Hong Kong tourist dies during dive near Sipadan

[Dan]

There are some local medias citing down current and/or empty tank when he was brought to surface. Not sure how accurate they were.

I'm curious to know if I were pushed into the deep by down current with a relatively full cylinder, would I have a chance to wait out and ascend when the current eases/moves on? Ditching weight and shooting up sound just as bad...

This is when local dive guide is very useful to have. There is one popular dive site in Bali, called Crystal Bay, that is known for down current. There have been several fatalities due to divers being dragged down to the deep there, but yet divers from all over the world like to dive there. The reason it is so popular is because it is the Oceanic Mola Mola cleaning station, where the giant fish (up to 20' wide, see my avatar) will come up from the deep to get cleaned by anglefish.

To safely dive in there, you want to stay close to the wall / reef, not hanging out in the blue water. When the down current set in, as indicated by your air bubbles going down to the abyss, you need to swim quickly to the wall / reef & hang on to the rock for your dear life & crawl out of the down current with your mask facing the surface, against the incoming down current, to avoid it from being ripped off your face by the down current. There is almost impossible for you to fin up against the down current.

 

[Centrals]

I won't trust any of our local newspapers on this matter or most matters!!
What really interest me is:
1. The body was allegedly recovered at 55m.
2. The tank was allegedly "empty".
What happen if "his" travel/diving insurance only cover down to certain depth? For example: the basic DAN AP master plan only cover to 50m.

 

[Pinecube]

What happen if "his" travel/diving insurance only cover down to certain depth? For example: the basic DAN AP master plan only cover to 50m.

His body was found at 55m, that does not mean the dive plan was to 55m. The dive site that was mentioned in the article Saldiac posted is a wall dive. He may have been at 20m (for example) when something happened.

 

[Eat-Dive-Sleep]

R.I.P.

 

[Saldiac]

Most dive centers that dive Sipadan plan to a max depth of around 26 meters for AOW divers, 18 meters for OW divers. Some split the group in an OW group and an AOW group, others just split the group randomly.
Depending on your experience level the dive guide might take out away from the wall into the blue in the hope of seeing some big fish (e.g., hammerheads). Similarly, they might swim against the current for a while to go see something.

There's no information on whether this group was OW or AOW. We don't know whether there were 1 or 2 dive guides, whether he had a buddy, his experience level, conditions on that day, whether he had a camera, etc.
At this point we could only speculate but I'd rather wait and hope for some more info to come out.

 

[Eat-Dive-Sleep]

There are some local medias citing down current and/or empty tank when he was brought to surface. Not sure how accurate they were.

I'm curious to know if I were pushed into the deep by down current with a relatively full cylinder, would I have a chance to wait out and ascend when the current eases/moves on? Ditching weight and shooting up sound just as bad...

There are some local medias citing down current and/or empty tank when he was brought to surface. Not sure how accurate they were.

I'm curious to know if I were pushed into the deep by down current with a relatively full cylinder, would I have a chance to wait out and ascend when the current eases/moves on? Ditching weight and shooting up sound just as bad...

As Illogical as it may sound.....you should swim out into the blue as the current strengh typically weakens as you swim out into the blue. Dun panic, and bolt for the surface. Watch your depth on your dive comp and your tank pressure. When the water condition is less hostile, you should deploy your SMB to indicate your location for your dive boat to pick you up, since you will be pushed out off course from your dive route of advance. At the same time, do your safety stop.

 

[Dan]

R.I.P.

Tell that to the local dive guide. You don't know how wide is the down current. However, from physics, we know that there is a boundary layer near the reef where the water is closed to zero current. In fact rocks don't move. That is a sure bet for me. Have you been in such situation? I felt like doing rock climbing underwater. That's how bad it was.

 

[Centrals]

His body was found at 55m, that does not mean the dive plan was to 55m. The dive site that was mentioned in the article Saldiac posted is a wall dive. He may have been at 20m (for example) when something happened.

He may have been or may not have been!!!!
But the body was allegedly recovered at 55m with an exhausted tank will give the insurance company plenty of food for thought.

A very sad case for the family already and I hope they don't have to fight with the insurance company.

 

[Land Fish]

This is when local dive guide is very useful to have. There is one popular dive site in Bali, called Crystal Bay, that is known for down current. There have been several fatalities due to divers being dragged down to the deep there, but yet divers from all over the world like to dive there. The reason it is so popular is because it is the Oceanic Mola Mola cleaning station, where the giant fish (up to 20' wide, see my avatar) will come up from the deep to get cleaned by anglefish.

I skipped Crystal Bay for the exact reason you mentioned when I went for mola mola trip to Bali a couple of years ago. Crazy, I know. But I also know when I shouldn't push my limit too far and put me or anyone else in danger.

Fortunately, Crystal Bay wasn't the only place you could see mola mola in Bali. I got to meet one without making news headline for the day, so I was happy.

 

[Jimitkd]

He may have been or may not have been!!!!
But the body was allegedly recovered at 55m with an exhausted tank will give the insurance company plenty of food for thought.

A very sad case for the family already and I hope they don't have to fight with the insurance company.

I AND MY FRIEND WERE AT SIPADAN THE SAME DAY WHEN THE INCIDENT TOOK PLACE...ACCORDING TO OUR DIVE MASTER THE DIVER'S DIVE COMPUTER SHOWED 64 METERS BUT THE OFFICIAL FOUND HIM AT 55 METERS....AND THE DIVE SIGHT WAS BARRACUDA POINT...