Coast Guard suspends search efforts for victims of deadly boat fire

Officials said 11 female and nine male remains have been recovered thus far. Investigators have received more than 100 calls from family and friends who believe their loved ones were on board the vessel.

The 75-foot Conception was on a three-day excursion to the chain of rugged, wind-swept isles that form Channel Islands National Park in the Pacific Ocean. The fire broke out around 3 a.m. in Platts Harbor off Santa Cruz Island.

Five of six crew members on the Conception escaped as the fire raged by jumping into an inflatable boat they steered to a nearby vessel. The crew members who escaped took refuge on a boat called The Grape Escape, anchored nearby. Two suffered minor injuries.

“It’s upside down in relatively shallow water with receding tides that are moving it around,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said.

Divers prepare to search for victims on September 3, 2019, in Santa Barbara. Christian Monterrosa / AP

The Conception, based in Santa Barbara Harbor on the mainland, was owned by Truth Aquatics, a Santa Barbara-based company founded in 1974. The Conception was on the final day of a Labor Day weekend cruise when the fire erupted and a mayday call was made.

Investigators haven’t yet determined what sparked the fire.