Lembeh, polluted water and illness?

[Dan]

How about old tires?

 

[Dan]

Those poor carrier crabs get pretty confused with the junk! Here's one we spotted using some plumbing parts.

View attachment 420889Confused carrier crab by Angmo Al, on Flickr

I prefer to see this one though:

 

[WetPup]

Indeed. I spent ages intentionally trying to find things hiding in bottles in Lembeh because I was like "OMG, cool photo opportunity!". You really have to force yourself to sit back and think about what you're really asking for sometimes.

 

[Dan]

Home-sweet-home

 

[Wisnu]

What are you talking aliens ?

frogfish 2 by Wisnu Purwanto, on Flickr

 

[Madacub]

Just a word about the original subject. I was in Ambon when another diver got a very bad case of the runs on the morning after his first or second dive (I forget). He was out of action for the next 5 days. Really bad case, barely surfacing a few times to make a brief appearance at meal times to join us sometimes. Imodium did not help, neither did a trip to the local doctor. No one else had any issues at all. He has just come in from Lembeh and taken a day off in Ambon, where he was going to be for 2 weeks (first trip to that part of the world). So travel/rest was not a factor, and he seemed to be generally careful.

Finally, he speculated what had caused the problem was his habit of taking his regulator out and sipping a bit of water on a regular basis. I got the impression he did this a few times each dive, salty water notwithstanding. He was backed up on this practice by another diver who said she sometimes did the same thing. Anyway, the speculation was that the water he happened to imbibe was so badly contaminated that it had laid him flat.

So, any divers that do the same "just a little sip" thing, think twice, be careful.

 

[Dan]

Why would anyone sip seawater, especially from filthy Lembeh seawater is just looking for trouble. I make sure to only drink bottled water, hot tea, hot cocoa or beer (by the end of the diving day) when I'm there. I stay away from salad, fruit salad, juice, or ice water, unless I get the whole fruit & wash it with bottled water / peel the skin off myself. I eat only cooked meal.

 

[Indah]

Dan T. do you really think that anybody running a resort would take the risk to safe some rupiahs to use something else than drinking water to make ice-water, tea, wash the vegetables and so on? Bottled water is one of the main reason for the pollution in Lembeh Strait. Fortunately more and more resorts choose to refill. By the way, beer can easily go bad and better never ever think of having o.r.l - s.x.

 

[Dan]

Dan T. do you really think that anybody running a resort would take the risk to safe some rupiahs to use something else than drinking water to make ice-water, tea, wash the vegetables and so on? Bottled water is one of the main reason for the pollution in Lembeh Strait. Fortunately more and more resorts choose to refill. By the way, beer can easily go bad and better never ever think of having o.r.l - s.x.

That's good to know. I did get a slight diarrhea after drinking "freshly" squeezed OJ in one of the resort there. That got me thinking that the blender could be washed by contaminated water or I just have a weak stomach. Probably the latter, after a 30-hour flight. I just want to make sure that I don't want to get the "run" while on a trip of a lifetime.

 

[Indah]

Maybe somebody made a stupid mistake and cut the orange with a not clean knife, or worse, they used a knife that was used for cutting chicken. But these "kitchen-sins" can happen anywhere is the world. Indonesians are very aware of the risks of contaminated water. Even in the smallest villages they will cook the water before consumption. However, some wrongly seem to believe that if you freeze water the bacteria will die. Any resort owner and kitchen staff knows better, but avoid self made ice in the streets. Personally I think that the quality of the water in Lembeh Strait is not worse than any place in the Mediterranean Sea, near resorts in the Red Sea or in many of the lakes in summertime. Every time you put your regulator in your mouth, after it has been in the water, you will get some water in your mouth. I do not dive under or near boats which drain the toilets in the water.