Rebreather Diver Dies In Turkey

[Peter69_56]

I dont have a lot of information however it was related to me that all diving in Turkey has been stopped due to a rebreather diving dying whilst diving WW1 wrecks in Turkey. From the information I have, a number of other divers were also bent trying to rescue the rebreather diver who passed away.

I have also been told that all diving in this country has since ceased so the government can sort out the issues relating to this incident to prevent further incidents from happening. Divers currently over there cannot now dive until further notice.

 

[billbb]

When they have a car accident do they shut down the roads till
they sort out the issues?

 

[Fedaykin]

Hello all,

I'm trying to find out what happened but there is no news about it in Turkey. My facebook is silent, no one is talking about an accident. Also i'm hundred percentage sure that all diving activity is continuing.

Best Regards,
Bülent Aytekin

 

[Peter69_56]

Well the info I got was from a reputable CCR instructor who had contact with a person over there, and apparently he was told that the current OZ group over there was now not diving due to this incident. Happy to be corrected on this as I am booked to go there in March. I will also contact my dive travel consultant to see if they are aware of anything more.

 

[Peter69_56]

Ok an update from someone who was over there. I was advised that the diver was Kevin Hurley from Victoria Australia diving a KISS, and that's all I know about the incident.

Diving is still happening in Turkey, I believe only the operator who was involved in the incident was shut down.

Also I have been told that you cannot dive below 30m in Turkey unless you have a special permit, also you cannot dive the Dardanelles unless you have another special permit. Either permit only being for the promotion of tourism, normal diving does not fall under this category so no diving below 30m. Both the dive operator and the diver are breaking Turkish law if they dive below 30m without a special permit. Now here is the rub, it would appear that some dodgy dive operators either say they have a permit whey they dont, or they offer to take the diver to deep sites and not advise of the law. So if you are with an operator and you question them about permits, ASK TO SEE IT, remember both you and they are breaking the law if caught.

Anyone been over there and know reliable operators?

 

[Fedaykin]

One update and some corrections to miss understandings;

He died because of a hearth attack. He is 56 or 58 years old, different sources gives different information.

In Turkey only CMAS is recognized for local divers. We must have CMAS certificate in order to dive but this rule is not valid for foreigners. 30 meter is the limit for recreational Diving at CMAS. Thats why i have about 100 deep dive training dives There is no permission you can get for dives deeper Than 30 meter, just dive

Regardless of depth at dardanels you can dive at some wrecks without any permits. But some of them like Majestic needs special permits as they have to close that area for shipping trafic. There is a very busy shipping trafic there.

 

[Peter69_56]

One update and some corrections to miss understandings;

He died because of a hearth attack. He is 56 or 58 years old, different sources gives different information.

In Turkey only CMAS is recognized for local divers. We must have CMAS certificate in order to dive but this rule is not valid for foreigners. 30 meter is the limit for recreational Diving at CMAS. Thats why i have about 100 deep dive training dives There is no permission you can get for dives deeper Than 30 meter, just dive

Regardless of depth at dardanels you can dive at some wrecks without any permits. But some of them like Majestic needs special permits as they have to close that area for shipping trafic. There is a very busy shipping trafic there.

Thanks for the update and corrections.

 

[NewEnglandDiver93]

When did this happen?

 

[Fedaykin]

09.09.2017 at about 16:30 local time

 

[Abbigail]

Hi to all following this forum -

It is a very sad set of circumstances that a diver has passed away in in this manner. Im sure the best intentions are in play when naming the diver concearned however the family are grieving and may not want this in such a public forum. In addition the divers were all close friend and it was a very distressing situation for all concearned .

Immediatly following the passing of the diver a coronial inquest was commenced as is law in Turkey to determine cause of dealth and any liability of the parties concearned including other members of the group. In this regard ofcourse there has been a hold on this operator taking people out whilst the Turkish authorities go through the process of ensuring there has been no foul play or negligence.

Diving in Turkey beyond 30m does indeed require specialised permits , the divers involved on this dive all had Permits to dive sites below 30m. They were returning from a 62 m dive when the diver had a heart attack due to an underlying medical condition - this is the information we have at this time regarding the cause of death.

We await finalisation of the investigation into the death of the diver and will of course keep in touch with all our clients as things develop. We've been in business for 40 years and anyone who knows Ian Lockwood would know he's as honest as the day is long- we would never knowingly deceive divers about our position.

There has been some below the belt activity by some players in the industry implying that the passing of the diver was our fault or the fault of our operators or indeed the air supplied . This is just sad and I for one think its a new low.. to leveridge the passing of a diver to increase your market share is just disgusting -

We posted on facebook to clear up many of the chit chat being raised in this forum over a week ago, when we first heard competitors were saying it was the fault of our operation and by extension us. Normally not a forum for this kind of thing however it has the best reach for immediate output to the dive industry.

Please feel free to contact Allways Dive Expeditions if you are booked with us or if your booked with someone else and wish clarity on the issue, in fact get in touch if you seek any clarity on the issue of the death of this diver or on Turkey as a destination