So far, 25 bodies have been recovered, while 9 people remain unaccounted for. The boat has sank, and is now upside down on the ocean floor under about 60 feet of water. Most of the bodies have been recovered from the ocean floor.

Already, several memorials were being set up in Santa Barbara Harbor. Meanwhile, suspicions about the boat are beginning to spread, though a Coast Guard captain had said the boat was in full compliance.

Update (1045ET): Coast Guard Senior Chief Aaron Bemis told CNN  the fire on the boat keeps re-flashing, hampering efforts to board the boat and look for survivors.

"It's a 75-foot commercial dive vessel that reportedly had 39 people on board. The five crew members able to disembark because they were in the main cabin. The 34 passengers were below decks," Bemis added.

"The report we got was they were trapped by the fire. The fire was so intense that even after it was put out, we're not able to actually embark the vessel and, you know, look for survivors at this point. It's still ongoing," he said.