Indonesian Skipper Jailed for Japanese Diver Deaths

[indiedive]

Please read this article -

Indonesian Skipper Jailed for Japanese Diver Deaths | The Jakarta Globe

 

[chillyinCanada]

Is three years enough? Frankly, I'm confused as to what the penalty should be. What's the punishment for utter stupidity?

May we hope this sad story educates and encourages safety standards in Indonesia.

 

[divewench1]

Quoted from the article 'Furukawa told the court earlier how she fired a flare gun to try to get the skipper’s attention to no avail.'

Anyone here aware of a flare gun that can be taken underwater?

 

[indiedive]

Three years is certainly not the maximum penalty. I guess the judges also consider the weather condition etc.

The story was bit weird, he lost sight of the divers and bought the fuel instead of reporting the incident to sea-patrol officers (?)

Is there any clear instruction/guidelines on how a boat captain who work for diving industries to do and to act when he has to deal with this type of problem? I realize how important the roles of the boat crews for scuba divers safety..

 

[matts1w]

Anyone here aware of a flare gun that can be taken underwater?

Indonesian newspapers are seriously clown-shoes. I would be confident that Furukawa said "Dive Alert" or "Surface Marker Buoy" and the reporter had no idea what that meant. Consequently, he/she just went with flare gun as that would be good enough and far easier than asking for clarification or google. Whatever.

The story was bit weird, he lost sight of the divers and bought the fuel instead of reporting the incident to sea-patrol officers (?)

As I understand it from previous reports, the captain brought them to Lembongan from Sanur (Which is a pretty long run.) and dropped them on the dive site. He then realised he didn't have enough fuel, and left to find a refill on shore. Meanwhile a storm blew in, the dive ended, and they surfaced to find no boat. By the time the captain made it back they were gone. As if this is were not enough, he continued to search for several hours alone before raising the alarm.

 

[Indah]

I think three years is pretty long. Was the captain properly instructed? Did he really understand these instructions? Is he the one to blame? Or the dive center? Or the weather? The one who organized the fuel? The crazy fuel situation in Indonesia in general? The fear to report "bad news" to authorities? Too small volume BCD' s? Improper dive training?
Poor guy. Why put him in jail so long? He will not do it again anyway, many captains and dive centers already learned for this (I hope), so, only for revenge?
It will not bring back the poor women who suffered and died.

 

[matts1w]

I think three years is pretty long. Was the captain properly instructed? Did he really understand these instructions? Is he the one to blame? Or the dive center? Or the weather? The one who organized the fuel? The crazy fuel situation in Indonesia in general? The fear to report "bad news" to authorities? Too small volume BCD' s? Improper dive training?
Poor guy. Why put him in jail so long? He will not do it again anyway, many captains and dive centers already learned for this (I hope), so, only for revenge? It will not bring back the poor women who suffered and died.

Are you kidding me? Indah- do yourself a favour and learn about the captain's role and responsibilities in maritime law...especially since you work in the dive industry.

Here is a start: "The captain is responsible for its safe and efficient operation, including cargo operations, navigation, crew management and ensuring that the vessel complies with local and international laws, as well as company and flag state policies. All persons on board, including officers and crew, other shipboard staff members, passengers, guests and pilots, are under the captain's authority and are his ultimate responsibility."

 

[Tippytoes12]

Regardless of the blame or otherwise , these events add to the argument to stay in Lembongan and dive with experienced local operators. These divers did a third dive , when the weather was getting worse and faced going all the way back to Sanur afterwards. The local dive shops , on the three or four occasions we have been there , get you out early and back after just two dives.

Lembongan is a very challenging area to dive, we have seen DSD s in Crystal Bay and Manta Point which is bonkers.

 

[zivva]

Indonesian newspapers are seriously clown-shoes.

Actually the JakartaGlobe's article is just an AFP (French news agency) report.
The initial release of the report was even talking about a Japanese skipper.
Clown-shoing might be well shared among newspapers. And not only in Indonesia ...

Are you kidding me? Indah- do yourself a favour and learn about the captain's role and responsibilities in maritime law

Captain's role & maritime laws. Really ? In Bali ? Sorry but LOL.

I only see this jail sentence as a bone thrown to Japanese media to calm things down. Puting a cheap guy in jail because he has not been properly trained by his employer is not the best way to solve the problem. It does even not send a warning to the dodgy dive ops here.

Lembongan is a very challenging area to dive, we have seen DSD s in Crystal Bay and Manta Point which is bonkers.

Lembongan & Penida dive sites might get challenging but properly planned DSDs are perfectly doable in Crystal Bay. Thousands of people learn to dive every year in the area.

 

[matts1w]

There are many operators in Indonesia who believe in simple protocols and check lists before taking people diving...things like checking fuel supplies before departing. They also have clear emergency procedures in place. I dive with operators like that all the time.