cuba
Diving club, Southern California
Truth Aquatics sequence of events in theft of Conception
March 23, 2005
[UPDATE-March 23rd 4:00pm] On Wednesday, March 23rd at approximately 1:00am the Conception was stolen from its slip at Sea Landing in the Santa Barbara Harbor. The perpetrator(s) broke into the wheelhouse and managed to start the engines. As the Conception was being piloted through the harbor, it struck three other vessels, sinking one of them. Hours later the Conception was found grounded on a secluded beach near Point Arguello, about 50 miles north of its home port. Salvage efforts are being coordinated and Truth Aquatics remains optimistic about the vessel’s chances of being fully restored. [Adam Waskewics]
[UPDATE-March
26th 3:00pm] It has taken three days of working around the clock to prepare
the Conception for the salvage attempt. Additional material has been added
to strengthen the hull and all unnecessary weight has been removed. Two tug
companies have been enlisted to pull the Conception free. At 9:23pm on Saturday
March 26th, with the high tide, we will attempt to free the Conception from
the rocky beach where she has been stranded for the last four days. Please
keep the Conception in your thoughts tonight and we will keep you updated
as we learn more. [Chris Callahan]
[UPDATE-March 27th 10:00am] The attempt to recover Conception from the beach where she has been stranded since early Wednesday morning was unsuccessful. The salvage crew was able to move the boat but unfortunately caused some additional damage to the hull. Sunday will be spent repairing and reinforcing the hull for a second attempt late Sunday night. On a positive note, while the Conception was damaged during last night’s efforts the workers were able to change the direction the boat is facing, which may make tonight’s efforts a little easier. Again we ask you all, please keep the Conception in your thoughts tonight and we will keep you updated as we learn more. [Chris Callahan]
[UPDATE-March
29th 10:00am] After more than ten hours in tow the Conception approached the
entrance to Ventura Harbor. Due to adverse weather conditions the boat was
turned away and sent farther down the coast to wait at dock for the weather
to calm. We are hoping for a window in the weather late Tuesday night that
will allow another tugboat to take the Conception to the repair yard in Ventura.
Currently the Conception is being kept afloat with several auxiliary pumps.
I will be posting some pictures of the vessel at her current berth soon. [Chris
Callahan] [UPDATE-March 27th 11:15pm] The second attempt to recover the Conception
commenced around 10:00pm Sunday night with a favorable high tide of 5.3ft.
Five days and several hundred hours of work went into preparing the Conception
for the best possible chance of surviving the salvage effort. We at Truth
Aquatics are happy to let you know the Conception slid off the beach shortly
after 10:00pm and is currently under tow, enroute to Ventura Harbor for repairs.
Pumps are being used to constantly de-water the boat as she makes the over
100 mile voyage to the relative safety of a repair yard. Only when the Conception
has been lifted from the water and is supported by a repair cradle, will we
be able to breathe a small sigh of relief. We will continue to remain optimistic
and update you as we hear more. [Chris Callahan]
[UPDATE-March 29th 10:00pm] The Conception is still at berth and waiting for the weather to clear enough for the trip to Ventura where the boat repair yard is located. De-watering pumps are used constantly to prevent flooding while the boat remains in the water. The pictures above clearly show some of the damage sustained during the tow down the coast. Most evident are the missing portions of the bow which were torn free in rough seas. Glen remains in surprisingly good spirits and is optimistic that the Conception can be repaired. As for how long the repairs may take, at least a couple months is my guess but we will learn more after the Conception reaches the relative safety of the boat yard. [Chris Callahan]
[UPDATE-March 31st 10:00pm] Wednesday morning the weather took a turn for the better, if only long enough for the tug boat to bring Conception into Ventura Harbor where she was lifted into the safety of a repair yard. Everyone involved in the salvage effort can now breathe a small sigh of relief. It has been exactly one week since the Conception was abandoned on the rocky shore along Vandenberg Air Force Base. While it will take a long time (we estimate four to six months) to bring Conception back to pristine condition the amount of effort it has taken to get her this far has been enormous. It is truly astounding that a wooden boat could be stranded for so long on a rocky beach, yet the boat endured and work continued until she was saved. We at Truth Aquatics have many people to thank for their effort and part in saving a boat so many have grown to love. Thank you all so very much. Please continue to check back for updates about the Conception. [Chris Callahan] "We have been overwhelmed by the phone calls, e-mails and kind words of support received over the last week. The stories and thoughts you have shared show that this boat has been a part your lives. The Conception will rise again!" -Glen Fritzler
From here down is taken from Diver.net message board
Message one:
Investigators have arrested a transient for stealing a million-dollar boat from the Santa Barbara Harbor. The "Conception" disappeared from the Santa Barbara Harbor early Wednesday morning, and was found about 12 hours later on the rocks near Vandenberg Air Force Base. Police detectives say 41-year old Donald Kelley started up the "Conception" and hit three other boats on his way out of the harbor, including the "Slick Chick," which sunk.
