Near-Fatal Shipwreck Scuba Diving Accident Caught on Video

Freaky.

(Feed readers click through for video)

Here's the story in the diver's own words...

“I am happy to share my experience in case it can knock some sense into someone like me that knows better but ignores the warning signs.

Here is a video captured from my mask camera that shows the worst of my incident in which I got lost in the shipwreck. The video stops when I hit my head on the roof of the room I was trapped in before I found my way out. It took me a while to watch the whole thing because in two places you can hear me scream in my regulator.

At first I was embarrassed to talk about it. I knew better, I knew my limits, I ignored it all against my better judgment. Now I feel comfortable sharing what happened in case it might stop someone from having the same near death experience.

Whenever I have read scuba dive column detailing an accident in a post mortem it is easy to see the glaring warnings that go by like a flashing road sign. In my case I ignored them and put myself in a situation that was above my skill level and equipment for a penetration dive.

During a great dive in wonderful conditions on the SHIPWRECK we started talking about our second dive on the ship. A group of us talked about doing a slight swim through penetration dive through some large openings. My buddy and I opted in and I started gearing up for the upcoming dive. I turned out to the be the last one in the water so once I cleared "OK" upon entering the water I raced to catch up to my buddy who was #4 on a group of 5 about to penetrate the wreck. Being the trailing #5 diver I formed up and followed my buddy along one of the ship walkway at 100 feet. When I reached the door I saw daylight on the other side of the ship and thought this was a bit more than a swim through but entered anyway without lights.

I later learned after the dive that my buddy had formed up on an entirely different group, a group of three that had no idea who we were and that we were following them.

When I entered I quickly knew that something was wrong when I saw the group descend down a stair case, seeing bright sunlight ahead and silted enter way behind me I pressed forward in total darkness thinking I would find a clear path out.

I found myself in a room with only portholes out, no path to swim out. I was stuck in a silted dark room with a silted exit route and as panic began to set in I started burning through my precise air at an accelerated rate at 100 feet.

This is the point in which my fate was in the balance. Panic was starting to set in and I began to see my life flash before my eyes. Thoughts of my family, thoughts of how I was about to learn how painful drowning is, thoughts of how my death would tarnish ********references deleted to protect the identity of the diver******, all while flashes from a small blue LED light from my camera equipped mask reminding me that the camera was rolling would be part of the accident investigation.

The best way I can describe the feeling is that it is like when you have a near miss car accident, only this feeling lasted over five minutes.

Then something clicked that saved my life - in the waterfall of negative thoughts I yelled back. "Shut the fuck up!" "You know what to do, you have trained for this, you need to solve this problem right now or you are going to die." I told myself to take inventory of the situation, check your air, relax, let the silt settle, preserve your night vision by not looking at the bright light coming in from the port holes. I charged up the glow in the dark element of my gauges and then started to settle down. Somewhere in this time line my camera stopped, the stop button must have been pushed when I hit my head.

As a laid back and started to settle a square glint of a doorway appeared. I slowly peered out the door and saw a glint of a hallway. Knowing the hallways were safe from overhanging wires and ducts I headed into the darkness praying not to find any resistance. As I traveled down the hallway I found my environment getting brighter. I made it to the end of the hallway and found an entry that felt as big as the Grand Canyon. I swam for it and was free. Free, but alone - where was my buddy?

I was very low on air but my fear shifted to my buddy, I was worried that he had a similar fate and maybe he was still trying to get out of his.

I went to an ascent line at 60 feet and looked for bubbles and looked for the group that we mistakenly followed into the wreck. I planned to suck the tank dry and wait for him. My ascent from 100 to 60 was pretty fast and my computer was indicating that I needed to burn off some more gas. Once the deco flag went away from my computer I ascended to 15 feet and planned to burn off whatever I had left while I watched for my buddy. When I dropped below 500 psi I surfaced and found I was the first diver back.

Not knowing if an emergency was occurring I let the Captain know that I was #5 of a group of 5 that broke off a penetration dive and I wanted to look for the group. I grabbed my snorkel and fins and watched for the group to emerge from the wreck. After 5 minutes I saw the 4 person group emerge from the bubbles and surface.

