Cali Dive Boat tragedy

[skiing-in-jackson]

a death trap.

Makes me super thankful for the times I’ve been in a place where, if the shit went down, I’d be goner. Bars, concerts, yes even boats. I’m pretty sure my stories could be easily eclipsed by mags here.

I was in the middle of a mad drunken rush at the Village after a concert a few years ago. Low brain stem debachery was everywhere. There was a people crush getting on Start Bus. My kids were there, people were shouting, screaming and pushing in every direction.

I could only imagine the horror that went down in the boat.

[old goat]

Considering the panicked rush to get on the Funitel on one particular powder morning--I had to fight to keep from getting pushed into the pit in front of a moving cabin--I have no doubt how people would react in a fire in a confined space, assuming they were in any condition to react. There's a reason they give medals to heroes--there are damn few of them.

[Cono Este]

So my brother says he has a few hundred dives with that company! Mostly with the UCSB scuba club.

Talking with his friend, who used to work on another boat, The Great Escape, they think the lithium ion battery charging for camera equipment went up in flames.

[Micol]

Casual bike riding friend of mine is on that boat...just doesn't seem possible that she isn't coming back.

sorry to hear this, condolences and vibes ....

[summit]

OK how would that behave under extreme heat? Sorry, just thought about that factor since I watched Jaws for the 0074070943th time for shark week. 30 highly pressurized tanks on a boat on fire seems like a highly volatile situation even if it wasn't O2.

All of the dive tanks should have burst discs. Pressure gets too high, they burst to relieve it, and make a ton of noise. It is a standard safety device.

The boat probably had one or two small O2 cylinders for treating an injured diver. Super minor concern when the hull/fuel is burning. O2 cylinders have these burst discs too.

I would assume that any Nitrox filling system on board would be a membrane system.

Fire at sea is terrifying and there are a lot of very-bad-things on a boat. Compressed air isn't a good thing, but its pretty far down on the list of concerns.

[SumJongGuy]

All of the dive tanks should have burst discs. Pressure gets too high, they burst to relieve it, and make a ton of noise. It is a standard safety device.

The boat probably had one or two small O2 cylinders for treating an injured diver. Super minor concern when the hull/fuel is burning. O2 cylinders have these burst discs too.

I would assume that any Nitrox filling system on board would be a membrane system.

Fire at sea is terrifying and there are a lot of very-bad-things on a boat. Compressed air isn't a good thing, but its pretty far down on the list of concerns.

Agreed, makes no difference to the poor folks trapped down below what order things caught fire when it all went up that fast.

[neufox47]

The Coast Guard answering the distress call seemed to jump to that conclusion, just repeating what they said..

Which is a very logical question to ask if you are answering the distress call. Not logical for you to use that question and the answer to assume the crew abandoned ship without trying to save the passengers.

[Dantheman]

Casual bike riding friend of mine is on that boat...just doesn't seem possible that she isn't coming back.

Oh man, that's awful. Condolences.

[SumJongGuy]

Which is a very logical question to ask if you are answering the distress call. Not logical for you to use that question and the answer to assume the crew abandoned ship without trying to save the passengers.

Actually asked the crew if they could GO BACK AND UNLOCK the hatch so the passengers could get out. Logic would dictate that if it were possible they would have already done it.. Asking them if they can go back and do it seems like an equally stupid question.

[LongShortLong]

3 articles in LA Times today, here's one discussing cause. Summary: wait for the investigation.
https://enewspaper.latimes.com/deskt...5-76653a3f5ab0

Unclear what went wrong besides the obvious fire. The Times says this is a well-run, inspected, and experienced dive operation.

[JongDoe]

OK how would that behave under extreme heat? Sorry, just thought about that factor since I watched Jaws for the 0074070943th time for shark week. 30 highly pressurized tanks on a boat on fire seems like a highly volatile situation even if it wasn't O2.

