At least 30 people missing as boat catches fire near Santa Cruz island

Dozens of people are missing after a 75ft diving boat off the coast of southern California caught fire Monday morning.

Of the 38 people who were onboard the ship, five people have been confirmed evacuated, while 33 are unaccounted for, according to the US Coast Guard. There are reports of fatalities, though the number of deaths and injuries are unconfirmed.

Firefighters converged on the scene near Santa Cruz Island but the blaze and intense heat prevented them from breaching the hull of the 75-foot (23-meter) vessel to see if there were survivors, they said.

After hours of fighting the blaze, the US Coast Guard reported that the vessel sank 20 yards off the shore in 64ft of water.

The boat was docked near Santa Cruz Island, close to the cities of Santa Barbara and Los Angeles.

The Ventura County Fire Department said in a tweet Monday morning that it responded to reports of the boat fire at 3.28am local time.

Coast guard senior official Aaron Bemis told CNN that the fire kept fighting extinguishment, possibly due to the amount of fuel on the ship. “It’s consistently being put out and re-flashing,” Bemis said.

The Coast Guard said a “good Samaritan pleasure craft” named the Great Experience evacuated the ship of five people.

The Santa Barbara County Fire Department confirmed in a tweet that the vessel is named Conception and is run by a local boat rental service that offers diving tours off the coast.