Belize Tragedy

[DandyDon]

Word around some of the shops here though is that the government is cracking down on the safety issues on all boats. Thorough inspections or the order now. Let's hope so.

We always hope for at least that much after a tradgedy like this, and it is certainly getting a lot more coverage than some others.

Will it be temporary or really effective? If more travelers insist on more, we'll get it, even if we have to pay more. If divers go back to cheap-bed shopping and maverick operators, who knows...?

 

[Scuba]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Scuba
Seems like the only ones who disagree with the choice to jump in are those speculating from a distance.

...And the family of the woman who died,...I suspect they might disagree with the choice...


Originally Posted by Scuba
IMHO, this operator is guilty of criminal negligent homicide...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scuba
I won't say there was willful intention to hurt or kill the passengers. That's called murder...

This is a speculative assumption at best. That staying aboard would have produced a better result. It may not have, we could be looking at multiple fatalities instead.

Quote from another article:

Keith Swift: After that rescue - the second dive master Henry Mark Tucker turned up on Sunday night. He surfaced on Glover’s Reef and told police that when the boat began experiencing engine trouble - they all jumped out of the boat. Unfortunately, so far only he has made it safety.

Brian Young (Dive Instructor who helped in the rescue): The boat is still out there. According to Mr. Tucker, the other four persons [divers], when the boat was drifting between 11 and 12 o’clock on Saturday, he tried to keep them on the boat but they didn’t want to stay. Mr. Tucker’s words is that the four of them ganged and decided they could make it to Silk Caye and Mr. Tucker just learnt last night when he called in that we haven’t found those four people. He has no idea why they couldn’t make that short distance swim.

Is the boat still out there at this date? The swim made by the DM, who also decided at a later time it was best to abandon the boat, is reported to be about 2-3 miles. This happened further out, quite possibly under more difficult ocean conditions. Was this a better option for the others or would it have produced worst results? What if they all stayed onboard? The specifics of a case determine whether even a good general guideline is applicable or not, not the other way around.

Regarding the confusing part, I'm not a lawyer, so I later changed my opinion to negligent manslaughter as a better fit. As you probably know there are various degrees of murder, homicide, and manslaughter. It depend on pre-meditation, intent, gross negligence and other considerations.

At any rate, any reasonable analysis leaves this operation with a great deal of direct responsibility for the final outcome - and it and they should be held accountable.

It's good to see, that at least the tourist board is taking this seriously, as well they should for various reasons. But let's not forget, they also claim this business was operating without a license. Feel free to judge the significance of denying them future licences. Though they should be praised for doing their part.

According to some of the reports the police will probably not seek negligent manslaughter charges because the divers willingly jumped from the boat. In and of itself a good sounding argument, that under close examination turns out to be very weak. Quite possibly not only was jumping overboard the best option Vance Cabral and his DM gave them under the circumstances, but they may well have opted for it at the best time. A thorough investigation is necessary to determine this. The reason given for possibly not proceeding in this direction leads me to believe they are seeking a reason not to proceed. Let's hope that at the very least charges are filed for operating without a license and prosecuted to the full and maximum extent of the law. Otherwise, this will be nothing more than a publicity stunt. People will be either held accountable in a significant, meaningful way - or not.

 

[Jeff Toorish]

Does anyone know where the other dives are from. I know the young woman who died is from Indiana. Were they traveling in a group, or did they just meet that day?

Jeff

 

[LAJim]

See: http://new.channel5belize.com/archive_detail_story.php?story_id=15049

Tour guides banned forever in death of U.S. diver


A Placencia tour operation, Advanced Diving, has lost its license following the death of a SCUBA diver and three day ordeal at sea for three other divers who survived. According to the Belize Tourism Board, the Tour Operating Licensing Committee met last Friday and not only voted to shut down Advanced Diving, it also recommended that guides Vance Cabral and Mark Tucker be banned from guiding for the rest of their lives. It was a unanimous decision based on information supplied by the Police Department and the fact that this is the second incident involving Advanced Diving within the last ten months. A summons has also been issued for both guides since they were operating without licenses after being placed on probation for the first mishap in January. In addition, Advanced Diving is facing penalties for hiring unlicensed operators. When asked if it is likely any serious criminal charges such as manslaughter by negligence will be brought against the pair, Anthony Mahler of the B.T.B. says the Police Department indicated this would be difficult since the surviving divers have admitted that they left the boat of their own volition in an attempt to swim to Silk Caye. However, he indicated that the family of the diver who did not make it, Abigail Brinkman, does have the option to pursue the case as a civil matter, as do the other divers: Nancy Masters, John Bain, and Yutaka Maeda, who incurred substantial medical expenses during their recovery from dehydration, salt water intake, and severe sunburn. Abigail Brinkman is seen here in a photo taken when her family visited her here in Belize just two weeks ago. A memorial service will be held for her tomorrow in Indiana. Brinkman was in Belize as part of her medical school rotation in which she had been posted at a clinic in Punta Gorda three weeks before her death.

