Recovering bodies takes toll on rescuers in California boat blaze
Investigators are looking into the safety of a scuba diving boat that caught fire in California killing dozens of passengers.
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There were students and parents on board The Conception dive boat that burst into flames off the Californian coast, according to reports, and a relative has claimed that five members of one Northern California family who were on the boat are missing and presumed dead.
Susana Rosas posted on social media that her three daughters, their father and stepmother were on board the Conception when it caught fire before dawn Monday morning.
The rescue operation has been postponed as of Tuesday afternoon local time with 20 bodies recovered from the water and wreckage and nine people still unaccounted for.
No other people were seen entering the water and there was no other debris visible from a plane that flew over the wreckage site.
“It is never an easy decision to suspend search efforts,” said United States Coast Guard Capt. Monica Rochester.
“We know that this is a very difficult time for families and friends of the victims.”
National Transportation Safety Board member Jennifer Homendy said that she’s “100 per cent confident” investigators will find the cause of the fire aboard the vessel Conception.
The NTSB plans to stay at the scene for up to 10 days and will look into safety measures aboard the boat, such as whether it had fire extinguishers, and will interview survivors, first responders, divers and others.
The agency also is asking people who might have photos or videos that could help in the investigation to email them to the board.
MARINE BIOLOGIST, TEENAGER AMONG DEAD
Officials said they believe that none of the 34 passengers have survived the fire.
A Catholic priest working at the centre set up for relatives of people missing and presumed dead says he’s spoken with 15 to 20 relatives of those who were aboard.
Father Pedro Lopez of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Santa Barbara said that he and other clergy members are trying to comfort the relatives and make sure they don’t spend time alone.
Lopez says “it’s just hard for them to process all of this.”
He says some of the relatives who have visited the centre have several family members missing.
Kristy Finstad, 41, of Santa Cruz who was helping lead the dive expedition on The Conception is among those feared dead.
The marine biologist was described by her family as a “free spirit.”
Her brother Brett Harmeling thanked everyone in a post on his Facebook page for their “unconditional love and support during this incredibly tragic time.”
“No final word on my sister Kristy; however, it is likely she has transitioned to be with the good Lord,” he wrote.
Mike Kohls, the gallery cook and a deckhand on The Conception is also feared dead.
Three passengers celebrated their birthdays hours before the fatal fire broke out — including a 17-year-old girl who was there with her parents, according to the LA Times.
One of the boat’s crew members wept as he talked about the birthday celebrations to a rescuer.
Another surviving worker who had been aboard the Conception said his girlfriend was among those trapped below deck when it caught fire, according to rescuers Bob and Shirley Hansen.
A woman who came to the harbour said, “My son was on that boat.”
She was led away by a Ventura County firefighter.
ABC affiliate KNXV-TV in Phoenix reports that an Arizona couple, Patricia Beitzinger and Neal Baltz, were also on board, according to Baltz’s father.
Five crew members on the upper deck of the boat managed to escape the blaze.
Speaking to media, officials said that 11 female and nine male bodies had been recovered. Emergency workers said that they would use DNA analysis to further identify the badly burnt remains.
Local television station KSBW-TV said that two students from Pacific Collegiate School in Santa Cruz were also on the boat, along with one of their parents.
Maria C. Reitano is the head of the school in Santa Cruz and declined to say how many students or parents were on board the Conception.
She says the trip was not school sponsored.
In a statement posted on its website, the school says “our hearts and thoughts are with the families of the victims and those yet missing, particularly those of our students and parents on board.”
Reitano and the school asked for privacy.
Pacific Collegiate School is a college preparation public charter school for grades 7-12.
A Northern California school district says a high school physics teacher, his wife and child were on board.
Fremont Unified School District spokesman Ken Blackstone said that Scott Chan taught at American High in Fremont and was well-liked.
Blackstone says Chan was with one of his children, but he was unsure if it was his son or daughter.
The recovery effort has taken a toll on the Santa Barbara city fire department.
“They knew they were not going to find live victims,” Lee Waldron, operations division chief of the SBCFD, told the LA Times.
“They’re obviously very difficult conditions, both physically and psychologically.
