Posted on 09/12/2019 12:48:05 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Boats like the Conception, which caught fire around 3 a.m. on Sept. 2 and sank, are required to have a crewmember keep watch at night.
The National Transportation Safety Board has been investigating the tragedy and released a two-page preliminary report that said five crew members were sleeping in their quarters behind the wheelhouse on the second deck and another below deck when the fire broke out.
The report comes as investigators seek to determine the cause and try to recover the wreckage of the Conception from the bottom of the sea amid an ongoing criminal probe conducted by the FBI, Coast Guard and the U.S. Attorney's Office.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
No wonder they filed a preventive lawsuit limiting their liability. This is going to get ugly.
If they had a Fire Watch, ingrained in maritime culture (and regulations!)for several thousand years, there likely would have been 33 survivors instead of 5.
All 5 of the surviving crew members are guilty of manslaughter.
Looks like they will try to pin the blame on a Samsung Note 7 being charged overnight.
Someone another thread said preparing bacon for breakfast was the reason.
If everyone was asleep....who was cooking the bacon?
Have they ever printed a list of victims? We lived in that area and had many friends who were divers.
They said the cook as the smell of bacon would wake everyone. Some people don’t know what they are talking about.
Not having a fire watch is a deadly mistake.
I thought the captain stays with the ship.
No smoke detector?
I’ve been on this boat.
It was well run and one of the best operations on the West Coast.
The first thing that would have caught fire would have been the bunk privacy curtains.
I am not sure if I would have been brave enough to push a burning curtain out of the way and fight my way to the stairs thru screaming friends and family.
It was tight down below decks.
Many divers who have been on Conception have been debating this.
They don’t blame the crew as their was probably little they could have done.
I recall the same. Navy vet. Had to stand his share of night watches. Fire has been the enemy of sailors since history began.
I’ve seen the list.
A friend of mine knows two of them.
Someone on another thread speculated it was bacon cooking, but the fire started at 3am.
The divers weren't going to be getting up a 3:30am for breakfast and no one cooks bacon three to four hours before breakfast.
According to a FReeper who's crewed on this boat, it's more like 50-60 battery packs for underwater lights, cameras, etc., being charged overnight, not a single tablet computer.
Yes I know.
Looks like there was no anchor watch that night.
Complacency kills. Fire / night / smoking watch while at sea, at anchor or even tied to the pier.
Live watch 24/7 for a reason.
In the U.S.Navy it’s called the Fire Watch...for a reason.
I disagree ... crew is allowed to sleep except for the designated watch stander(s) at a given time. Who is in charge of setting watches and rotations on a maritime ship this size? I realize it is the Captain's ultimate responsibility, but I doubt he sets the watches personally.
I can't remember who set the watch schedule in my Navy days nor how many there were on which of my ships depending on size and special watches by division, but they were scheduled early morn and posted for all to know who had what watch and when. For this size vessel, what would such a watch be called? Roaming Watch, Fire Watch, Security Watch?
Still isn't clear what caused it.
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