California boat fire death toll rises to 25

Divers have found a total of 25 bodies on Monday after a pre-dawn fire sank a scuba diving vessel off a Southern California island, leaving nine people unaccounted for as the search continued, media reported. Representatives for the Coast Guard’s division in Los Angeles and the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office could not immediately be reached to confirm the report from the Associated Press, which cited the US Coast Guard. The Santa Barbara sheriff had earlier confirmed eight people had died after a fire broke out aboard the Conception at about 3:15 am on Monday.