba diver), the boats have always been immaculate and well-maintained, very well equipped and the crew was excellent, friendly, prepared and had expert knowledge about the local marine life and water conditions. They kept us well-fed. The bunks were comfortable and the sleeping quarters were fine. Nothing gave me second thoughts or caused me to worry.
Both of my children went on overnight trips with Truth Aquatics while they were in their early teens through their middle school. I would not have allowed that if I had any concerns about their well-being.
The cause of this disaster is being investigated and we'll all find out what happened soon enough.
145
@Freshpavement Well stated.
11
@Freshpavement I thought that sleeping on Conception was horrible. The staff was fine but, the boat had design issues and safety concerns in my opinion.
27
@Freshpavement:
Glad you and your kids are safe,but personal points of view by divers who have been on this ship differ widely. They felt it was a potential death trap for those bunking below.
12
Who was standing night watch? No fire drills? Smoke alarms below deck? Fire extinguishers and fire axes? An emergency escape hatch? People in these settings need to rehearse emergency procedures every day, every night. An old-timer cowboy-turned-mountain-climber taught me that ‘when you’re having great fun, danger is hiding around the corner’. I carried that advice across many adventure sports, including scuba diving.
61
@Caucasian-Asian even on cruise ships they only review safety procedures on eve, when passengers embark.
4
@Caucasian-Asian @sonnel I spent two nights on the Conception. We were all informed of the secondary escape hatch's location during Emergency Procedure instruction held promptly after we launched, before anyone slept on the boat. The hatch opened to the main deck cabin, which we all saw was engulfed in flames.
13
@Caucasian-Asian
Excellent statement.
The more so that an "escape hatch" that exit on a cabin cannot be called an "escape hatch"
At any rate, two hatches for 34 persons is clearly not enough.
4
40+ persons allowed to cruise (ie. to sleep in and spend more than a 2 hours sightseeing tour) on a 75ft boat seems way too much to me : align them all on deck and you'll see how it feels "not right".
Just imagine people scrambling to exist through ladders and companionways large enough for one person, "one-person-and-a-half", at the most. It's nearly impossible.
Then again I always was dismayed by the fact that fire extinguishers are mostly installed near a potential source of fire. It does make sense, but is it not enough. Several fire extinguishers should be installed on deck or near hatches leading down bellow so that you can fight your way to the fire. I've been sailing on many different type of boats for 57 years now and I can assure you that many safety improvement can still be made although a lot has been done since 1962…
Passengers information is crucial but this is almost never done …
And again : 40+ persons …
But this is only food for thought.
As @Dirtlawyer said : "Let's wait for the results of the Coast Guard investigation. Anything prior to that is mere guess work, including mine, above".
16
My fullest condolences to the families and friends of those lost in this horrific fire.
As a former US Merchant Marine, and also as a former volunteer fire fighter/EMT, I do have questions.
On merchant marine vessels there is always a crew on watch. Officer, Able Bodied Seaman and Ordinary Seaman. In this incident, was there no one on watch?
Structures on land are subject to building codes and fire escape planning. Are there no codes for commercial vessels?
54
@onthebeach I think you hit on something here. “...there is always a crew on watch.” Sad as it is to say, I believe there was a human error. My husband years ago had to scuba dive for CA, and caution beyond caution was the rule whether under water or on-ship.
13
@onthebeach
This is a good point: were there crew on watch? Having a relative who is currently a young Merchant Marine officer, I know that she has the night watch, with supporting crew as you describe. Fire drills and training are ongoing throughout the voyage. A onboard fire is something they plan for but hope to never have happen on anyone's watch. It does sound possible that a quick explosion happened, leaving no time to escape.
12
@onthebeach. Maybe there was someone on watch and s/he watched the explosions that blocked both exits of below deck quarters.....
2
I wonder if this will bring the same kind of prosecutory zeal that has characterized the land locked Ghost Ship fire, which lead to similar loss of life?
4
@Multimodalmama in the Ghost ship fire there were no permits and everything was done illegally. See the difference?
14
I have been on all three of Truth Aquatic dive boats, and the operations were professional, with safety as a priority, and the company has been in business for a long time. Still, a tragedy like this may be game changer in dive boat safety for overnight trips. This is an incredibly sad story for all involved. To dive the Channel Islands is a privilege, with its own kind of beauty, and it requires training and skill. The water is cold, and one has to learn to dive in kelp beds and strong currents, but it is well worth it. The deeply concerning part is that dive boats are floating death traps, loaded with tanks full of compressed air, cooking areas, and now with lithium batteries so common in everyday electronics, the stakes are much higher. We don't know the cause yet, but my heart goes out to the friends and families and all connected to this terrible event.
