Grand Cayman/Divetech/Cobalt Coast Update

[Drew Sailbum]

I'll probably be staying with friends on Rosebud Lane. I was living at Teda's Place in Old Man Bay, but I hear the roof is off my apartment.

Diving will be purely a luxury at first. I need to do an initial salvage of anything that is left and there's work to be done to get ready for the tourists' return.

 

[worlddiver]

Hello Turtle Gal, Have you had any new updates from Divetech? We are thinking of going down to Cayman in early December. Called Cobalt Coast Resort and they said Divetech is planning to open November 15th but they were not sure when goverment will open the airport to tourist. Cobalt said most of the relief worker will be gone by November 13th.

 

[Turtle Gal]

Nancy said they will be back in action as soon as power is restored. Once they get power to Divetech/Cobalt they can start filling tanks. Nancy is hoping for a Nov 15 opening. She has been busy and I haven't heard anything new in a couple of weeks. If I do, I will post it here in this thread. You can always go to Cayman net news and check out Friday Oct 22 paper Nancy is in an article about the diving. Hope I have been some help? I will keep you updated as I get word from them. Stay safe, Turtle Gal

 

[nipi]

I confirm that Don Fosters on S. Church St. is filling tanks & also running 2-taqnk boat trips.

 

[Turtle Gal]

Here's a bit of an update, although it's not definitive as of yet, so more to follow very soon.

October 25th, 2004...

Divetech's boats are all painted and looking bright and pretty - like new!! The staff are hard at work putting TenATA and ATATude's benches, railing, etc. back on, and they will be splashed around Nov 4th, ready to go. The shop at Turtle Reef is painted, new shelves, racks, doors and windows are installed, and she'll be stocked and ready to go in the next several weeks. Our compressor has been fired up - we have power now , and it's fine, ready to pump air and nitrox tanks again soon. We're opening the shop at Turtle Reef on Nov 6th for 1 day, inviting folks to come and do an underwater cleanup, as we still have stuff on the reef that needs to be returned to land. We will also be doing the annual turtle release from the shop, in conjunction with the Cayman Turtle Farm on this date at 5:00pm. Ten turtles will be released into the wild. The shop at Cobalt Coast will be open Oct 30th for the day, also an underwater cleanup exercise!

While we will be all ready to open, and looking forward to getting back to the business and pleasure of diving, we are awaiting an official release from the government on the re-opening date for tourists that wish to stay over. No doubt, diving will be high on the list for when visitors can return, because our major resource and treasure, the reefs and walls of Cayman, are in excellent condition and will be enjoyed by divers for sure. We expect to know when we can re-open within the following week, and will keep all of our valued customers informed as soon as we can on the tremendous progress that is being made by everyone here.

Nancy @ Divetech

When I get more info I will pass it on,Turtle gal

 

[Turtle Gal]

Just got word, November 20th is the day that the Caymans will be open to tourist.You can check out divetech's web site. WWW.divetech.com
Turtle Gal

 

[nipi]

It is interesting to read all this "Cayman's reefs are untouched" stuff. I have done a number of dives here since the storm and that's certainly not how I would describe them.

 

[Turtle Gal]

Nipi,The reason I started this thread Was to inform people on Scubaboard How Divetech/Cobalt Coast was doing since Ivan!!!!! I mean NO disrespect to you or your judgement on the reefs,However not everyone will EVER agree on the condition of the Cayman reefs!! We are not closed minded, When it comes to Hurrican damage we know there will be a differance with the reefs. I also know that reef conditions are the least of the problems on the Grand Cayman Island!!! Personaly I have Family and many friends there And I worry about each of them.
Like I said earlier, This thread is to keep the Cayman tourist/Scuba diver informed on when WE can go back!!! Let us be the judge. If my opinion bothers you Well then im sorry! Hope you and your family are well !!! Turtle Gal