Lost Diver in Cozumel, Mexico, February 2016
- Thread starter lionfish-eater
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OP
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I would assume that a call went out from the dive boat to all other captains. I know that news travels fast around the island/caletta. There are people off Island that know more about what happens on Coz minute to minute than their own hometown. I know there are people who monitor the marine radio channel from their home on Coz. There are members here on SB that own shops who know that it happened who decided to say nothing about the event. I wasn't expecting another op to blame or speculate, because we all know this could have happened to any dive op. I was expecting a short post making divers aware that these events can happen, an offer of condolences, along with some suggestions to minimize the risks of separation and the need for carrying an SMB. If I am ever involved in a dive accident, I hope the situation will be discussed to maybe help another diver to be safer, not swept under the mat to avoid a potential negative effect on business.
mike_bayer
Contributor
Very sad. While most of the diving is smooth and easy in Cozumel, you need to be prepared for unpredictable currents and stick close to your buddy.
I had a hairy dive up on the north end at Cantarell a few years back with a group of experienced divers on an Aldora boat.
About a minute into the dive we ran into a swirling down current that brought the group down to 100-116 feet very quickly.
We spent the next 6 minutes swimming as hard as we could to get back up to the wall without much progress. Visibility was pretty bad as all you could see was a wall of bubbles in every direction you looked. One of the divers thought his gear failed and dropped his weights. After looking for him for a minute the DM called the dive and we came up after 8 min.
Thankfully he was already back on the boat when we surfaced. We all sucked back about 800 pounds of air in 8 min. The DWM boat at Cantarell had to call the dive as well that day.
I had a hairy dive up on the north end at Cantarell a few years back with a group of experienced divers on an Aldora boat.
About a minute into the dive we ran into a swirling down current that brought the group down to 100-116 feet very quickly.
We spent the next 6 minutes swimming as hard as we could to get back up to the wall without much progress. Visibility was pretty bad as all you could see was a wall of bubbles in every direction you looked. One of the divers thought his gear failed and dropped his weights. After looking for him for a minute the DM called the dive and we came up after 8 min.
Thankfully he was already back on the boat when we surfaced. We all sucked back about 800 pounds of air in 8 min. The DWM boat at Cantarell had to call the dive as well that day.
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Only from another tourist from the same boat maybe. Dive Op posts carry so much more impact that if one did that, divers would cancel dives.
I have copied a few of the TA posts below. The diver is Connie Greylak, age 62 from Wisconsin.
Missing diver ? - Cozumel Forum - TripAdvisor
12.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 11, 2016, 11:51 PM
This is my friend's mother. Her mom was diving with her daughter when she was separated from the group Tuesday afternoon. The search is on and has just been extended to 96 hrs from 72 hrs. Please keep them all in your thoughts and prayers. They are just devistated.
27.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 12, 2016, 1:49 PM
my sister was with her. My mom was having trouble descending so my sister was trying to get the group's attention. When she turned back around my mom was gone.
31.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 12, 2016, 1:57 PM
My sister was her dive buddy. My mom was having trouble descending and so my sister was trying to get the attention of the rest of the group as they kept drifting further away. When my sister turned around to go back up by my mom she had already disappeared. I am sure there are a million things that could have been done differently but thinking about that isn't going to find her.
60.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 13, 2016, 8:58 AM
I am here in Cozumel now. I was diving on the Tuesday that Connie went missing. The conditions were not ideal. The sea was very rough and the visibility was very poor. I had trouble descending. When I did get down I could not see my Dive buddy or the rest of the group. I waited on the top of the reef for three minutes. When I could not find anyone I surfaced. I was very fortunate that there were two boats close to me. I was seen right away and picked up. It is the first time in my 25 years of diving and over 300 dives, most of here in Cozumel, that I ever lost visual contact with the group. The visibility is the worst I have ever seen. Even then it was at least 60 to 80 feet. Usually it is more like 200. What alarms me about this particular situation is that I am hearing nothing of this news locally. The only reason I am aware of it is because my cousin is a relative to the missing diver and she notified me after seeing my Facebook posts . I ask my dive operator and they did not know of a missing diver. My dive on that Tuesday was morning dives. I understand Connie went missing on an afternoon dive. From the information I can gather from various sources it appears they did not notify the authorities immediately but waited about two hours. The currents can be very strong here and especially on the surface. I am here with my son and it is unnerving the similarities in our experiences with Connie and her daughter. I have certainly reassessed my skills and will be investing in additional safety equipment before diving again. We are praying for a miracle for Connie's family every minute of every day. Our heart is broken for the family and friends. May God give you strength and comfort.