42
An enormous tragedy that awakens memories of great maritime disasters such as the General Solcum and the Morro Castle. As in those two incidents, I’m afraid some of the details I’m reading and hearing sound familiar. A (likely topside) crew discovered fire, a futile attempt to fight it and a delayed or impossible warning to the passengers below. Two details that if correct stand out to me-the crew was up early cooking breakfast in the galley and the presence of a built in barbecue grill. The galley stairs were the only exit for those below.
15
@HK And the SS Yarmouth Castle! I was a passenger in the summer of 1964. In October it burned at sea with a huge loss of life. Started by spontaneous combustion in the paint locker. The tragedy prompted a lot of new laws, including no wooden superstructures allowed in US ports.
6
@HK
FYI the Yarmouth Castle was registered in Liberia. One reason I avoid cruise ships. The US government should demand that US ship owners and operators register their ships in the US....not Panama or Liberia. This loophole is outrageous and will come back to bite someday. This case sounds like a propane fire. They were making breakfast. Did the cook survive? He/She may have the answer. I hope the victims demise was painless and quick.
5
@as Do you think cruise ships have changed in 60 years? From what I have seen modern cruise ships are very safe. Although until there is a fire or collision who really knows?
I have dove with Truth Aquatics many times, as have most California divers. This has been a heart-wrenching catastrophe, and the diving community is still in the grieving process.
The dive group that chartered the boat is based in the Santa Cruz/Monterey area. There are still over 2 dozen people missing. Let's not lose sight of the tragic loss of life.
38
That a fire could start and spread so quickly, on a boat diligently maintained, in a compartment of (assumed) non-smoking divers, in the middle of the night - indicates a significant possibility of arson/murder.
As if this tragedy couldn't be horrible enough.
2
@BobMeinetz . Insinuation of arson or murder is inappropriate at this time. And cruel as well.
26
@BobMeinetz A dive boat will have a lot of flammable fuel and probably oxygen tanks that can accelerate a fire rapidly. I know we all want to see conspiracy at every turn, and this should be investigated, but unless you know something specific, this speculation is not necessary.
18
@Ben P, divers breathe compressed air, not oxygen.
5
My heart dropped when I read that the boat had a built-in barbecue (presumably the writer meant grill). Those contraptions are a quiet menace anywhere you find them, especially when located in and/or near housing structures. I shudder at the thought that that may have been the cause of this unimaginable fire.
My sincerest condolences to the family and friends of those lost in this awful tragedy.
5
@Robert J. Wlkinson I spent some time this morning looking at photographs of Truth Aquatics' boats, and all of the photos of the barbecues looked like they were electric (glowing coils), not propane-fueled. No idea what was used in the galley, however. I will also comment that I dove from Conception at least once in the early 1990s, and it was one of the best liveaboards on the California coast, with a very well-trained and caring crew.
My deepest condolences to family and friends of the divers who perished; still waiting to learn if I knew any of them.
3
Firstly, my condolences to the loved ones of the victims. I hope that trauma counselors are already at their disposal.
Second, both the scale and the peculiar details of this disaster (all crew members survive, all passengers die) demand that this is not only investigated as a maritime accident, but as large-scale negligent homicide. I hope that the authorities will avail themselves of all resources, including Federal such as the FBI. Lastly, I agree with others here that the safety requirements for such vessels be updated to include multiple egresses, mandatory smoke detectors and fire suppression systems for passenger quarters.
13
@Pete in Downtown. It is now also reported that a co-owner/operator is missing, but it's still peculiar that all survivors were crew members, whereas none of the passengers made it out. And, while the Coast Guard is leading this investigation, getting the FBI and some of its experts involved would be highly appropriate given the magnitude and details of this disaster.
3
@Pete in Downtown I guessing that the crew sleeps in an area that is much quicker to the outside so that they can respond as needed. Let's not go all paranoid yet.
18
@Pete in Downtown The crew's bunkhouse is topside. They tried to rescue, but couldn't get into the burning hold. They are duty bound to summon help.
12
When I first read about this story yesterday, I was haunted by what those passengers must have felt - panic, fear, terror. I kept thinking what a horrific death they endured.
Those sad and haunting feelings only grow as more details are revealed and shared in these updated articles.
