SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The Latest on the scuba diving boat fire off the coast of California that is presumed to have killed 34 people (all times local):
11 a.m.
U.S. authorities are investigating potential ignition sources of a deadly fire on a scuba diving boat, including electronics aboard the vessel.
Jennifer Homendy, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, said Thursday that investigators know photography equipment, batteries and other electronics were stored and plugged in on the Conception.
She said officials are not ruling out any possibilities as they probe what caused the blaze.
Homendy also said she inspected a vessel similar to the Conception and was concerned about the accessibility of its escape hatch.
The Conception had been in full compliance with Coast Guard regulations.
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10:04 p.m.
The dozens of people who perished as flames engulfed and sank a dive boat off Southern California included high schoolers, a hairdresser, a marine biologist, a movie special effects designer and a family of five.
But a common love of scuba diving brought them to the Channel Islands for a Labor Day holiday.
Authorities say 34 people were likely trapped below decks of the Conception Monday. Divers have recovered all but one body.
Five crew members, including the captain, managed to escape.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. The NTSB’s Jennifer Homendy says the captain, boat owner and others have been interviewed. She says survivors received drug tests and four got alcohol tests that were negative.
The Coast Guard says the boat wasn’t required to have fire sprinklers.
The Associated Press
