US drama with 43 dead

4 years in prison for captain after fatal boat fire

More than four years after the deaths of 34 people on a burning excursion boat, the boat captain in Los Angeles has been sentenced to four years in prison. The competent federal court announced the sentence for Jerry Nehl Boylan on Thursday (local time). A jury had found the 70-year-old guilty of gross negligence in November. Up to ten years in prison would have been possible, the defense had hoped for a suspended sentence.

Through his misconduct and cowardice, Boylan had caused the "terrible deaths" of 34 people, said federal prosecutor Martin Estrada. Prior to the announcement of the sentence, relatives of the victims had spoken about the heavy loss and demanded the maximum sentence for the captain.

Fire cut off the way to exits
A fire broke out on the diving boat "Conception" in September 2019 at the end of a three-day diving excursion. The passengers and a crew member were sleeping in a cabin below deck at night when the boat burst into flames off the Californian island of Santa Cruz. The rapidly spreading fire cut them off from the exits.

The captain and four of his crew members, who were on deck, jumped overboard and survived. When rescue workers arrived, the 30-metre-long boat was already fully engulfed in flames. It eventually sank. The tragedy is one of the most serious maritime accidents in recent US history.

Captain was the first to flee the ship
The public prosecutor accused the captain of not having properly trained his crew for emergencies. In addition, he had not deployed a night watch. This allowed the fire to spread unnoticed. He was also the first crew member to disembark when the other people were still trapped in the boat and needed help.

At the time, it was common practice in the region to dispense with night watches on boats. After the accident, the coast guard tightened the regulations. Investigators have never publicly stated a clear cause for the fire on board the "Conception".