When I met my buddy on the boat he was surprised to see me but unaware that I had left the group. When I spoke with the lead three of the group they had no idea who I was and that my buddy and I were following them.

For days I would shudder whenever the thoughts of what could of happened settled in my head. The mistakes and ignored cues are almost too many to count but I did learn a huge lesson from this dive. One that I am very fortunate to have survived.

I wish to remain anonymous but you are welcome to share this story if it helps keep someone from making the same mistakes I made.”

You can read the analysis here.

Be safe out there, friends.

Body of Missing Scuba Diver Recovered... 26 Years Later

Wow.

The body of a scuba diver found in a seaside park has been identified as a disabled man who went missing 26 years ago.

Two fishermen found human remains in scuba diving gear tangled up in their nets near Cates Park, North Vancouver, in October.

It has now emerged that the remains belonged to Peter Devoe who was last seen on March 13, 1985.

According to The Vancouver Sun, Mr Devoe, a paraplegic, was enjoying a day out with his fiance and family at Cates Park.

He was diving with his brother when he experienced problems with his equipment. He never resurfaced.

Despite searches being carried out by emergency service teams in the days following the incident, the body of the 29-year-old was never found.

Continue reading...

Mystery Deaths Shake Aussie Scuba Community

From the Syndey Morning Herald:

SHE had dived to World War II shipwrecks off Vanuatu and with whitetip sharks in the Red Sea. By December last year, scuba-enthusiast Carol Martin had clocked up 1000 dives and 15 years as a member of the St George Scuba Club in Sydney's south, but a night dive at Bare Island, off Botany Bay, on February 3 was her last.

Then four weeks after Ms Martin, 52, stopped breathing during the dive, Adam Rothery, another experienced scuba diver, died suddenly at the Royal Sheppard wreck off South Head.

His death was the fourth in as many weeks around Australia, leaving the scuba community asking questions about an unusual spate of deaths and cautiously reviewing safety procedures.
Advertisement: Story continues below

On March 5, a 55-year-old father of two, Michael Williams, suddenly lost consciousness during a dive in Melbourne's Port Phillip Bay. One week earlier, Agnes Milowka, a world-renowned cave diver from Melbourne who was a stunt diver in the James Cameron film Sanctum, ran out of air during a dive near Mount Gambier in South Australia.

''Even though scuba diving is a dangerous activity it's pretty rare that people die. I can't remember ever having that many deaths in such a short space of time,'' said Neil Miller, creator of the Dive-Oz website.

The deaths are unrelated; two were a result of unknown med- ical problems which were exacerbated underwater, but Mike Whitworth, diving officer for Sydney Sub Aqua Club, said divers were concerned.

"It's a small community so everybody is aware of [the deaths] and would be foolish not to have a look at themselves..."

Continue reading...

Agnes Milowka's Body Recovered from Tank Cave

Certainly an emotional retrieval for the divers who knew her well.

The body of a world-renowned cave diver has been recovered from the underwater channels where she was trapped.

Agnes Milowka, 29, ran out of air after becoming separated from her diving companion on Sunday in the eight-kilometre-long channel system of Tank Cave near Mt Gambier, in South Australia's southeast.

Members of the close-knit diving community had retrieved her body, police said in a statement on Wednesday.

Tank Cave is one of Australia's longest underwater caves, and divers had to clear and widen the channels to make it easier to retrieve her body 600 metres from the entrance to the sink hole.

Visibility was a difficulty with sediment from any movement taking hours to clear.

Some of the channels were so narrow divers could feel the walls pressing against them.

Continue reading...

Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with Milowka's family and friends as they seek closure after her passionate passing.

Recovery Team Member: Agnes Milowka Remained Calm Until Last Breath

A somber follow-up to news of the death of Agnes Milowka over the weekend, revealing insight into her final minutes underwater.

CAVE diver Agnes Milowka remained calm until her last breath as she tried to find her way to the surface.

Dr Richard Harris, a close friend of 29-year-old Ms Milowka, says she didn't panic in her final moments.

He is part of the team trying to clear the way for police divers to retrieve her body from Tank Cave, near Millicent.

