Investigators say the crew of the dive ship that sank off the Southern California coast made several attempts to save the 34 people who were trapped by fire and died.
FILE - In this Sept. 2, 2019, file photo, provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, a dive boat is engulfed in flames after a deadly fire broke out aboard the commercial scuba diving vessel off the Southern California Coast. The owners of the dive boat where 34 people perished in a fire off the coast of Southern California filed a legal action in federal court Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019, to head off potentially costly lawsuits. Truth Aquatics Inc.
The crew members told investigators in “very lengthy, detailed, comprehensive interviews” what Jennifer Homendy, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, called a harrowing story of the moments after the fire erupted on the vessel. With the galley’s doors on fire, the crew went around to the front of the vessel to try and get through windows but couldn’t.Two swam to the back of the vessel to retrieve a skiff and rescue the remaining crew. They took the skiff to a boat named the Grape Escape that was anchored nearby and called for help and then steered the skiff back toward the burning Conception to see if they could rescue any survivors. None were found.
Meantime, the owners of the Conception — Truth Aquatics Inc. of Santa Barbara — filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that uses a pre-Civil War provision of maritime law to limit their liability from any victims’ claims. The lawsuit argues the company and owners Glen and Dana Fritzler made the boat seaworthy and the craft was properly manned and equipped.
“Adrian led the state’s efforts to manage California’s network of marine protected areas, and she cared deeply about the ocean and biodiversity,” Newsom said. “She embodied marine conservation and was a highly accomplished and respected scientific researcher.”
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