This Labor Day marks the five year anniversary of a deadly dive boat fire which killed 34 people in the Channel Islands. The dive boat Conception was anchored off of Santa Cruz Island when it was hit by an early morning blaze. All 33 passengers, and a crew member were trapped below deck, and died.
The captain was convicted on a maritime criminal charge known as seaman's manslaughter. Prosecutors say he failed to take a number of safety measures, including having the crew maintain a watch which might have provided an early warning about the fire.
The cause were never pinpointed, but it was believed to have been some typle of electrical short.
The disaster led to some changes in boat safety laws, and some stepped up enforcement by the Coast Guard.
But, officials with the National Transportation Safety Board say some of its recommended safety improvements still haven’t been implemented. The NTSB Chair will be in Santa Barbara on Monday for an event to call for action on the additional safety steps.
