A firefighter tries to extinguish a boat fire near Santa Cruz Island, California, the United States, on Sept. 2, 2019. (Ventura County Fire Department/Handout via Xinhua)
"You can't take any chances with all those flammables onboard, like diesel fuel, propane, gasoline, and, on a dive boat like Conception, you've got all those oxygen tanks too..." said a fisherman on a nearby sport boat.
by Julia Pierrepont III
OXNARD, the United States. Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Taking an ocean cruise on a fishing or diving boat may be a relaxing and idyllic way to spend a holiday weekend on the beautiful South Californian coast, but fishermen have warned of the inherent dangers of boating.
The tragic disaster off the coast near Santa Barbara is believed to have taken the lives of more than 30 holiday divers in the pre-dawn hours Monday morning.
Olin "Dick" Edward Hood, ex-commercial fisherman who now fishes around the Channel Islands in his own boat, told Xinhua, "People don't stop to think how dangerous a boat really is. Stuff like this has happened many times over the years, up and down the coast from San Francisco to San Diego. Once every 2 or 3 years a boat burns or capsizes."
"A boat can pass the inspection and still something can happen," he said. "They can't think of everything to fix."
Local residents were shocked and stunned by the news of the tragedy that ripped through their quiet coastal town.
Greg, crewing on nearby sport boat, The Waterline, which took reporters closer to the scene, told Xinhua, "We're really careful. We had a little mechanical issue this morning and came right back in. You can't take any chances with all those flammables onboard, like diesel fuel, propane, gasoline, and, on a dive boat like Conception, you've got all those oxygen tanks too..."
When asked what might have happened, he speculated, "Most likely something ignited. Nobody knows yet what happened first, it could've been a slow burn or an explosion. With an explosion, you go quick - no way would anybody below decks walk away from that. But with a slow burn with smoke, you can just go in your sleep and never know a thing about it."
A boat is engulfed in flames near Santa Cruz Island, California, the United States, on Sept. 2, 2019. (Ventura County Fire Department/Handout via Xinhua)
"They were probably all sleeping. And where they were sleeping, below decks, they wouldn't have stood a chance," Hood said.
If a slow burn came first, it's conceivable that smoke detectors could have alerted the sleeping passengers and woken them up in time, but the authorities declined to speculate yet on the possible sequence of events.
A fire safety officer confirmed that the boat had sunk in fairly deep water. A rescue and salvage operation needed to bring it up and inspect it to find out what happened will take time.
Greg added, "The water is dangerous, even for old-timers. I lost a friend a couple of years ago who got knocked overboard by a wave. He'd been on the water most of his life but wasn't wearing a life jacket. He told his mate he was ok, but then his boots filled up with water and down he went before they could save him. You have all the safety gear, but not everyone remembers to use it. That's a mistake."
He lamented that they didn't find his friend until two weeks later when what was left of him washed up on the beach. "The worst thing is, he'd just retired and told me it was going to be his last trip..."
Stephanie, a young guest on a pleasure craft that was prepping to pull out for a day cruise, was undeterred. She told Xinhua, "Accidents don't happen that often. It's beautiful on the water and we just want to have some fun."
