# Accident investigation of Conception accident (34 dead) completed



## MastUndSchotbruch (Nov 26, 2010)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/california-dive-boat-fire-cause-conception/2020/10/20/97eb9bf4-12f1-11eb-9f38-35350e52c23c_story.html



My reading:

Probable cause: Electrical system deficient/overloaded by guests charging phone batteries etc

Aggravating factors: 
--No smoke detectors in critical places (not required by law)
--No anchor watch (roving watchman): definitively required by law


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## RegisteredUser (Aug 16, 2010)

There is an old thread here on this accident


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## MastUndSchotbruch (Nov 26, 2010)

RegisteredUser said:


> There is an old thread here on this accident


I know. Would be good to combine the two but I would not know how to do it.


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## Arcb (Aug 13, 2016)

I think I could combine them but for now lets leave them seperate? First thread got pretty long with lots of speculation.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Still tragic. The charging station was the original suspicion, but the article makes the point clear.



> A 13-month investigation into a recreational dive boat that burned and sank over Labor Day weekend last year has failed to find a definitive cause of the deadly fire


I thought of this accident when simultaneously charging all my radios, lights, tools, etc, before putting away for the winter.


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## MastUndSchotbruch (Nov 26, 2010)

Minnewaska said:


> Still tragic. The charging station was the original suspicion, but the article makes the point clear.
> 
> I thought of this accident when simultaneously charging all my radios, lights, tools, etc, before putting away for the winter.


Sure, that is a concern. But for me the more tragic problem was what happened AFTER the fire started. You can't always prevent a fire with 100% efficacy so need to have solid plans for the 'what-if' case.

It is not acceptable in the case of a fire to have egress blocked (sleeping 30+, people three decks down!), not having enough smoke detectors (a $10.- item) and, to me, the most incomprehensible, no anchor watch/roving watchman. As I mentioned on the other thread, I have never ever slept on a commercial or military vessel without someone on watch. Having some crew member actually awake and making rounds (as was required by law) would surely have saved many if not all of the people who got burnt alive.

BTW the comments in the Wash Post article are also interesting. Several of the people have stayed on that very boat.


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## olson34 (Oct 13, 2000)

MastUndSchotbruch said:


> https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/california-dive-boat-fire-cause-conception/2020/10/20/97eb9bf4-12f1-11eb-9f38-35350e52c23c_story.html
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The part about commercial vessels having an "anchor watch" was something that I do not recall being mentioned much in the original reporting, but makes sense.
Your comment brings back an old memory of my time on board a small Naval vessel in the 60's, and walking the whole ship at night, with a clipboard, "sounding the tanks", and noting amounts (if any) of water. And, generally checking on the boat during my watch. Good duty for young and newer crew members...
Besides, it was a break from listening to snoring coming from multiple levels of racks! 

(That old DE was scrapped not too may years later, being a veteran vessel of WW2)

I wonder how long those piles of sheets with their little pencil notations were stored! Somewhere.... !


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## tempest (Feb 12, 2007)

Olson 34, what was the name of your DE, I ask, because my Dad was a DE sailor during WW2 and I know his ship was around until after Vietnam.


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## olson34 (Oct 13, 2000)

Charles E Brannon, if I recall...
There were lots of these left over from the war, tho. Lots.


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