The diver knowingly jumps in the water with blood, food and sharks.........................How can that be someone else's fault or responsibility?
Dive operators and instructors are--and should be--held to a higher standard of accountability.
What do you think the dive operation told the divers?
--Hell, yes, you could be attacked; that's what makes the dive exciting!
--Of course you're safe; we've done this numerous times and no one has ever been attacked.
--We're creating a situation that knowingly makes sharks aggressive; if you're stupid enough to jump in the water without protection, that's your problem, not ours.
In none of those situations would the operation have acted in a reasonable and prudent manner.
Yes, divers bear ultimate responsibility for their own safety, but in this case the diver was not acting irresponsibly (e.g. by not monitoring his air or by not maintaining his gear).
The very fact that a dive operation offered this type of dive implies that it is safe for divers who act reasonably under water. It's no different than getting an air fill and expecting it to contain no carbon monoxide, or renting gear and expecting it to fuction properly. If a person does happen to get a bad air fill, or have a gross malfunction of rented gear that causes their death, the diver is not responsible--it is the air filler or rental place that is 100% responsible.
Now, if this were a case of some divers who went out on a fishing boat, chummed the water for sharks, and then jumped in, it would be 100% their own fault; no one would expect a fisherman to know how to adequately ensure the safety of divers. Dive operations, however, are expected to adequately ensure the safety of the divers they bring out.
As another example, consider boarding a plane during bad weather. You expect the pilot to have your safety in mind and not take off if it's dangerous to do so. If he does take off in dangerous conditions and the plane crashes because of that, it's the pilot's and airline's fault; the passengers can't be held responsible because they should never have boarded a plane that might have taken off in dangerous conditions.
Passengers have a reasonable expectation that an operation (diving or airline) has their well-being in mind.
In the end, though, I hope this tragedy at least helps divers better understand how foolish it is to use operations that chum the water (whether sharks are present or not); they're more interested in taking your money than keeping you safe or offering you an authentic dive experience.