Thank you Jose A. Del Real, Niraj Chokshi and Thomas Fuller for staying on this horrific story.
9
After reading the article and all of the comments, I am still missing what the flamable material was that was burning all over the boat. It may well have been propane, and the tanks were heated by the fire, and then exploded, thus adding to the problem. That might explain the successive explosions.
And while all that was going on, an examination of the boat's deck layout shows totally inadequate escape routes from the berthing area.
Let's wait for the results of the Coast Guard investigation. Anything prior to that is mere guess work, including mine, above.
9
@Dirtlawyer. I'm guessing the boat is made of timber (planks or Ply ) or Fiberglas. Both burn well. Dive tanks have a safety device in them called a bursting disc that when a tank gets heated to about 60 degrees C release all the air in the tank rapidly. This release of air is explosive in sound and would be a great source of oxygen for any fire (Principle of a blast furnace )
5
Horrific event, but no reason to imagine that fire safety on boats and ships is not well-thought out or properly enforced. It is a primary consideration, and should be. However, there’s a difference between a fire and an explosion, leaking propane for example, and there’s no exit from anything like that. For now, let’s just stick with regret and empathy.
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@Marat1784. Couldn’t agree more, thanks!
2
@Marat1784 - You sound like the NRA is the wake of another mass murder.
This is a truly terrible story. My latent claustrophobia (maybe not so latent) is causing me to wonder what in heaven's name are so many people doing sleeping in one room in the hold of the ship. How can any regulation allow this? Even if the regulations allow it, how can any reputable company allow its boats to be used in this manner? It will not be 24 hours before the first lawsuit has been filed.
I have never in my lengthening life heard of a situation where all the crew escaped and none of the passengers did. Except perhaps the tragedy of refugee boats, which this wasn't. I cannot imagine an excuse that would acceptably explain it. There may have been nothing they could do once the fire began, but there certainly was before that. The captain controls the boat. And ultimately it was his decision to allow so many to be packed into steerage, down narrow stairs below the water line. A nightmare.
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@Barbara8101
"I have never in my lengthening life heard of a situation where all the crew escaped and none of the passengers did. ... I cannot imagine an excuse that would acceptably explain it. "
1) I completely agree that the design of this boat is an outrage.
2) My understanding is that the crew slept in a cabin behind the pilothouse, above deck. They weren't trapped in the first place. That's how they survived.
17
@Barbara8101 Hint: Don't sleep anywhere without knowing how you're going to get out of there when you awake if the door to the sleeping place is unavailable. I remember an old hotel I stayed in as a child (thanks to generous grandparents) in Cape Cod on the third floor that had a coiled escape rope securely fastened to the wall right next to the window. When I wondered about it, the answer why it was there was obvious to me even then.
3
@Barbara8101 and you’ve never scuba dove and not been on a Liveaboard overnight dive boat. Have you been on any small boat? This Is standard practice. Most aren’t like giant cruise ships.
7
This disaster seems oddly familiar. Like the near-disaster described by Joseph Conrad in "Lord Jim" but with different consequences for the passengers. It is too early to know if the surviving crew members acted appropriately, but they will likely spend the rest of their lives reliving that night.
12
The glaring, screaming, question; how did the fire grow undetected to the point where five of six crew members couldn't rouse the other crew member and passengers, but still managed to save themselves?
There had to be at least two crew members, perhaps the second captain and a deck crewman, on watch. Maybe only the galley crew was supposed to be on watch since they had to rise early anyway to prepare breakfast.
But, for sure, SOMEBODY on the Conception crew was supposed to be awake, and alert, through the night.
We can expect new rules requiring fire detection/alarm systems on vessels taking people on overnight excursions; for the entire vessel, not just the engine room.
And we need to know what happened on the Conception that caused the death of at least twenty, and, in the end, probably thirty-four people.
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@Ralph Averill Why don't you wait for at least some sort of explanation before you suggest negligence or worse? Maybe it was an -e-x-p-l-o-s-i-o-n. Maybe the explosion caused fuel to spew across the cabin entrance and stairwell. YOU DON"T KNOW.
12
@Ralph Averill I am sure a dive boat would have tanks of compressed air, propane (for cooking), and of course fuel for the motors... it would have happened so fast no one could act.
2
My prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones.
15
I am so sorry this happened ,I keep wondering about the stated
Barbeque pit on the ship's deck ,is that cool to have on a deck and above passengers sleeping area?
