LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Latest on a fatal boat fire that killed 34 people off the coast of Southern California (all times local):
6:15 p.m.
Authorities say they have now identified all 34 victims of a boat fire off the Southern California coast.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office added the last seven names on Thursday. They include a Connecticut couple and several people from Silicon Valley.
DNA testing helped identify them.
The scuba diving boat Conception burned and sank off Santa Cruz Island before dawn on Sept. 2. The passengers and one crew member were trapped in a bunkroom below deck. Five crew members survived.
The National Transportation Safety Board issued a report Thursday that said all six crew members were asleep.
That’s a violation of the Coast Guard’s rules. Boats like the Conception are required to have a crew member keep watch at night.
Federal authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into the deadly fire.
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4:15 p.m.
The family of a Southern California man among the 34 killed in a pre-dawn boat fire says they’re greatly disturbed that no one from the crew was keeping watch.
The National Transportation Safety Board issued a report Thursday that said all six of the Conception’s crewmembers were asleep - a violation of the Coast Guard’s rules.
Charles McIlvain and the others were trapped below deck just 20 yards (18 meters) off the coast of Santa Cruz Island. Five of the six crewmembers survived the Sept. 2 tragedy.
McIlvain’s parents, Clark and Kathleen, say Thursday in a statement that early detection may have “made an incredible difference in outcome.”
A lawyer for the owner of the scuba diving boat, Truth Aquatics Inc., disputes the NTSB’s preliminary findings.
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1:30 p.m.
A lawyer for the owner of the scuba diving boat that caught fire off the California coast, killing 34, is disputing federal investigators’ claims that all six of the vessel’s crewmembers were sleeping when the blaze erupted in the middle of the night.
Douglas Schwartz, who represents Truth Aquatics, says a crewmember “checked on and around the galley area” around 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 2.
A National Transportation Safety Board preliminary report issued Thursday said all six crewmembers were asleep. Five of the six were the only survivors of the blaze.
Officials have said the first mayday call was transmitted at 3:14 a.m.
Boats like the Conception are required to have a crewmember keep watch at night. Federal authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into the deadly fire off Santa Barbara.
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1:20 p.m.
A salvage crew has raised the scuba diving boat that sank after a fire that killed 34 people off Southern California last week.
A crane on a barge lifted the Conception to the surface of the water near Santa Cruz Island on Thursday. The boat will be taken ashore for inspection by investigators.
The National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report saying all six crewmembers were asleep when the blaze broke out Sept. 2.
NTSB spokesman Eric Weiss says only three members of the crew were interviewed before the Coast Guard asked the agency to postpone the remaining two interviews pending further investigation. One crewmember died in the fire.
Santa Barbara County sheriff’s officials plan an afternoon news conference to discuss the progress of identifying the victims.
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11:20 a.m.
The National Transportation Safety Board says all six crewmembers were asleep when a fire broke out in a scuba diving boat off the coast of California, killing 34 people.
The NTSB released a two-page preliminary report Thursday. Authorities have said they were investigating if there was a night watchman on duty at the time.
The report comes a day after divers recovered the remains of the last missing victim, one of dozens who were trapped below deck.
The Coast Guard has released additional safety recommendations in the wake of the Sept. 2 tragedy, such as limiting the unsupervised charging of lithium-ion batteries and the use of power strips and extension cords.
The FBI, Coast Guard and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles are conducting a criminal investigation.
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12:06 a.m.
The Coast Guard has issued additional safety recommendations in the aftermath of a fatal boat fire off the Southern California coast that killed 34 people.
The recommendations include limiting the unsupervised charging of lithium-ion batteries and the use of power strips and extension cords.
Officials expect to release a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board on Thursday.
Investigators are delving into the cause of the Sept. 2 fire and working to recover the Conception amid an ongoing criminal probe conducted by the FBI, Coast Guard and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.
Divers have recovered the remains of all 34 victims - 21 women and 13 men ranging from 16 to 62 years old - who apparently died of smoke inhalation as they were trapped below a raging fire.
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