“It’s Labour Day weekend — it was supposed to be a great time for these folks,” Waldron said. “I’m sure they were out there enjoying their time among those beautiful islands … Hold tight to your loved ones.”
CHILLING DISTRESS CALL
The captain of the doomed scuba diving boat described in a chilling distress call how all of his passengers were trapped below deck — “with no escape hatch”.
Audio of the harrowing 3.14am recording includes a Coast Guard operator first frantically asking for information on the emergency, the New York Post reports.
(LISTEN TO THE RECORDING BELOW)
BREAKING Listen to the Mayday Call from the Diving Boat that caught fire off of the coast of Southern California. @nbcbayareahttps://t.co/pldCktQvGq pic.twitter.com/qCK0V1yXVl
— John Zuchelli (@tvzuke) September 2, 2019
Here is an excerpt of the call:
“What is the emergency? Over. … Conception, what is the emergency? Over!” the operator says, referring to the diving tour boat.
A man who later identifies himself as the captain responds, “On board a vessel on fire.”
“Your vessel is on fire? Roger. Are you aboard the Conception?” the Coast Guard worker asks.
The captain confirms he is from the craft and says, “There’s 33 people on board the vessel on fire. They can’t get off.”
The Coast Guard worker responds, “Roger. Are they locked inside the boat? Roger. Can you get back on board and unlock the doors so they can get off? Roger. You don’t have any firefighter gear at all, no fire extinguishers or anything?”
#CoastInc: @VCFD responded to boat fire off the north side of Santa Cruz Island at approximately 3:28am. @USCG helping support rescue operations for people aboard a dive boat. #ChannelIslands @USCGLosAngeles @CountyVentura @SBCOUNTYFIRE pic.twitter.com/DwoPGfBjtA
— VCFD PIO (@VCFD_PIO) September 2, 2019
The captain’s reply is unclear.
The Coast Guard operator says, “Is this the captain of the Conception?”
“Roger,” the man says.
The Coast Guard worker asks, “Was that all the crew that jumped off?”
The unidentified captain replies, “Roger.”
The operator asks, “Is the vessel fully engulfed now?”
The captain replies, “Roger. And there’s no escape hatch for any of the people on board.”
The Coast Guard worker is then heard putting out a general distress call, saying it “received a report of a vessel on fire with 33 people, correction, 34 people, trapped below deck … Any vessel in the area that can rend any assistance, please do so.”
Heavy.com first reported on the audio.
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There also was audio posted online that included a man screaming, “Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!” and “I can’t breathe!”
Captain Rochester said the 20-metre commercial scuba diving vessel was anchored in Platt’s Harbor, about 18 metres off the northern coast of Santa Cruz Island, when the fire ignited around 3am (8pm AEST).
She said the vessel sank in 20 metres of water, adding its bow is still visible above the waterline.
HOW THE TRAGEDY UNFOLDED
As America enjoyed a holiday long weekend, the Conception was on the final day of a cruise to the Channel Islands when the fire erupted.
“At 3.15 this morning the Coast Guard overheard a mayday call. The call was garbled, it was not that clear, but we were able to get some information out of it to send vessels on scene,” Officer Barney said.
Coast Guard Captain Rochester said that call indicated the boat was already fully ablaze.
The Conception was chartered by Worldwide Diving Adventures, which says on its website that it has been taking divers on such expeditions since the 1970s.
It was owned and operated by Truth Aquatics, a respected Santa Barbara-based company founded in 1974.
Asked if the boat operator has a history of any violations, Captain Rochester said, “The vessel has been in full compliance.”
The National Transportation Safety said it is sending a team to investigate.
The Conception had departed at 4am (9pm AEST) on Saturday with plans to return scheduled at 5pm (10am AEST) on Monday.
Divers sleep in a single room of bunk beds, according to a diagram of the Conception posted on Truth Aquatics’ website.
The website says the vessel, launched in 1981, has rafts and life jackets for up to 110 passengers and exits on the port, starboard and bow that provide “easy water entry.”
The trip promised multiple opportunities to see colourful coral and a variety of marine life around the Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California.
Originally published as Recovering bodies takes toll on rescuers in California boat blaze
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