This and the reports of the ship El Faro which went into a hurricane by error & killed dozens aboard when it sank just a few years ago makes one wonder in this modern world how these accidents can happen.
1
@Carlyle T.
"We don't need no regulations!!"..."They waste money and stifle business!!!!!"
Sound familiar?
Here in W. Pa a few weeks ago, five children perished in an overnight fire in a day care, for crying out loud. NOT required to have working smoke detectors.
Not required. Did the owner (who survived) have the newest I-phone and data plan?
No smoke detectors in an overnight daycare, nor were they required or inspected for. Let that sink in.
"I've eliminated DOZENS of regulations!!!!" cries the Orange Clown....
Think about that next time you step onto a plane.
18
@Ignatz this tragedy, along with Ghost Ship, happened in "regulated" California. Gavin's fault, not Trumps.
1
@Ignatz
I think we have learned from recent the fatal Max 737 aircraft Boeing disaster's of design about thinking of stepping onto a plane.
I also think if everyone had to use a wheelchair for a month (my wife is 24/7 wheelchair bound) streets stores & public transportation would be better designed ,but this is not the real world.
1
The very few times I have been on a commercial water craft, I always kept a keen eye where the life preservers were because I don't know how to swim and am terrified of drowning.
Never once did I ever think nor imagine that a fire could occur, much less in such swift, devastating fashion as the one did on the Conception.
I think it's very telling that only members of the crew survived. I also think it is extremely easy to immediately jump to conclusions and blame them when nothing public has been made about that they encountered nor their actions other than jumping into the ocean.
Right now, there are more questions than answers.
Profound condolences to the loved ones of those who perished.
12
@Marge Keller. Yes, “It’s very telling that only members of the crew survived”......in their underwear......tells me they were sleeping on deck OR the explosion blew their clothes off, or both.
1
"Passengers on the Conception slept in a single room tightly packed with bunk beds below deck"
The website shows the passengers sleeping in 3 rooms on 3 levels, not one single room. The layout you see is repeated 3 times in the the Upper, Middle and Lower decks.
You can see video of one deck here starting at about 1:45
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qygqVNJdeyA
8
@Jim
Those are triple bunk beds, not different levels. If you're that curious, you can visit the boat company's website and view the ship's deck plan.
The Times report is correct.
24
@Jim My interpretation of the diagram is that there are bunk beds, some with 2 levels and some with 3, but not 3 rooms on different levels.
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@Jim
I don't think that is correct. The U, M, L refers to the three levels of bunks, not three different rooms.
https://www.truthaquatics.com/conception/
12
May God help them and their loved ones.
14
On a boat that big there should have been a 24 hour watch. This sounds and looks like negligence.
10
@Astralnut You and I were not there and neither of us know the circumstances and activity prior to and during the event. Therefore, we cannot render judgement.
6
What warning systems were present? Were there smoke detectors in place? Apparently there was no fire watch, a series of persons awake in shifts to warn of fire. Given the tight quarters, the Coast Guard needs to look at revising its fire protection requirements.
25
The captain should be charged with manslaughter. The fact that the all the crew made it off while every passenger died is complete negligence.
7
@Chelsey You weren't there. I wasn't there, so, neither of us are in a position to judge the actions of the crew.
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@Chelsey The story says there were six crew aboard and five escaped. It is far too soon to know whether there was negligence and accusations now are unfounded. I read another account that said the crew were sleeping above deck while passengers slept below. There will be a time for finger pointing. This isn't it.
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@Chelsey The crew members were awake and on deck for I assume evening watch. Very easy to jump over and swim to shore instead of being below deck in a raging fire. Do not be so quick to condemn. My hope is those that died died quickly without knowing what would happen.
21
Boats should apply the same safety standards used in buildings:
1. Smoke detectors within 10' of the sleeping area
2. Emergency lights that operate in the event of power failure
3. Stairs and doors wide enough to accommodate the maximum amount of people on board
4. Two ways out of rooms (two stairs, stair + hatch, door + window, etc)
5. Walls and doors that are built with a fire resistance rating (especially when separating machine rooms and living areas).
6. Fire extinguishers, water hose pump, or similar
7. Communication system between public and crew
8. Crew trained for emergencies
We use these safety techniques in buildings everyday. Boats of this size are not smaller than buildings, so why the lax safety measures?
21
@sean Your architectural requirements are not realistic shipboard. Space is precious on board and seafarers have accepted that for generations.