Dr Harris, who had seen Ms Milowka's body submerged under 20m of water in a tight section of the cave about 550m from the entrance, said she was not trapped before her death.

He said Ms Milowka, who worked as a stunt diver for James Cameron's movie Sanctum, had ran out of air and suffocated after becoming disoriented.

She was separated from her diving partner and later became lost after stirring up silt from the cave walls and floor.

"It looks like she has remained very calm right to the last breath while she's been working at extricating herself," close friend and state safety officer Dr Harris said.

...

He said Ms Milowka - a marine archaeologist - was at the "leading edge" of the sport and respected worldwide for her diving skills.

Her "aggression" in the winding and narrow tunnels might have cost her life, after venturing into "a very narrow, rocky piece of passage," which took divers about an hour to reach, he said.

"There was no room in there for two people so she was by herself. To dive by yourself under certain situations is acceptable in this sport," he said.

Continue reading...

Milowka was a skilled professional until the end.

Agnes Milowka Dies Scuba Diving Tank Cave

A shocking blow to the international dive community over the weekend, as Victorian cave diver Agnes Milowka died in one of Australia's largest underground cave systems.

World-class in her proficiency underwater, Milowka was recently a stunt diver in James Cameron's film SANCTUM.

You'll notice the footage at the beginning of this video was shot by Karst Productions. Karst was of course the production company founded by the late, great cave-diving adventurer himself, Wes Skiles.


(Feed readers click through for video)

The body of Agnes Milowka, 29, was found today, after she went missing from a group of divers in Tank Cave, South Australia yesterday afternoon.

The world-class diver and keen underwater photographer was reported missing about 1.45pm yesterday, before the death was confirmed by authorities today.

...

Ms Milowka was well-known in cave-diving circles and is highly experienced, describing her interests on her website as "exploration, adventure and scuba diving".

The Polish born expert HAS explored caves from Tasmania to the Bahamas, gained qualifications in maritime archeology and also worked for National Geographic and the Discovery Channel, before acting as a stunt diver for two female characters in Sanctum.

On Friday, Ms Milowka tweeted her excitement at the upcoming South Australian diving expedition.

“Another w-end of cave diving in Mt Gambier ... fabulous! Can't wait to get underground,'' she wrote.

Tank Cave stretches at least 7km underground near Mt Gambier, in South Australia's southeast.

Ms Milowka wrote about the Tank Cave system in December, describing it as the “crowning jewel” of the caves in the region, writing for Cave Diving Down Under.

At the time she believed the cave was relatively safe: “The cave is stunning, it is relatively shallow (a max depth around 20m), there is no flow to fight and the water is crystal clear - you can't go wrong really.”

But she also wrote that the system was complicated, “like a spider web gone wild” and meant divers must learn the cave carefully to navigate tight restrictions and often zero visibility.

The adventurous diver wrote she had already discovered another side passage at least 300m long in the system on a previous visit, and hoped to discover more on visits such as her tragic final one.

She said that passage was a small hole, too tiny for her buddy, but she squeezed through for a brief foray into the darkness before turning back.

On her website, Ms Milowka says she is well aware of the risks she faces everytime she submerged into the dark subterranean world of cave diving."It would be difficult to claim that caves are completely safe" she says.

"Going into caves in general carries a certain amount of risk, and then if you add water and submerge the cave then obviously the risks increase."

Continue reading...

Take a moment to pay tribute by visiting www.agnesmilowka.com

Our thoughts and prayers are with Milowka's family and friends.

63-Year-Old Swiss Scuba Diver Swept Away From Group

Thankfully, he was rescued three hours later.

A 63-YEAR-OLD Swiss diver says surf conditions swept him away from his group causing a three hour air and sea search off the Sunshine Coast today.

The man, half-dressed in his wetsuit, smiled and shared his relief to be back on dry land when water police brought him back to their station at Mooloolaba just after 2pm.

“Yes, it was a long swim,” the international visitor said when asked of his relief at being found.

“I just got carried away with the waves and got caught up in the current,” he said.

“I saw the boat there and I just ended up getting lost.”

The man said he had been travelling by himself and was an experienced diver.

Read the details of his rescue...

