Schools
Fremont Teacher Among Those Killed In Tragic Boat Fire
The teacher was among 34 who died Monday off Santa Cruz Island when their boat caught fire and sank
FREMONT, CA — A Labor Day weekend outing ended in tragedy for an American High School teacher, according to Fremont Unified School District.
Physics teacher Scott Chan died Monday in a horrific accident. A dive-boat off the coast of Santa Cruz Island in Southern California caught fire and sank. Five crew members of the Conception were saved, but 34 others, including Chan, died.
Chan taught AP Physics at American High, according to his LinkedIn profile. This was his third year at the school. Fremont Unified School District is providing grief counselors to students and staff, who are deeply shocked.
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The district sent a tweet earlier, embedded below, reporting that Chan's wife and son also died. That tweet has since been deleted, replaced by another that confirms only that Chan has died. The information on his family members is conflicting.
We are saddened to report the passing of @EagleNationAHS Teacher, Raymond (Scott) Chan, who along with his wife & child, were among the fatalities of this weekend's boat fire off coast of Santa Barbara. Our condolences to Mr. Chan's family and the American HS community. pic.twitter.com/SCcnXGhKpE
— Fremont USD (@USDFremont) September 4, 2019
We are saddened to report the passing of American High School Physics Teacher, Raymond (Scott) Chan, who was among the fatalities of this weekend's boat fire off the coast of Santa Barbara. We send our condolences to Mr. Chan's family and the American High School community. pic.twitter.com/vglEFmYMNN
— Fremont USD (@USDFremont) September 4, 2019
Chan earned his Bachelor and Masters degrees in Engineering at Stanford University. He worked at three tech firms — Tandem Computers, Silicon Graphics, Juniper Networks — before transitioning to the classroom. He earned a teaching credential from Santa Clara University.
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Before coming to Fremont, he taught at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo, Carlmont High School in Belmont, and Cupertino High School.
Many victims of the boat tragedy were from the Bay Area and Santa Cruz, authorities in Southern California say.
See: California Boat Fire: 34 Presumed Dead, Rescue Suspended
The Coast Guard's Los Angeles/Long Beach station received a mayday call around 3:15 a.m. Monday reporting that the 75-foot commercial diving boat was on fire. When crews arrived, it was fully engulfed, and no survivors were found.
The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for survivors as of 9:40 a.m. Tuesday, according to Coast Guard Capt. Monica Rochester.
So far, 20 bodies had been recovered. Several other bodies have been found but not yet retrieved, according to Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown
See Scott Chan's LinkedIn profile
— Patch editors Bea Karnes and Kristina Houck contributed to this story
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