I promised a more factual update when it became available and here it is.
Before I include the report some explanation...
Scuba diving is a 'Controlled Activity' in Spain meaning it is controlled by LAW. In the UK and the US it is mainly 'Self-regulated' by the main qualification bodies .... Here, a Dive centre needs to meet the diving centre laws, and all divers need to follow a new law (from July this year) which introduced the 40m limit on 'recreational diving'. Put simply If you want to go deeper you need to follow the regulations for 'technical diving' and carry double air, computers etc. It would appear that the group crossed this invisible boundary and were using 'recreational gear' in a 'technical zone'.
The original post by the Guardia Civil can be found in Spanish on the following link ..
#GUARDIACIVIL DETIENE AL GUÍA DE UN... - Benemérita Las Palmas | Facebook
There are two further reports which add a little in the local newspapers, such as :
Detenido el guía de la buceadora que murió atrapada en un buque en La Luz
This is an abridged version of the Guardia Civil post .. I have highlighted some of the subheadings and key phrases..
#GUARDIACIVIL ARRESTS THE GUIDE OF A DIVE CENTER FOR A HOMICIDE FOR SERIOUS IMPRUDENCE IN #GRANCANARIA
• This is the diver who made a dive in the Soo Yang wreck in Puerto de la Luz, which was rescued dead by the Group of Underwater Activities Specialists of the Civil Guard
• From the investigation they have identified several issues of professional malpractice on the part of the dive guide, who was the technical director of the diving company that carried out the activity .
The Civil Guard, within the framework of the NARCOTIS operation,
have arrested a 45-year-old person as the alleged perpetrator of a crime of homicide due to gross negligence, thus clarifying the causes of the death of a 27-year-old woman who was trapped after dive in the outer area of the Reina Sofía dock in the ports of La Luz and Las Palmas, in an area or area of sunken wrecks called "narcotics".
Investigation, technical reports and detention The events occurred on October 10 when the Group of Underwater Activities Specialists (GEAS) of the Civil Guard were alerted to the rescue of a female diver who had disappeared inside the sunken Soo Yang wreck, in the area called "the narcotics", where a group of recreational divers, led by a guide, entered.
For this reason, the agents began an investigation in which they detected different illegalities, apart from verifying that
the group of divers lacked specific mandatory planning according to the regulations, for conducting pre-dive diving that included a risk assessment; in which, among other things, the place, depth, time, air consumption and
above all the experience and qualifications of the diver should have been taken into account.
Even so, the dive was carried out
exceeding the depth greater than that allowed and inside a wreck, which due to its technical characteristics carries extreme risks that require experience, training, skill and specific equipment.
On the other hand, the agents were able to verify that
the corresponding evacuation plan was not activated according to the manifestations made in the investigation, specifically when they had ascended to the surface
the rest of the group did not make the corresponding security stop, being aware of their professional career that if they ascended without stopping, it endangered the lives of the other divers.
For this reason,
the agents proceeded to arrest the guide and technical director of a diving training center in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, as well as the local police precinct for the corresponding expert opinion for the alleged responsibility of a homicide due to serious negligence .
Complex and dangerous rescue
The GEAS components carried out a very complicated and dangerous maneuver when they had to access the interior of the ship, in which on the first day they located the body of the deceased diver located in an area of difficult access with narrow passages.
To all this, we must add the amount of silt that was raised by the passage of any diver, a circumstance that caused extreme disorientation causing the loss of the exit even if it was a few centimeters away.
Even with this, the GEAS components in the second dive carried out, located the lifeless body inside the wreck sunk more than 30 years ago, which rests on a seabed 41 meters deep, keel position in the sun where in Inside there are only rusty and sharp metal structures.
With this location, the agents made two more dives the next day to recover and extract the body and all its diving equipment that were in an area of difficult access. A complex maneuver in which the GEAS agents
advanced to the outside on their backs to minimize the continuous hookups and obstacles in narrow passages.
Likewise, the same diving specialists from the Civil Guard who had to act to search, locate and recover the body of the diver, witnessed the risks implicit in this dive,
which was absolutely outside the parameters of recreational diving.
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The newspaper report also confirmed that the lady who lost her life was a doctorate-student in the marine sciences department of the University of Las Palmas, and suggested there were a total of 5 divers.
The video on the GC page shows them inspecting tanks, and then Sealing the dive centre to prevent anyone entering until improvements have been carried out.
I think the last sentence sums up the situation most clearly.