Young Sydney Woman Dies in Fiji Scuba Accident

Tragedy in paradise.

A MAN has told how he desperately tried to save his girlfriend's life after she died in a scuba diving accident in Fiji.

Amy O'Maley, 28, had been diving around a coral reef at Beqa Lagoon on December 29 when she became separated from her instructor.

The guide later resurfaced leaving Amy alone underwater.

Amy's boyfriend Dale Kennedy told Channel Nine News:"That's when panic stations happened for me."

"I was just searching for Amy, searching for her bubbles."

Amy, from Terrey Hills, was found 18m down and brought to the surface unconscious.

As Dale and other tourist divers tried to revive her the dive crew from joined them in rendering assistance as the boat made the 20 minute journey back to shore, witnesses said.

A van was waiting to take Amy to the local hospital because no ambulance was available, the tourist divers were told.

But the van was unsuitable for the 10 minute ride to hospital because there was not enough room for others to continue administering CPR - so the tourists called a taxi.

Hospital staff were unable to revive Amy.

Continue reading...

Out thoughts and prayers go out to O'Maley's family and friends.

Following Accident, Scuba Diver Turns Dream into Device

Innovation comes in all shapes and sizes. And inspiration often from bizarre sources.

Former Sarnia resident Trevor Theriault has managed to take a near tragedy and parlay it into a nifty new invention for divers.

In 2003, while scuba diving in Cuba, Theriault was partnered with a diver who had a panic attack when the pair descended together as part of a larger group.

The diving partner took off for the surface and Trevor followed to offer assistance. The rest of the group continued with the dive. By the time they got straightened around, the rest of the group was gone, as well as the boat from which they dove.

Without any way to tell the other divers they were in trouble, all they could do was wait. The others eventually noticed and the boat did a turnaround to search for the missing pair. After some time, they were found and rescued.

The mishap prompted Theriault to think about a better way to communicate with fellow divers under water. Normally, divers communicate by tapping on their air tanks with a knife or something else, but Theriault thought there must be a better way.

One morning, he woke from a dream with a vision in his head of a device that would allow better communication with fellow divers. He drew it on paper and started asking around, doing research and surfing the net to find out if such a thing existed.

Theriault decided to enlist the help of others to get the ball rolling on his idea in February 2004. He filed for a patent in December 2005 and received U.S. patent approval in May 2009.

Manufacturing began in September 2009 and the product, the Diver's Communication Torch (DCT), was launched in May of last year by his company, Moray Dive Gear, and has since been featured in a number of magazine articles.

The DCT is consists of a high powered 150 lumen LED flashlight and a patented noisemaker that can be heard 100 feet away underwater. The noisemaker isn't reliant on batteries.

Theriault's company is called Moray Dive Gear and he is happy with the response so far to his invention.

Continue reading...

Be sure to check out Moray Dive Gear.

Death by Misadventure: Scuba Diver Dove too Deep While Exploring Scottish Wreck

A tragic reminder to dive within the limits of your training, as well as maintaining good buddy protocol.

A DIVER exploring a sea wreck off the Scottish coast died after he descended beyond the depths for which he was qualified, an inquest heard.
Father-of-four Neil Rodgers, 40, became separated from two other more experienced divers when he got into difficulties and failed to surface.

He was only qualified to dive to 35 metres, yet the trio descended to about 47m in the Sound of Mull before they hit trouble.

It is thought all three suffered nitrogen narcosis which affects the nerve cells in a similar way to alcohol as the divers explored the wreck of the Rondo, a cargo vessel which sank in 1935.

As they became separated, Mr Rodgers' "dive buddies" Dr John Fallon and Sarah Brough, each thought he was with the other and Dr Fallon had to ascend rapidly after he lost his weighted dive belt.

Alarm engineer Mr Rodgers, from the Rotherham area, was on a trip with other members of Doncaster Sub Aqua Club when he went missing on 16 March, 2008. His body was found ten months later, about 40 yards from the wreck, lodged between two boulders.

The inquest heard Mr Rodgers had been warned not to go beyond 35m by the club's dive officer beforehand. It is a limit recommended for "sport" divers of his experience by the British Sub Aqua Club.

Continue reading...