Missing diver ? - Cozumel Forum - TripAdvisor
12.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 11, 2016, 11:51 PM
This is my friend's mother. Her mom was diving with her daughter when she was separated from the group Tuesday afternoon. The search is on and has just been extended to 96 hrs from 72 hrs. Please keep them all in your thoughts and prayers. They are just devistated.
27.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 12, 2016, 1:49 PM
my sister was with her. My mom was having trouble descending so my sister was trying to get the group's attention. When she turned back around my mom was gone.
31.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 12, 2016, 1:57 PM
My sister was her dive buddy. My mom was having trouble descending and so my sister was trying to get the attention of the rest of the group as they kept drifting further away. When my sister turned around to go back up by my mom she had already disappeared. I am sure there are a million things that could have been done differently but thinking about that isn't going to find her.
60.Re: Missing diver ?
Feb 13, 2016, 8:58 AM
I am here in Cozumel now. I was diving on the Tuesday that Connie went missing. The conditions were not ideal. The sea was very rough and the visibility was very poor. I had trouble descending. When I did get down I could not see my Dive buddy or the rest of the group. I waited on the top of the reef for three minutes. When I could not find anyone I surfaced. I was very fortunate that there were two boats close to me. I was seen right away and picked up. It is the first time in my 25 years of diving and over 300 dives, most of here in Cozumel, that I ever lost visual contact with the group. The visibility is the worst I have ever seen. Even then it was at least 60 to 80 feet. Usually it is more like 200. What alarms me about this particular situation is that I am hearing nothing of this news locally. The only reason I am aware of it is because my cousin is a relative to the missing diver and she notified me after seeing my Facebook posts . I ask my dive operator and they did not know of a missing diver. My dive on that Tuesday was morning dives. I understand Connie went missing on an afternoon dive. From the information I can gather from various sources it appears they did not notify the authorities immediately but waited about two hours. The currents can be very strong here and especially on the surface. I am here with my son and it is unnerving the similarities in our experiences with Connie and her daughter. I have certainly reassessed my skills and will be investing in additional safety equipment before diving again. We are praying for a miracle for Connie's family every minute of every day. Our heart is broken for the family and friends. May God give you strength and comfort.
Obviously I cannot know of possible cases but I would want to know of any that are verified. It sounds like you blame the Port Captain for a diver becoming separated from a group and not being found. I am doubtful that such is a common occurrence and that the diver is never found.
We do not know when a problem occurred, what the problem was or why it was not resolved safely, if it could have been. In my opinion, blaming the Port Captain does not seem to have any merit. I understand the desire to blame anyone but the people involved, but that usually does not address what could have been done to prevent this bad outcome or prevent similar ones in the future.
If my memory serves me correctly, the Cozumel dive site - Santa Rosa - has historically claimed the most missing divers of any of the dive sites in the marine park. Santa Rosa always demands an extra degree of attention. It is one of the most popular, signature sites in Cozumel.
I will be in Cozumel next week with a new group of divers. We will probably be giving it a miss.
I will be in Cozumel next week with a new group of divers. We will probably be giving it a miss.
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Overreact much...??
I have no idea how the Port Captain conducts business but I am skeptical that divers are being left to die frequently. In reality it probably never happens. Once a diver descends into the water, his safety is largely up to him. I never rely upon the boat captain except to pick me up at the end of the dive.
Some day, circumstances might mean that I have to be picked up by another dive ops boat...or I may have to surface swim to shore. Odds are the events that lead up to that happening are beyond the control of the boat captain and possibly even me.
As far as missing divers, I suspect that once that situation is known that the dive community and rescue assets do a wonderful job trying the find the diver.
Some day, circumstances might mean that I have to be picked up by another dive ops boat...or I may have to surface swim to shore. Odds are the events that lead up to that happening are beyond the control of the boat captain and possibly even me.
As far as missing divers, I suspect that once that situation is known that the dive community and rescue assets do a wonderful job trying the find the diver.
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