All your fire protection points strike me as worthy of consideration by the Coast Guard. Given the tight quarters, I think the Coast Guard should also consider requiring a fire watch.
14
@Donald Champagne Thanks for your comments, but the only items on my list that would affect the size of the boat are stair width and (maybe) fire-resistance walls. The standards that I am advocating are for larger boats for public use, not small individual boats.
A wider stair would take an additional foot of space, and fire-resistance construction can be accomplished with intumescent paint. A roof hatch requires no additional space since it can be integrated into the walking surface anyway.
Fire safety in buildings has advanced tremendously in the last few decades, many of these products/ideas are easily transferable.
9
@sean Vessels have conflicting requirements for access, water tightness, and hull strength. Generally openings for access reduce water tightness and hull strength. Compensating for these adds weight above the center of gravity reducing stability.
We will have a better understanding of the fire when the investigation is complete and released. Specifically was there a flammable vapor, likely, and what was the ignition source.
1
Something is odd here.
1. A sleeping compartment for ~35 people with only one exit?
2. Where were the fire alarms?
3. Why were all of the crew awake at 3 am?
4. Why were all of the crew on top of the boat at 3 am?
5. If the crew was awake at 3 am, why didn't they try to extinguish the fire?
6. If previous reports are correct, how did 4 skilled divers drown?
7. Why wasn't there a fire suppression system in the sleeping quarters, galley and near the barbecue?
When moored, with the engines off, the fire might have started in the galley - which is where the sleeping quarter's stairs led. Poor design.
I've been on a number of overnight dive boats and all have had more than one exit from the sleeping compartment. Furthermore, the exit stairs usually led to an external deck.
This boat was poorly designed; maintenance is a moot point here. Sleeping quarter's emergency exit stairs should go directly to an external deck. There should be more than one exit point, especially for 35-40 people. Fire suppression systems should be in the sleeping quarters, galley and especially around a barbecue.
If this boat was in compliance, then the California maritime laws need to be updated and/or changed.
The Titanic was in compliance too.
164
@JAR, pretty cold, dude.
25
@JAR I dived off the Conception several years ago on exactly the same kind of trip -- leave Santa Barbara late the previous night, sleep in bunks in small cabins below deck, then wake up early for the dive.
In the Conception's case, there are several cabins below, each with several small bunks. These aren't staterooms, they're just small chambers with bunks.
As I recall, there was only one very narrow, single-direction-at-a-time, winding stair at the stern end of the cabins deck.
Any panicked bottleneck there would have been disastrous. If that single stair was cut off by fire, there was no other way out.
34
@deb: JAR is asking the right questions - although the reason the crew was topside is because that is probably where they sleep.
One need only look at the Oakland fire to know that had this happened in a hostel or artist's colony that didn't have more than one exit, there would be extensive prosecutions.
22
Is this right ? A single staircase lead up from below to the galley. A fire starting in the galley would trap all those below. Was the cooking in the galley done using stored propane ? This might have been the source of the fire and there would have been little the crew could have done to save the passengers.
23
@Paul. There was a stairway AND a hatch over a bunk bed that led up from the sleeping quarters. Maybe there was an explosion that prevented use of both. Let’s wait and see.
5
A diving vessel with 35 divers out for three days probably means there was about 100 oxygen filled divining tanks aboard.
Oxygen, being highly flammable and combustible was probably the culprit. One oxygen tank with a faulty valve or one not fully closed near a flame or even an electrical charge from a cell phone could ignite spontaneously.
With some 100 oxygen tanks on board, you can imagine how fast and violent the fire was.
14
@New World
The majority of scuba tanks are filled with air, not oxygen; some contain a mixture of hydrogen with slightly higher percentage of oxygen than is found in air. True, there was undoubtedly pure oxygen on board for emergency use, but not 100 tanks.
32
@New World
Dive tanks have regular air--not "oxygen."
Unlikely the dive tanks had anything to do with it.
7
@Sarah
correction -- some tanks are filled with a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen -- not hydrogen.
12
Sleeping below deck, tight quarters, bunks, narrows stairs,a recipe for disaster for untrained passengers.
Without easy access to escape to the outside these regulations need to be updated. What a horror.
50
The Times reporting has been excellent, thanks.
I’d imagine smoke inhalation and burns would be more likely than leg injuries. There was time to inflate a boat. One crew member remains missing. In the fullness of time, I’m sure these details will have tragic or pedestrian explanations.