Videographer's Condition Remains Critical After Scuba Tank Explosion

In a follow-up to the accident involving a former videographer injured when a scuba tank was knocked over and exploded in his garage, Rick Allen remains in critical condition.

One of Allen's hands was severed in the blast, and his left arm was amputated to the elbow as a result, Burnham said. He has burns over 20 percent of his body - his legs, back and left side - and though he remained on a ventilator for smoke inhalation, he was alert, could see and squeeze with his right hand, she said.

"He's hanging in there. He's going to be OK," Burnham said. "It's going to be a long haul, but he's a real positive guy. I've been able to make some jokes, and I can tell when he squeezes my hand that he's laughing, so he's a strong dude."

What caused the explosion remains a mystery. Burnham said the couple, who own an underwater video and photography production business, keep a lot of dive equipment in the garage. The tank that burst contained compressed oxygen and was used in safety stops to help clear out residual nitrogen and prevent the bends, she said.

Allen told responders he bumped into the tank and knocked it over, causing the explosion that destroyed the wall separating the garage from the house. It wasn't clear what material the tank was made of.

"We're been diving for 25, 30 years, and we're real careful about all that stuff," Burnham said. "It's just a freak thing."

Authorities were continuing their investigation into the cause of the explosion. Meanwhile, the couple is focusing on moving forward, and Burnham said they have been overwhelmed by all the support they've gotten.

"I keep telling Rick about all the folks who are asking about him, and it brightens him," she said. "It makes him feel good. It's amazing how many people we know that are helping out."

Continue reading...

Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Allen family.

Former Videographer Injured When Scuba Tank Falls, Explodes in Garage

Ouch.

A painful reminder to the rest of us to ensure tanks are stowed safely and securely.

A former NC TV videographer and his wife, a newspaper photographer, were hurt Monday evening when a SCUBA tank fell in their garage and exploded, WRAL-TV reported.

The incident happened in Fayetteville and involved a former WRAL-TV video photographer and a current photographer for the Fayetteville Observer, WRAL reported.

Rick Allen suffered severe burns and is listed as critical in a burn center in Chapel Hill, WRAL reported. His wife, Cindy Burnham, was hurt by flying glass, WRAL reported.

The incident happened when Allen, who is a scuba diver, walked between cars in his garage near midnight and knocked over a compressed air tank, fire officials told WRAL.

Continue reading...

Army Officer Dies After 'Pre-SCUBA' Training Accident

Tragedy out of North Carolina, as U.S. Army Special Forces Captain Juan E. Lightfoot has died several days after a pre-scuba training accident.

The Army is investigating the death of a Special Forces captain who died Sunday after an accident during unit pre-scuba training Dec. 8 on Fort Bragg.

Capt. Juan E. Lightfoot, 34, died at Womack Army Medical Center four days after the accident. Lightfoot, of Elmont, N.Y., commanded a Special Forces detachment in Company C of the 2nd Battalion of Fort Bragg's 7th Special Forces Group. The former Marine had arrived at the battalion in November.

As the article mentions, details about the accident are unavailable due to the investigation. But Maj. Jimmy Brownlee, a spokesman for 7th Group, did mention that the training in which Lightfoot was partaking is designed to prepare soldiers for a combat diver's course.

The training was intended to prepare soldiers to attend the Combat Divers Qualification Course at Key West, Fla., Brownlee said. The Combat Divers Qualification Course is held at the Special Forces Underwater Operations School in Key West, part of the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg.

Special Forces soldiers train to infiltrate by land, sea and air. Combat divers might be dropped off in water and have to swim to their objective and cope with obstacles in between. The underwater mission is extremely rigorous, Brownlee said.

"Not every Special Forces soldier is a combat diver," Brownlee said. "When you get under that water, you could be 20 or 30 feet down, you could be tethered to a buddy, not see your compass, waiting for the silt to settle down. If they resurface, they are bringing their buddy with them."

Our thoughts and prayers are with Capt. Lightfoot's family and friends, especially this Christmas season.

Chronicles of Narnia Actress Faints Underwater During SCUBA Lesson

Whoa. Careful now.

Chronicles Of Narnia actress Georgie Henley has revealed how she failed to complete her scuba diving training, after she fainted underwater.

