AquaSafari

[ggunn]

Seems to me permit or not this whole thing could have been avoided if the OP had just sincerely apologized for not seeing the flag when confronted by the diver afterall accidents do happen. I think it was the nasty exchange between them that set Tek off.

gaffer

Just to clarify, I believe you mean the op, as in the dive op, could have apologized, not the OP, the Original Poster in this thread. Yes?

 

[teknitroxdiver]

Well, Bill Horn had the day off today, so I'll talk to him tomorrow or Monday.

 

[redacted]

This thread will ultimately probably impact Aqua Safaris positively. Just think, I have never heard of them before this, and now their name is imprinted on my brain. On top of that you have an incredibly responsible and well respected operator who knows them personally come in and say that this does not sound like them. Almost all publicity on the internet is good for the company involved. Let's face it, most people don't trust all that they read (you really had your kidneys harvested???). That might be an epiphany for some, but it is the reality of our cyber existence.

Personally, I love it when people complain about :sblogo: on other forums. It's GREAT advertisement and we get a lot of people who are merely curious. When they get here, they find the complaints to be erroneous and even mean spirited. I get more users that way, so it's all good.

Yep. I'll bet the rest of those Cozumel operator's are all saying, "Damn, I wish that was one of my boats in that picture".

 

[sbaggs]

We dove with Aqua Safari on their fast boat several years ago and enjoyed the experience, the dive crew, and the shop. We have twice stayed at one of the condo complexes Bill owns and know that he is someone who takes pride in his businesses and his shop. I hope this all works out well.

 

[Aqua Safari]

My name is Bill Horn, 54 years old, born and raised in Mexico, certified diving since 1972, and have operated diving in Cozumel since 1978.
I joined Aqua safari in 1978 and took it over in 1984.

I breakfast most every day - Monday to Friday - at Jeannie's Waffle on the waterfront from about 8:45 to 9:30 AM and would like to invite you
and any of your fellow divers to breakfast and to discuss this in person. I can have the instructor you came in contact with,
and the Captain of Ocean 2 there, or not. I can take you personally to the harbormaster's office if you like.

My phones are 87 20101 and 87 23101 at the dive shop, and cell 987 101 5370.

Let's sit down and talk about what happened on Paradise Reef Friday afternoon. I need to know.

Sinceramente,
Aqua Safari
Bill Horn

 

[Aqua Safari]

Please call back, I had the day off today - Saturday -but ended up spending most of the day on this. If you call the shop please tell them to contact me immediately; I always have a radio on me; even on my day off. My cell is 987 101 5370 and it's always on.

Let's sit down and talk about what happened on Paradise Reef Friday afternoon. I need to know.
We have not received an email from you, but several others including Net Doc and Undercurrent.

Sinceramente,
Aqua Safari
Bill Horn

 

[DandyDon]

Very good offer, Bill. Sounds like you are very sincere about finding any and all possible truths and seeking the best possible resolution.

But I am not surprised, from all the good I've hard about your Op...! :medal:

 

[old gaffer]

Just to clarify, I believe you mean the op, as in the dive op, could have apologized, not the OP, the Original Poster in this thread. Yes?

Oops! Yes Gordon I did meant the dive op.

Glad to see that Bill Horn has responded and it sounds like this situation will be ironed out... bravo for that!

Gaffer

 

[cicopo]

Although relatively new to this forum I am one of the "local experts" for Cozumel at TripAdvisor's site. In all the years with all the messages there I have never heard of a similar incident, and have actually dove with Aqua Safari on one of my trips. They get very high recommendations by many contributors at our forum and I am pretty sure there is a logical explination for this and it sounds like it will be found thanks to the co-operation of those involved. As I had stated very early in this batch of messages I have spent many hours snorkeling along different sections of the coastline while towing either a flag, or in recent years the more often used sausage and no boat has ever violated the logical safe space zone such a marker is designed to protect. I seriously doubt the boat captain intentionally disregarded the flag since he couldn't know whether or not the divers were legally using the park or not, but the (claimed) attitude of the DM after that is something that I do think needs explaining.
Aqua Safari has a top notch reputation for safety, and I can verify that I had to prove my skills by doing a shallow dive with them before being allowed to do a deep one even though I was not a new diver. I hope that a full & proper meeting of all the parties can sort this out and then we can all understand what not to do in the crowded sites like Paradise.

 

[redacted]

. I seriously doubt the boat captain intentionally disregarded the flag since he couldn't know whether or not the divers were legally using the park or not,.

I must be misunderstanding this statement. Are you suggesting that a boat captain only needs to honor a dive flag if he knows the divers are conducting the dive legally?

What does the legality of a dive have to do with a boat captain honoring the dive flag?