Very dangerous experience - advice please!

[sibermike7]

I'm very interested in finding out what happens to this psychotic animal passing himself as an instructor.

Me too!!

MOD - After PADI handles their end of things (hopefully they will be swift and effective) and all legal/other actions are finished, would it be possible then to get the names etc so we can make sure that regardless of PADI's actions, this guy doesn't get a chance to endanger anyone again?
Thanks all,
George
PADI MSDT

100% in agreement!!

 

[tutifruti]

*UPDATE*

Hello everyone

It seems PADI have done absolutely nothing about this instructor as he is still running his shop, still "teaching" and presumably still putting peoples' lives at risk, so I have decided to let you all know details.

The dive shop is in Cartagena, Colombia, and it's called 'Buzos de Baru'. The instructor's name is Juan Jose Chavarriaga and his Padi OWSI no. is 177004. Here's their website: Buceo en Cartagena - BUZOS DE BARU

If anyone knows of any way to get PADI to take this seriously it would be appreciated.

 

[Jasonmh]

Thanks for posting this.

 

[vtxkev]

What a joke that PADI did nothing to this person after he endangered your life. I am starting to believe more and more what everyone says PADI stands for. Put Another Dollar In and thats probaly what this guy did.

 

[DandyDon]

*UPDATE*

Hello everyone

It seems PADI have done absolutely nothing about this instructor as he is still running his shop, still "teaching" and presumably still putting peoples' lives at risk, so I have decided to let you all know details.

The dive shop is in Cartagena, Colombia, and it's called 'Buzos de Baru'. The instructor's name is Juan Jose Chavarriaga and his Padi OWSI no. is 177004. Here's their website: Buceo en Cartagena - BUZOS DE BARU

If anyone knows of any way to get PADI to take this seriously it would be appreciated.

That's really typical of Padi and agencies in general. They publish rules, but seldom enforce them - and if the consumer has a problem, they don't want to get in the middle.

Buyer Beware, always! Search the net, search SB, in advance...!

 

[SteveAD]

PADI is not completely toothless. The undersea journal publishes a list of suspended and expelled members every quarter, but one complaint, no matter how grievious will not get someone expelled. Rest assured that your complaint has been entered into his file, and ALL of his students will be recieving QA surveys. If the surveys indicate that this is his standard modus operandi PADI will take action.

 

[halocline]

What's interesting to me is that everyone who posted on this thread was willing to condemn this instructor without any sort of question about the accuracy of the OP's description of events.

If a PADI instructor behaved in the manner she described with her and her boyfriend, it's almost certain that he would behave in a similar manner with other students, and there would have been many, many complaints leading to his dismissal. The events that she described (no CW sessions and no knowledge review sessions prior to OW1) are somewhat unbelievable to me. I'm a little surprised that nobody else appears to have reacted that way to this story.

To tutifruti, please don't take this the wrong way, because I have absolutely no way of knowing if your description of events is accurate. It just doesn't sound plausible, given the fact that the instructor's behavior as you describe it is so far beyond breaking standards that he would be immediately dismissed from PADI if he were in fact doing the things you accused him of. Sending OW students in his certification class to do OW dives 3 and 4 without any instructor? It just does not make sense.

 

[DandyDon]

PADI is not completely toothless. The undersea journal publishes a list of suspended and expelled members every quarter, but one complaint, no matter how grievious will not get someone expelled. Rest assured that your complaint has been entered into his file, and ALL of his students will be recieving QA surveys. If the surveys indicate that this is his standard modus operandi PADI will take action.

Thanks for the info. How are those surveys delivered to the students and back to Padi? If thru direct mail both ways, I can see some merit - if the Inst doesn't intercept them somehow? If the Inst distributes them with other paperwork, I can imagine problems at least - even if mailed to Padi separately. And how many bad reports does it take to inspire actions?

What's interesting to me is that everyone who posted on this thread was willing to condemn this instructor without any sort of question about the accuracy of the OP's description of events.

If a PADI instructor behaved in the manner she described with her and her boyfriend, it's almost certain that he would behave in a similar manner with other students, and there would have been many, many complaints leading to his dismissal. The events that she described (no CW sessions and no knowledge review sessions prior to OW1) are somewhat unbelievable to me. I'm a little surprised that nobody else appears to have reacted that way to this story.

To tutifruti, please don't take this the wrong way, because I have absolutely no way of knowing if your description of events is accurate. It just doesn't sound plausible, given the fact that the instructor's behavior as you describe it is so far beyond breaking standards that he would be immediately dismissed from PADI if he were in fact doing the things you accused him of. Sending OW students in his certification class to do OW dives 3 and 4 without any instructor? It just does not make sense.

If Tutifruti had listed the Inst name etc at first, I'm sure he would have been invited to reply here. Since 7 months passed between the original discussion and this revelation, there is little reason to doubt the story - but who knows?

I've seen what passes for Padi-Standards outside of the US enough to find stories all too easy to accept I suppose.

 

[Ayisha]

...The undersea journal publishes a list of suspended and expelled members every quarter, but one complaint, no matter how grievious will not get someone expelled...

Steve, are you sure that one complaint does not get someone expelled? I know an instructor that got expelled from PADI nearly 3 years ago due to a sexual complaint from a student. PADI investigated and he was expelled about one month later and his name and number were published in the Undersea Journal. None of my friends who were his students got QA surveys at the time or after, but I'm not sure about any students during that particular o/w weekend.

It seems like one complaint plus an investigation into the complaint and any corroborating witnesses would allow PADI to expel a member if grievous enough.

 

[tutifruti]

I just think that they haven't investigated enough... or maybe, as mattboy says, the series of events is just so absolutely ridiculous that PADI don't believe it! However, the one proof that the instructor would have been able to show would be disclaimer and medical forms signed by us, which we didn't sign. Also he would have been able to provide PADI with the chapter exams done by us, which again, he won't have.

Mattboy I can see your point, it IS hard to believe - but then again, why would I join this forum just to post about this experience if it was a lie? There's nothing to gain from it!

Also, mods, if you would like to invite this person on to the board, now that his name is on here, feel free to do so.