The 15-year-old, who reprises her role as Lucy Pevensie in the latest of the film series, decided to undertake a PADI scuba diving course to help provide her with handy skills for an underwater scene in The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader.

"I couldn't complete my licence 'cause I had a bit of an accident - I fainted underwater," she revealed.

"It was on my birthday as well, which is pretty crazy. I wasn't out for long."

Georgie added: "I was very ill, I had an ear infection and a cold, we'd literally just flown in about two days earlier, so it just meant that I wasn't able to do it, but I will be able to finish it because we learnt half the skills and they did adapt a shot, so I could participate."

Continue reading...

And that, folks, is exactly why you don't dive sick.

Photos of Rescued Scuba Divers Revealed

From CourierMail:

THEY are the amazing photos Sydney scuba diver Peter Trayhurn thought he would never see again.

Taken in 2006, they show Mr Trayhurn and diving mate Geoff Tosio lost at sea, stranded 8km off the NSW Mid-North Coast after their dive boat's anchor line snapped.

Four years later the long-lost camera used to take the photos has turned up on a beach, still in its waterproof housing and with the memory card - and subsequent images - intact.

The remarkable story began on December 23, 2006, when the pair launched from a boat off the coast of Wooli to dive at an isolated underwater site known as Pimpernel Rock.

Rising to the surface after the dive, Mr Trayhurn discovered the boat's anchor line had snapped, leaving them alone and stranded with no help in sight.

The two spent more than four hours clinging together, caught in a current and fearing they would not be found.

Continue reading...

Dive Instructor Saves Unconscience Woman 45-Feet Underwater

Talk about being in the right place at the right time.

The instructor was teaching a class in the waters at the mouth of Howe Sound near Horseshoe Bay when he and his students heard calls for help nearby.

He wasted no time in organizing a grid search for the 46-year-old Port Moody woman after her partner surfaced, pleading for help around noon.

The instructor found the unconscious woman in about 14 metres of water within minutes.

He brought her up to the surface and pulled her to the beach, where CPR was administered.

The woman was taken by air ambulance to Vancouver General Hospital.

West Vancouver Police are now examining to see if the woman's equipment was functioning properly.

Continue reading...

Coroner: Tour Operator's Failings Led to Scuba Diver's Death

Early last month we brought you the tragic case of scuba diver Donna Newton's death. Much debate swirled around the responsibility of the divemaster, Fabrizio Cardo, and what some were calling his negligence.

Since then, a coroner has concluded that Donna lost her life as the result of a series of basic failures by tour organizers.

Gillingham-born Donna Newton, 40, died after running into difficulties during a dive off the scenic Pacific islands on Tuesday, October 6 last year.

Mid Kent Coroner Roger Sykes said vital procedures to ensure underwater safety were not followed.

Donna should have been accompanied by a dive buddy who is supposed to help if she got into difficulty.

But the buddy swam off on her own.

The tour's divemaster also failed to watch over them.

A radio equipment tuned to an emergency beacon carried by divers was also found to not be switched on.

In his damning verdict Mr Sykes said: "Her dive master failed to keep watch over her and her dive buddy.

"Her dive buddy failed to signal to Donna and the dive master that she had to ascend early and the dive master failed to notice that Donna had a loss of buoyancy control on her ascent probably caused by vomiting into her mask and mouthpiece.

"These were serious failures to conform to recognised diving practices."

Donna was last seen swimming behind some turtles 30 metres below the surface. It was some time before Divemaster Fabricio Carbo noticed she was missing. She was found floating on her back with her mask off and blood and vomit around her nose.

Her buoyancy jacket was inflated and she'd operated her emergency beacon but the receiver aboard the dive boat was switched off.

Her mum Diana says her daughter's death should be a warning to others.

She said: "If I can stop another family going through the hell we have endured since October then it is something.

Continue reading...

Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with the family and friends of Ms. Newton.

California Declares SCUBA a "Hazardous Activity"

The law, which takes effect January 1, 2011 and was authored by Assemblywoman Diane Harkey of Dana Point, was written to limit government liability and curtail frivolous lawsuits.