After taking a look at the "Conception," Sea Landing manager Chris Callahan says the 75-foot dive boat may be back in the harbor soon. "It looks like the damage to the "Conception" is not so extensive that we will write it off as a loss," says Callahan. "A salvage company is involved trying to get it off the beach, so we will know within the next few days whether it is possible." Police say Kelley was found about a quarter-mile from the beached boat, and was carrying food items stolen from the galley of the "Conception." Donald Kelley, a drifter who recently moved to Santa Barbara, has been charged with grand theft.
Message two:
A thief made off with one of Santa Barbara's most popular dive boats early Wednesday morning, crashing into and partially sinking a fishing boat during an erratic exit from the harbor before the vessel ran aground in an area dubbed the "Graveyard of the Pacific." The 75-foot-long Conception, owned by
Truth Aquatics and usually docked at Sea Landing in the Santa Barbara Harbor, was found Wednesday morning beached about a mile south of the Vandenberg Air Force Base's lighthouse at Point Arguello, said Capt. Todd Fleming, a base spokesman. The area is known for its treacherous waters and history of shipwrecks. Because Vandenberg is a top-secret military installation, security forces scoured the scene for the intruders. No suspects were found as of late Wednesday, but security officers did find a pile of wet clothing and some footprints on the shoreline. The suspects were thought to be walking toward Jalama Beach.
Conception, owned by Glen Fritzler, has been a part of Truth Aquatics' three-boat fleet since 1981. "We don't know if she's a goner or not," said Joanna McLean, a Sea Landing reservations agent at the harbor in Santa Barbara. "We're still optimistic." Don Rowell, who operates another fleet boat called the Truth, has been a skipper aboard the Conception in the past.
"It's pretty much a disaster," Mr. Rowell said. "They ran up on a sandy beach, apparently. Somebody who was very unskilled did it."
The $1 million Conception was reported stolen at 7 a.m. Wednesday, and three hours later it was spotted hugging the coastline north of Gaviota. A Coast Guard helicopter called to locate the vessel spotted it beached at Vandenberg in the late morning. The Santa Barbara Police Department is investigating the theft, along with the Harbor Patrol, Coast Guard and Vandenberg security forces. At the harbor, law enforcement officials are trying to determine how the thief -- or thieves -- got the boat out of the crowded marina.
A Stearns Wharf security guard saw the white-and-blue vessel moving "erratically" through the water around 1 a.m., a time when most boats are moored for the night. As the Conception trundled through the marina, it struck three other boats, partially sinking the Slick Chick, a 70-foot, wooden commercial fishing boat. No one was aboard the three other boats when they were struck. The bilge pumps aboard Slick Chick could not keep up with the resulting leak, and the vessel slowly settled to the bottom of the harbor, according to Lt. Paul McCaffrey of the Santa Barbara Police Department. It's now resting at a 45-degree angle in about 20 feet of water, its masts and rigging tangled with another boat nearby.
Observers at the scene said the boat's owner heard the bilge alarm go off, and when he ran to the boat, the water was coming in so quickly that he only had time to grab a few items before abandoning the boat. Two other boats, the UCSB Sailing Center's Boston whaler and the Gus G, sustained minor and moderate damage, respectively, but aren't in danger of sinking, Lt. McCaffrey said. The UCSB boat's handrail was gouged, and the floorboards are partially smashed in some areas.
Conception, with 550-horsepower engines powering two propellers, isn't a vessel that can be easily piloted by an amateur, Lt. McCaffrey said. "You or I wouldn't know how to start this engine," he explained. "It's not like you pull a cord and it starts.
You have to know how to start this." Mr. Rowell said the area where Conception is usually berthed is small, and in order to make tight turns, skippers use the wheel very sparingly while also running one engine forward and one in reverse.
"They knew enough to start the generator, and use the electronic shifters on the gear box, which are hard to understand if you don't really know what you're looking for," he said.
The boat, which has a cruising speed of about 12 knots, takes legions of divers on trips to the Channel Islands on day and multiday trips. It can hold up to 40 people, has a galley and is equipped for recreational scuba diving and island hikes.
The Conception's loss, even for a short time, could hurt the business as the weather clears and spring dive trips begin. Although April is usually a slow month, Mr. Rowell said, there are charters already on the books. "Whatever they do to Conception, I imagine it is going to be in the boatyard for a while," he added.