Alaskan Airlines 261 in Jan 2000 crashed nearby, but over the County line, in Ventura County. 88 lives were lost.
Truth Aquatics was involved in lifting artifacts from sunken ships in the Channel Islands in 1987. A long court case with many appeals and unpleasant treatment by the perpetrators of the Park Rangers who nabbed them.
Hooray for all the government employees involved in addressing this accident, and for all the Rangers who keep Channel Islands and other parks magical.
7
The boat is a zodiac style panga/lifeboat that is in the water while the boat is out in the Channel Islands as a safety boat - to pick up divers who have drifted too far from the boat etc. I recall it was lifted back up on its cradle on the stern of the mother boat when making the trip back and forth across the channel.
Your words insinuate the crew had time to save themselves (ie blowing up a boat) and not their passengers. That is a grossly unfair accusation. I have been on these Truth Aquatics boats. I imagine the crew jumped for their lives into the water from the bridge level where the crew cabins were located as everything below them was engulfed in fire. Let the investigation happen please. Conjecture and unfounded accusations are not helpful nor fair.
5
One hundred seven years ago, crew members on the "Titanic" helped to save passengers, rather than jumping off the boat to save themselves first. Has the meaning of "responsibility" has changed in the current age of narcissism?
14
@Lifelong Democrat Some disasters are so big that even the most heroic individual can do nothing. That certainly seems to be the case here--the crew were on top of a blazing boat with no way to reach them to offer assistance. The analogy to the Titanic is totally inappropriate--except for those trapped in the bottom of the 'unsinkable' ship, the crew had time to help help people reach lifeboats. The crew of the Titanic did not attempt to rescue those who had already drowned in the flooded bottom level.
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@Susan
Seems as though the standards for safe boat design (one narrow stairway to the deck from the lower-level bunk room) haven't improved since 1912, either.... Probably this was cheaper and allowed for bigger profits.
9
@Lifelong Democrat
It was a poor design and there were several oxygen tanks on board with only a narrow stairway up to safety. What could go wrong? The jury is still out on The Ghost Ship but this sounds familiar. Do think that narcissism is kind of a strong word to use here.
I hope these newly minted angels were asleep and felt not pain or panic
5
While I felt a sense of relief that 5 individuals escaped that catastrophic fire, I can't help but also have mixed feelings that there were all crew members while at least 20 of their passengers, probably more, perished in such a horrific death.
"It remains unclear what started the fire" and until such time when a determination has been made, it will be difficult to wonder if anyone aboard gave a thought about the 30 passengers below, sleeping.
Profound condolences to the loved ones of those who perished.
22
@Marge Keller. Whatever it was (our guess, an explosion) happened fast — survivors were still clad only in underwear. Let’s have some empathy and await the investigation.
10
@PeteNorCal
I completely agree. Point well taken.
4
“The vessel has been in full compliance,” Capt. Rochester said at a news conference. The boat was equipped with a fire suppression system in the engine room.
Why wasn't there a loud alarm that could have been activated by either smoke, heat or the crew to awaken the passengers and allow them to escape, or perhaps one of the crew members (Captain maybe?) could have shouted passengers awake before jumping on a raft to save himself?
57
@NMV The crew was injured trying to get to the passengers. Seriously - how the heck were they supposed to summon help other than going to the next boat over?
16
@NMV Your doubts seem full of accusations. It is clear that crews often get up at 3am to set up (hello) 34 tanks, gear, food, whatever. First light is about 530ish--and this was the last day out--gonna be a long one. Those tanks may have exploded, causing other explosions--spewing fuel, igniting all over the forward cabin thereby blocking the entrance (to go save the passengers, get extinguishers, etc). You just do not know, so be curious but remember those 5 people are victims as well and you have no idea how hard they tried.
12
@NMV, a lot of assumptions going on with yours and other commenters. We do not know definitively if there was an alarm. None of us can imagine what this captain was dealing with and it seems he was not able to get to the passengers or else he would have. It is an incredibly tragic event that needs to be investigated to determine what happened and how it could have been prevented before people start judging. My heart goes out to these survivors and the other helpless responders.
9
This is a tragedy not only for the victims and their families but also for our State in general. It is a cruel irony that our beautiful Channel Islands National Park is now the home to one of our worst and most devastating maritime disasters. As of yet, we do not know the cause. And yes lessons will be and must be learned. But what a cruel way for the Fates to teach and educate. This day and age this should not have happened. Let it never happen again. God be with those who needlessly lost their lives and the loved ones left behind.
38