The law, AB 634 was signed Tuesday by Governor Schwarzenegger and releases the state and local governments from liability in lawsuits associated with SCUBA diving. The bill passed in the Legislature without a “no” vote.

Under existing law, public entities and public employees are generally not liable when a member of the public participates in various “hazardous” recreational activities, including kayaking, surfing, waterskiing, white water rafting, and windsurfing. The bill officially adds SCUBA diving to the list of activities defined as hazardous.

“Fear of frivolous lawsuits has hampered efforts to expand recreational activities in many communities,” Harkey said in a statement. “I am pleased that Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law our legislation reducing liability for local and state governments while allowing for more recreational activities such as SCUBA diving, aiding coastal economies, the environment and the state of California."

AB 634 was created with shipwreck SCUBA diving in mind, specifically because diving on shipwrecks can be “hazardous, requiring special training and equipment beyond that for normal SCUBA diving,” according Harkey’s announcement. Because the government will no longer be held liable in lawsuits where a SCUBA diver was injured or killed while diving, coastal communities will be more likely to create more artificial reefs that benefit both adventurous SCUBA divers and the environment. Currently, California only has three ship-based artificial reefs.

Hosam Elshenawi, manager of Beach Cities SCUBA shop in Dana Point was pleased with the legislation.

"I think [it's unnecessary] to hold people liable and find people to blame for what happens during a SCUBA dive," said Elshenawi, who explained all divers sign an "assumption of risk" and other liability release documents before being certified.

"No one wants to blame themselves," he said.

Continue reading...

Your thoughts?

Renowned Underwater Photographer Wes Skiles Dies While Diving

The dive community suffered a hard blow yesterday with news that esteemed photographer Wes Skiles had passed away during a dive off the Palm Beach County coast.

Renowned underwater photographer Wes Skiles died Wednesday while filming underwater off Florida's east coast, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office confirmed Thursday afternoon.

Skiles, 52 of High Springs, was pronounced dead after he was found motionless at the bottom of a reef Wednesday afternoon.

Skiles had been diving with others about three miles east of the Boynton Beach Inlet, said Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Teri Barbera. The diver had been filming locally for National Geographic, she said.

Skiles apparently alerted the other divers that he was ascending because he was out of film, Barbera said. The others continued in the water but later decided to ascend.

"On their way to the surface, they found him at the bottom of the reef motionless," Barbera said.

The man was rushed to the surface, and CPR was administered.

Barbera said the man was taken to an area hospital and was pronounced dead.

Continue reading...

Skiles and his full service production company, Karst Productions, dedicated their work to giving the world an unparalleled view into underwater worlds far and near.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Skiles' family and friends.

Scuba Diver Recounts 10-hour Swim for Survival

An exhausting feat; luckily with a happy ending.

The Sheboygan County men who disappeared while diving on a Lake Michigan shipwreck made it back to shore on their own after battling the current for 10 hours, one of the divers said Tuesday.

David Rittmann, 29, of Adell, said he and Jamie Smallish, 28, of Beechwood, remain at Columbia St. Mary's Hospital Ozaukee in Mequon today, recovering from hypothermia and the physical strain of fighting the lake for their lives.

"We figured we were swimming close to around eight miles if not more, because we'd swim so far and the current would take us back out, then we'd go swim again," Rittmann said in a telephone interview from the hospital. "They're saying it's like we ran a marathon, and we're not marathon runners."

Rittmann and Smallish, former classmates at Ozaukee High School, hit the water about 1 p.m. Sunday to explore the Niagara, a side-wheel steamer that sunk a mile off Harrington Beach in 1856. Smallish had previously explored the wreck, which is in about 55 feet of water, but it was a first for Rittmann.

Rittmann said the men spent 20 minutes underwater before surfacing together next to his boat, which was moored above the wreck. They had taken off their flippers to climb aboard when the current tore them away.

By the time they gathered themselves, the men were out of sight of Rittmann's boat. Seeing no other option, they headed for shore.

"I didn't even know if we were going to make it or not," Rittmann said. "We just tried keeping a positive attitude. That's all we could do is keep on going."

Continue reading...

Can't help but wonder if they would have been better off with webbed scuba diving gloves.