Dive boat captain faces new charge in California’s worst modern maritime disaster, which killed 34 people
A woman holds a photo of her nephew, who was killed on a dive boat off the coast of California, after she returned to Los Angeles in 2014. (Photo: KABC-TV)
A woman holds a photo of her nephew, who was killed on a dive boat off the coast of California, after she returned to Los Angeles in 2014. (Photo: KABC-TV)
SAN DIEGO (KABC) — An investigator in the case of the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) dive boat disaster is seeking a new defendant in the suit to recover what’s left from the vessel and its cargo.
The suit filed in the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday says the Coast Guard did not properly notify the PMA and the Coast Guard Marine Safety Center of the ship’s sinking over the weekend.
After the tragedy, the Navy sued for a court ruling to recover the ship and its cargo, arguing it was not covered by insurance because it didn’t have crew or passengers.
The Coast Guard says the boat sank because of a “submarine-type failure” in the engine. The wreck site is more than 20 miles off the southern California coast, about 20 miles north of Tijuana, Mexico.
The Coast Guard has not revealed how the alleged breach occurred, or who is responsible.
The company that owned the ship did not immediately return calls for comment.
The suit says the company is liable for “negligently and unlawfully caused and exacerbated” the sinking because it did not maintain its boat, did not conduct adequate tests on the engine and didn’t adequately report the incident, according to the San Diego Union Tribune.
The Coast Guard says the boat sank due to mechanical problems, not a submarine breach. The Coast Guard is investigating the causes of the crash.
The ship sank Saturday morning. Seventeen people were killed, and dozens more were injured. The ship sank within minutes of running out of gas and after its power supply had been cut off.
The survivors described being thrown over the side and losing all control.
“The water was so cold,” survivor Andrew Loh said. “The water was, like, straight down. The water