This book is actually due to be on store shelves on June 20. It can be pre-ordered through a few sites, Undercurrent.org, which has the editor's review of the book itself, Amazon.com, and Barnes and Noble.com, to name a few. There may be more, or it will be available in stores on June 20. I know these facts because my husband, Ray Mars, was one of the victims of this tragedy. I have been in contact with Joe Burnworth, the author, for about 2 years now, and he has done extensive research on the capsizing, including at least 2 trips to Belize to interview the survivors from the crew, and trips to Richmond, Va. to speak to the survivors from the Richmond Dive Club. He and his wife were on the Belize Aggressor, and therefore saw first-hand what happened. It affected him so much that he wanted to try and discover what really happened. All of the reports issued so far, including the IMMARBE report, though much anticipated and hoped for, have not given the clear, complete answer. The IMMARBE report at least states that the divers, the victims, were not at fault, as so many have been quick to believe. There have been so many postings at various sites blaming only the victims themselves, calling them "rich, spoiled divers" who demanded their quota of dives, no matter the consequence. Those who made these postings did not know any of the victims, so I have never been able to figure out why they decided to be so judgemental, saying what they would do, etc. They have no real knowledge of the actual facts, or the events leading up to the tragedy. These divers were completely at the mercy of Peter Hughes and Phillip Martin, and it cost them their lives. Martin survived, oddly enough. Isn't the captain supposed to be the last one off the ship? It appears he was among the first, if not the actual first. Many facts did indeed come out in the IMMARBE report, but it was extremely kind to Peter Hughes, and I believe this was due to Hughes' money and monetary influence on the tourist industry in Belize. Belize is an extremely poor, thirld-world country, I know this because we had previously visited there, and many of its' residents live in nothing more than shacks. The governing body of Belize could not afford to put any blame on Peter Hughes, lest his boats stop contributing so much to the Belizean economy.
Not all of the truth has ever been told, so those of you who think you already know everything from any of the previous articles, just do not. Joe Burnworth tells the real story, from the victims' side, a very different story from the so-called official report, and the whining from Hughes himself about how much this tragedy has cost him. The actual amount of that is zero. I ask all of you to please read this book, because it could give you a very different idea of the real facts. My hope is that other divers never find themselves in such an horrific situation, helpless, and trapped to drown. The thought of the horror that Ray experienced before his death has haunted me constantly since October 8, 2001. I cannot even begin to describe the effect his death has had on so very many people. None of us will ever recover, or hope to. That has only been made so much worse by the numerous postings made by those who know nothing about the actual event, and have spoken so very cruelly of our loved ones. I urge all of you to read this book, and then form your own opinions. My sincere wish is to prevent another such tragedy from happening to anyone else.
