Good Samaritans Rescue Four From Burning Boat off Channel Islands

 On Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard worked with local agencies and good Samaritans to rescue four boaters after their vessel caught fire in California's Channel Islands.

At about 0930 hours, the boaters contacted Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach and reported that their boat was on fire near Anacapa Island, a protected area within a state marine reserve.

Watchstanders diverted a rescue boat from Coast Guard Station Channel Islands to assist. While the boatcrew was en route, a good Samaritan arrived and took the four people from the burning boat aboard their own vessel.

Image courtesy USCG

Crews from the Ventura County Fire Department and Los Angeles County Fire Department arrived and extinguished the fire soon afterwards. A commercial towing company brought the fire-damaged boat back to shore.

The Coast Guard boat crew transferred all four of the survivors to Station Channel Islands Harbor, where they were met by local emergency medical services personnel. One person was taken to St. John's Regional Medical Center in Oxnard for medical care. All four were reported to be in stable condition.

“This case is a testament to the goodwill that exists amongst Southern California mariners,” said Lt. Benjamin McIntyre-Coble, a command duty officer at Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach. “The immediate actions of the good Samaritan certainly saved the lives of the individuals and kept a bad situation from becoming much worse.”

Sunday's incident occurred roughly 20 nm to the east of the site of the deadly fire on the dive boat Conception last September. The Conception fire claimed the lives of all 33 passengers and one crewmember, and the circumstances behind the casualty are still under investigation.