Fire on dive boat Conception in CA

[chillyinCanada]

This just came up in my newsfeed:

'No escape hatch' for passengers? Read transcript of Santa Cruz boat mayday call

EDIT: note, despite the crappy article heading, the was a hatch

 

[Compressor]

Thanks to all for keeping the discussion focused. Remember to stay with facts. Loved ones are hurting right now. They may come across these discussions. The investigation, no doubt, will continue and some preliminary conclusions will be made public.

Plus remember that the crew survived thus we have witnesses to the event.

 

[The Chairman]

According to CNN this morning, at least 20 bodies have been recovered.

 

[BDSC]

The news is now reporting 25 bodies recovered with 9 still missing.

 

[Saniflush]

Just back in country from diving in Mexico and just sick to my stomach over this. We had not been on this ship but had looked at it for a future one. Prayers to all the family and friends of those involved. It won't stop us from doing liveaboards but it certainly reinforces the need to be aware of safety and emergency procedures.

 

[Diving Dubai]

Hey DD,

How fast do you think an accidental fire on a vessel such as Conception can spread? Too fast for a person performing an anchor watch/fire watch to alert other crew members and passengers?

This is the question that bothers me.

markm

I'm no expert on such things, I'm afraid

My superstition is that the single exit was someway blocked with flames, heat or smoke preventing the crew to get down there

I'll further guess that by the time the alarm was raised the fire had taken hold - unless there was some form of explosion

One would hope that all the soft furnishings were flame retardant to the same level required in a hotel, although moisture will quickly render treatments ineffective

If 16 people are trying to claw their way up an unlit or smoke filled narrow companion way - it only needs one obstruction to impede the flow. Unlike aircraft you won't have bright emergency lights guiding your way.

I'm mystified as to why it appears there was no alternative escape route. I'm guessing the 5 survivors were either on duty or sleeping in the bridge area.

I'm stunned how its acceptable to have so many people crammed together in such a small dorm space (as it appears from pictures and accounts from people who have used the boats)

Even if it was CG approved the lawyers are going to have a field day

 

[HalcyonDaze]

I would argue (from an aerospace background) that actually it's not a moot point. Fire is a risk, so adequate escape should be provided (as well as preventative measures, warning - alarms and fire suppression)

So I would say the cause of the fire is secondary, The primary being; was their sufficient warning to the passengers, and what prevented their evacuation

I've worked with the NTSB on air crash investigations in US so know they'll be very thorough.

What stands out to me straight away from the picture in post #45 from @elgoog is how narrow and insufficient the gangways are. It's a dead end one way and, in the middle of the night, if awakened everyone trying to get out of bed at the same time (some possibly getting belongings). If passengers near the exits on this boat were overcome with noxious fumes (assuming they were awake) then that would block that route.

GRP boats burn fast

With an aircraft you have multiple routes and exits, you can go over the seats if you wish For the A 380 we evacuated 850 passengers in 78 seconds (less than 90 seconds is the required time), with 50% of exits made unusable.

The plane had debris in the aisles was dark and we pumped smoke in just to make it that little bit more difficult as an additional incentive we offered hard cash $50/$100 notes to the first X many people off to encourage a less orderly (more "panicked) departure for test "passengers"

This will have impacts on US boats for sure, no doubt with new legislation being implemented and boats being pulled out of service for non compliance, with OP's not being able to afford to replace them

Key question though - in the drills you mention, are all the participants sound asleep in a totally darkened cabin?

Since some kind of battery/electrical fire seems to be a possibility, where on the boat would camera/light/DPV batteries be charging?

 

[Ron Lee]

I'm guessing the 5 survivors were either on duty or sleeping in the bridge area.

Apparently crew sleeping somewhere above the passenger sleeping quarters.

 

[Johnoly]

..., where on the boat would camera/light/DPV batteries be charging?

My thinking also,,I'm not in the propane theory camp. And I've been on the different Truth boats too.

Just as an example on an old Truth trip,,most cameras are on a table and bungie'd down for the crossing. They are usually charged on the table also. This is just a past photo, please don't speculate on this photo to suggest any cause, it's just an example.

 

[YZed426]

I know that many think that the emergency call to coast guard was made from Conception but my thinking is that it was made from the Grape Escape. I've determined this based on the coastie asking if the caller if he could "return to the Conception and unlock the door" as well as, "you don't have any firefighting equipment. . ."

....


Based only on the reported part of what we hear the coastie saying, it seems to me that the call was not made from the Conception.

This seems to be the initial call. It's a different conversation to the one where they are clearly on the other boat, and you hear both sides. At one point he says "I can't breathe" and then they lose contact.It's plausible that this was the initial call from on board the "Conception".

Edit to add...I would not assume that the recording of the radio conversations are in real time. It's possible that there are multiple recordings stitched together.