Cylinders have metal (lead)?? relief valves on them that melt and also the disks that Summit points out, but it would take a while for them to get so hot that they released and also a while to blow up. This seemed to happen very quickly. Also, oxygen is not flammable but readily supports combustion.

[Micol]

^just very very sad reading all those stories for all involved and affected... i had no idea what a dive boat looks like....

eidt: would rather not use the actual boat out of respect....

here is what similar overnight dive boats look like....which maybe i have seen ...but did not know that's what they were....

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

Lots of liveaboards for multi-day fishing too.

Everyone I know who's been diving for years with this outfit is trying to process this. Friends and family have been lost, and this will probably be the end of a top notch operation that has been around for decades and has been part of a lot of fun times for many people, some for generations.

The owners and crew are going to have to process it and it's not going to be easy for them either. The CG is not easy at all on operators when it comes to investigations covering mishaps like this. And that's not even addressing the lawyers who are going to get involved. Survivor guilt is going to be real.

[SumJongGuy]

It's going to be especially tough to process if all this happened because of a little device battery. We've been getting the warning signs about these battery issues for a good 4-5 years now and still have them in everything, everywhere. If your 737 Max doesn't crash and your Takada air bag doesn't kill you, your camera battery will burn you where you sleep. That's not meant to be funny either. It's meant to show just how much risk mega corporations put us at for a few more dollars rather than making sure these products are safe before everyone is using them.

[1000-oaks]

Someone else we know was anchored on the other side of the island and heard the explosion, what the hell could it have been...

[AK47bp]

It's going to be especially tough to process if all this happened because of a little device battery. We've been getting the warning signs about these battery issues for a good 4-5 years now and still have them in everything, everywhere. If your 737 Max doesn't crash and your Takada air bag doesn't kill you, your camera battery will burn you where you sleep. That's not meant to be funny either. It's meant to show just how much risk mega corporations put us at for a few more dollars rather than making sure these products are safe before everyone is using them.

Sometimes you just need to shut the fuck up.


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[neufox47]

Someone else we know was anchored on the other side of the island and heard the explosion, what the hell could it have been...

Interesting, first note of an explosion. Although that makes a lot more sense than if a fire started and only the people on the bridge could get off alive.

[plugboots]

Sometimes you just need to shut the fuck up.

Like.

[Danno]

It's going to be especially tough to process if all this happened because of a little device battery. We've been getting the warning signs about these battery issues for a good 4-5 years now and still have them in everything, everywhere. If your 737 Max doesn't crash and your Takada air bag doesn't kill you, your camera battery will burn you where you sleep. That's not meant to be funny either. It's meant to show just how much risk mega corporations put us at for a few more dollars rather than making sure these products are safe before everyone is using them.

who are you going to blame next?

[SumJongGuy]

who are you going to blame next?

I haven't blamed anyone. Just repeating info legitimate news outlets have posted and the comment above about the person with inside knowledge saying it might have started with a camera battery charging.

[El Kanone]

ALL THE TIME, you just need to shut the fuck up.

Fixed it for ya.


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[Chugachjed]

shows the layout of the boat. I would think this boat would be electric cooking and there would not be propane.

No compressed flammable gas on an inspected vessel.

[1000-oaks]

^ Certainly possible the explosion(s) heard was after the fire was popping tank blow off valves.

[supermodel159]

SB is still in shock. I went down to the launch ramp today, the entire lot was full of news crews from everywhere in the US. It is the worst maritime accident in the United States during the 21st Century.

My buddy was anchored nearby the Conception and woke up to the mayday call. He launched a dinghy off his sail boat to help find survivors, but there obviously were none. All of the bodies are being identified through DNA kits from family members. There remains a handful of people trapped under the submerged boat, it's terrible.

The Conception and its crew are considered the best of the best when it comes to a dive boat operation. This was just a terrible accident.

[neufox47]

CNN latest reporting is that passengers were not locked below, they were blocked from getting out due to the fire.