Suspension of all diving and watersports activities in Sharm el Sheikh

[InTheDrink]

Hi Crowley,

Sorry to pester but you're the only decent source of 'on the ground' info we've got. Has there been any more sightings of longimanus and in particular the large female? You mentioned Shark and Yolanda the other day. Any other sightings? How close to land?

I'm curious at what point are they going to loosen up restrictions and on what basis. Will it be the work that CDWS is going that calls the shots (they seem to have a sensible approach) or other government depts?

Re: the mininum 50 dives rule - I think that is an excellent stipulation. 50 dives is probably the minimum you could expect someone to deal with an OWT calmly and not surface/splash about on the surface - which is exactly the opposite of where you want to be and what you want to be doing with a longimanus around. They are very curious critters.

Cheers,
John

 

[Crowley]

yes the longimanus thought to be respobsible has apparently been sighted - according to HEPCA's report she is travelling between Ras Nasrani and Shark and Yolanda every few days. Some of my colleagues have seen a large longimanus there but I don't think anybody has a photographic record.

I've said before that the female identified in the attacks was missing part of a fin - it would appear from photos on the HEPCA website that this is a chunk missing from the forward part of the upper caudal lobe.

Also as previously indicated, I agree with the current restrictions.

We are waiting... and I will post updates when I have them

Cheers

C.

 

[DandyDon]

I have left there early in the morning with the port a veritable sea of plastic bags and galley waste.

I hate people like that.

 

[InTheDrink]

Cheers Crowley, thanks for the update, appreciated.

J

 

[Ayisha]

...given that I work here - a number of divers are wise to the fact and are lying about their dive experience. From the deepest, darkest depths of my waterlogged heart, future visitors please do not be tempted to do this. It's really, really obvious; faked log books are easy to spot, and at the moment, you may potentially be putting yourself at risk - highly unlikely, but then fatal shark attacks were also highly unlikely here until last week...

I imagine that successfully lying about having at least 50 dives could potentially put others that are around at risk too in addition to the less experienced diver. 50 dives isn't really very many, and as you've said previously, someone could be flailing and struggling with several times that number of dives - or someone with less dives could be fairly proficient and calm. Is it possible for the usual preliminary check-out dives to be held in a protected space or pool, perhaps where the courses take place? I guess what I'm saying is that if you're looking for proficiency, the number of dives is not always a good indicator. They can't fake proficiency, though.

 

[DandyDon]

Just saw this. This article seems to support tourist feeding and my livestock dumping story as possible causes...

AFP: Egypt resort hit by sharks to open beaches with new measures

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt — Beaches in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh closed since a spate of shark attacks will reopen with new measures to ensure the safety of swimmers, a governor said on Sunday.

South Sinai governor Mohammed Shosha said he would permit hotels that line the coral rich coast to reopen beaches after they set up stations manned by divers and speed boats begin to patrol the waters.

"The beaches will be reopened on condition that they adhere to the new regulations and conditions," he told AFP. It was not immediately clear how soon the measures would be put in place.

Beaches along the popular resort, which attracts up to four million tourists a year, were closed on December 5 after a shark fatally mauled a German tourist metres from shore.

It was the fifth attack in a week after sharks savaged three Russians and a Ukrainian on November 30 and December 1. They survived.

Experts who studied the attacks believe they were carried out by at least two sharks, one an oceanic whitetip and another a mako, species of sharks that normally hunt far from shore.

Shosha said that hotels would also be required to place signs along beaches instructing tourists on how to avoid attracting sharks while swimming.

Holidaymakers would also be educated on the dangers of feeding fish.

Shosha said one of the main reasons for the attacks was a livestock transport ship that dumped sheep carcasses overboard, attracting the sharks.

He also blamed tourists who illegally fed fish, which might have attracted sharks.

 

[Crowley]

I haven't heard anything official as yet but have read the report on the BBC...
"first shark attack in egypt since 2004", they say - well - apart from the one last year that is in St Johns, glad to see the great british press still have no idea what they are doing.

How these new procedures will be put into place I have no idea. There's about 25 kms of coastline with hotels almost continuous from north to south. Divers manning beach stations? Which divers? Are we going to see all the lifeguards doing an open water course or professional divers? Speedboats patrolling the shore? There have been at least 3 speedboat related fatalities this year, can we have some more please? Fish feeding is endemic - glass boats, swimmers, snorkellers, divers, all have been doing it under the noses of the authorities for years and nothing has been done about it. And it's NOT JUST TOURISTS! Illegal fishing? We had to report our own hotel because one of the restaurants was proudly displaying fish that had been clearly caught on our house reef.

It's nice to know that this is being taken seriously and I think the authorities have performed admirably over the last week, but I will feel a little less cynical about the affair when I see some actual action being taken and people being prosecuted.

Sorry if this sounds a little - er - grumpy - this is because I am!

Cheers

C.

 

[InTheDrink]

Yeah, I smiled when I read that on the BBC about 'first death since '04. Makes you seriously question everything you read about everything. Except SB of course

Let us know how the new procedures work out. Does sound complex/difficult and hopefully the sound of the speedboats won't just attract any roaming sharks and agree, they're much more of a hazard than sharks are, at least usually....

Keep us posted Crowley and it's ok to be grumpy - it's Monday after all

J

 

[bubbles01]

I may be wrong about all this but I still don't understand this 50+ dive rule. I have had over 100 dives and have dived with sharks in the Maldives and felt perfectly relaxed about it but I have no idea how I would react if I was to dive in the Red Sea and come across sharks knowing that there has been a problem whereas someone with less dives might simply be a calmer character. Forgive me if I am wrong but it seems silly to think that any diver with 50+ dives will actually be safe.

I so hope they sort this all out soon and come up with some 'real' safety meaures. Mind you, I do realise that nothing is totally safe in life and that our sport is probably classed as very dangerous by many of the general public who don't dive.

 

[Crowley]

the reason for the 50 dives is in the press releases and I have posted about it before. Divers are vulnerable at the surface, so the idea is that somebody with 50 or more dives should be able to descend quickly, and should the need arise, have enough control to exit the water in an orderly fashion.

Cheers

C.