 

[Scuba]

Does anyone know where the other dives are from. I know the young woman who died is from Indiana. Were they traveling in a group, or did they just meet that day?

Jeff

According to my recollection of the reports I've read, Yutaka Maeda is a Japanese national, no mention of place of residence, Nancy Masters is from Oregon and John Bain from Wisconsin.

In addition to the divers there were aprox. 6 snorkelers that were temporarily stranded on a small caye while V. Cabral swam to another caye to call for help.

 

[miketsp]

Another link with an interview with Masters:
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051028/NEWS01/510280527/1006

Just a few snips
The boat's engine gave out, the anchor broke, the radio malfunctioned and the dive master didn't have a compass.
Almost everything that could have gone wrong did, said Nancy Masters, one of four divers on a fatal scuba diving excursion off the Caribbean coast of Belize.

Rather than stay on the drifting boat -- as tourism officials said the divers had been advised to do -- Masters and the other divers thought they could swim below the rough water back to South Silk Caye, which was still in sight.
"(But) the waves were much greater than what we thought," she said. "And we tried to find our way from the sun, but visibility was poor."
The two men had on partial wetsuits. Masters had clothing on over a swimsuit, and Brinkman wore a two-piece bathing suit. All had oxygen tanks.

At times, Masters became delirious.
"I would hallucinate buoys and land," she said. "But my mind created different scenarios to help me deal."
She didn't worry about sharks until fish began nipping at her legs.
Masters kicked her legs and fanned her arms to keep them away. "I didn't know if they wanted to bite me, but I figured if they drew blood, sharks would become a problem and that would be my end."
On Monday afternoon, the third day of their ordeal, Masters was rescued by a Belize Defense Force search team, which also picked up Maeda and found Brinkman's body. Recreational boaters rescued Bain.
"You take for granted the ability to put your feet on something solid," Masters said. "Land is a nice thing."

 

[Butch103]

Regarless of the "missing" or non-existant gear on the boat the divers should have used common sense and stayed with the boat. Why would you ever leave? As negligent as the "tour" operator was, his advice was based on being a native of Belize and knowing how difficult the conditions were.

"Masters kicked her legs and fanned her arms to keep them away. "I didn't know if they wanted to bite me, but I figured if they drew blood, sharks would become a problem and that would be my end."

This statement is also a statement of lack of knowledge. The amount of blood needed to attract sharks from any distant would in itself sufficient to cause death.

One large cluster******* after another.

 

[DandyDon]

Saw this in another forum here and brought it over for update...

Latest I've read on this tragedy:

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051104/NEWS01/511040550

This excerpt from that article could give a lot of support to a negligent homicide charge...

Neither Cabral nor Tucker had valid tour operator licenses, investigators said.
Officials said Cabral's license was suspended earlier this year after an accident in which he flipped his boat and plunged 10 divers into the sea. It was unclear when Tucker's license was revoked.

Little good a lifetime ban would do on someone who had been operating without a license anyway.

 

[cmcloughlin]

I just like that little Standard Horizon radio -- it's what I spec'd for a job. A neat little package, complete with the strobe.

I have been bringing a hand held with me on vaca for about 15 years now.
currently have a hx260 (I think) I also bring an inexspensive GPS so if I have to call for help I can tell them where I am.
Since I plan my vacations several months in advance, I also obtain nautical charts of the area I am traveling to. The last few weeks leading up to the departure I study them every nite. By the time I get there I have a pretty good lay of the land.
You are right, even if the boat is capsized, STAY WITH THE BOAT!!! Makes you much eaiser to find.
Weather. Sometimes thats tough. I think it was 1996 I was delivering a 35 ft sportfish
from Poughkeepsie NY to Watch Hill Rodhe Island. The weather was snotty blowin 25 knts so I pulled into Clinton CT to spend the nite. Woke up at 5 am had coffee, in a rush to unload the boat so I can get home. I am in a protected cove, in a protected harbor.
Didn't bother to listen to NOAA weather radio, pull out into LI Sound its blowin 35 gusting to 50. The waves were so big and close I was afraid to turn around, afraid one of the waves would broadside me and knock me down. I white knuckled it to a lee shore and rode it out there. Just plain not thinking on my part, Maybe if I had passengers under my charge I would have given it more thought.

BTW another nice thing about a handheld, after the days diveing, sitting on the hotel balcony with a cocktail I like to listen to the local chatter.
Chris

 

[cmcloughlin]

I have to disagree.
Having tried to import VHF radios into many countries while running projects there can be quite a bit of bureacracy associated with this activity.
Many countries require you to have a local license issued by the Telecommunications Authority of that country so quite often they will be confiscated by customs if found.

I have never been to Belize, But I have delivered boats all over the carribbean (15 countries) in the last 17 years. I have an FCC operators permit (It was rerquired back
in the 80's to operate a vhf radio in the US) I have never been asked to produce it.
all customs and immigrations wants to see is your passport and a means of exiting the country.