Wish I didn't know this!

[themostunique]

I am sorry to confirm UWBB's post regarding the dive master lost from the Nekton Pilot on 12/19/07. the entire incident was handled very strangely. A lot of us were shocked by the apparent lack of emotion from crew members and the almost nonexistant communication with the guests. They spent less than 12 hours doing Search and Rescue and went to a Recovery mission way too early. The Belize Coast Guard came out to the boat and I assumed they were there to take over the scene and release the Pilot to return to port and disembark passengers. That is what the Pilot did, but no one stayed near around the scene. The Coast Guard evidentally agreed that he was gone and there could be no rescue so no one stayed in the area.

Cory "Ginge" was a very accomplished dive master. He also was a mountain hiker and survivalist. He may have been diving solo and some of his gear may or may not have been working correctly but, given his above history, is that enough to declare him dead? The only explanation I ever received about the incident was that he did not show a light on the surface and he did not return to the boat. Crew felt that was all they needed to know.

I don't know about all of you but I have over 500 dives and can't count the times I have seen dive lights flood on night dives. That would explain why he didn't show a light on the surface.

Also, given his experience, if he had a flooded light and questionable computer accuracy I would also have to assume something else happened to cause this incident. Could be as simple as losing a fin or as serious as a heart attack or DCS and he was unable to make his way to the boat. If he surfaced, he undoubtedly saw the Nekton and surely felt they would come and pick him up. I hope he couldn't still see the Nekton as it pulled anchor and headed for port.

This incident has been hard to understand or accept and I still keep flashing back to it every day and night. Even worse, I had my niece (23 ) with me on this trip and it was her first open warm water dive. Imagine the effect it had on her!

But everything remains muddled and confused and is not helped by the absence of any communication from Nekton Dive Cruises in any way. I don't expect anything from them but an acknowledgement we lost a day of diving and all suffered from the loss of Ginge.

I have searched the net for news but still find nothing official or even a mention in Belizean newspapers.

How sad for Ginge's family to not have any real explanation. Of course it doesn't help when you lose a family member at holiday time either.

 

[dave4868]

I am sorry to confirm UWBB's post regarding the dive master lost from the Nekton Pilot on 12/19/07. the entire incident was handled very strangely. A lot of us were shocked by the apparent lack of emotion from crew members and the almost nonexistant communication with the guests. They spent less than 12 hours doing Search and Rescue and went to a Recovery mission way too early. The Belize Coast Guard came out to the boat and I assumed they were there to take over the scene and release the Pilot to return to port and disembark passengers. That is what the Pilot did, but no one stayed near around the scene. The Coast Guard evidentally agreed that he was gone and there could be no rescue so no one stayed in the area.

This is probably one of those things where even people who were there will have very different subjective impressions of the situation.

Was the crews' demeanor one of professional detachment and/or personal numbness?

Was there anything significant to communicate to the guests after the incident was widely known?

What were the sea conditions and other factors that might make a "less than 12" hour S&R reasonable?

Was it an uncertain and difficult time for all involved?

These can be difficult questions to answer objectively when the situation is painful.

Dave C

 

[peterbj7]

As I said elsewhere, there is a culture in Belize to hush up bad news. I have had direct knowledge of major incidents that have occurred, sometimes involving loss of life, which have never been reported anywhere. There was a series of armed robberies at a site inland, something like 6 or 7 of them, and only when a victim posted details on her local newspaper back home and someone here spotted it and posted a link locally did anyone here hear about it - and only then was anything effective done about it. People continued going to that area, totally ignorant that there was an armed gang operating, and themselves falling victim. This to me is the ultimate mark of bad faith to these visitors.

Crime and accidents are no more common in Belize than anywhere else and probably less common than in many nearby countries, but when there is official suppression of any news that is seen as potentially damaging to tourism how can anyone believe what they're told?

 

[Gale68]

"A lot of us were shocked by the apparent lack of emotion from crew members"

I can understand that it may have appeared as if they were not emotionally upset, but having spent the following week with them, I can assure you they care very much. When you're involved in a search and rescue, you can't afford to go all to pieces emotionally, and as long as hope remained that he might be found alive, I would expect the crew to be focused on their work and saving their emotional reactions for when they could express them privately. By the time you left the boat, I doubt the full reality had really hit home for everyone. And I suspect that the deep feelings and painful thoughts each crew member experienced were simply too personal to share with most guests. The following week, crew members spent a lot of time talking amongst themselves, and the guests tried to give them their space for that. You could feel the undercurrent of emotion from time to time, but they tried to keep it to themselves. I'm only writing about it here because I feel it's terribly unfair to suggest in this public forum that these people didn't care about their friend. I'm reminded of a somewhat corny adage, that it's unwise to compare your insides to someone else's outsides.

"They spent less than 12 hours doing Search and Rescue and went to a Recovery mission way too early."

If he was still underwater 12 hours later, then it was too late to save him. No one is that good on air. If he was alive and on the surface, then that's where I would expect aerial searches and multiple boats to make a difference. The BCG did continue the search, such as it was, for a couple more days, but my personal feeling was that they could and should have done more. The Pilot alone is limited in how much area it can cover, and if he was on the surface, the current would have carried him miles away.

"I had my niece (23 ) with me on this trip and it was her first open warm water dive. Imagine the effect it had on her!"

Here's where you, as her aunt, can help make a difference, so that she does not develop a terrible fear of diving again as a result of this experience. Maybe you can help her put this whole series of events into a bigger context. Dive accidents DO happen, and it's terrible for all involved when they do. But most are preventable, and there's a lot she can do as a diver to ensure that what happened to Ginge doesn't happen to her. If she dives within the limits of her competence, with a reliable buddy and with equipment that is in good working order, the odds of something happening to her are very, very small. Being a good mentor to her might be a way, too, for you to work through your own reaction to the incident.

"I have searched the net for news but still find nothing official or even a mention in Belizean newspapers."

I found these links by googling: cory monk nekton belize:

http://www.****.info/news/safety/s071224.html (For some reason this link is behaving oddly. The four asterisks appear where the name of the website should be, but whenever I try to fix it, those four letters (****) come back up in the post with those asterisks, even in this parenthetical comment! I think it has something to do with it being a website that competes with ScubaBoard? It's a divers' website called (we'll see if this gets asterisked) Cyber Diver News Network).

Pantagraph.com | News | Former Roanoke man presumed lost at sea near Belize

Also if you go to Channel5Belize.COM and do an archive search for 12/28/07 there's a short piece. I don't know whether BCG incident reports are available online.

In case anyone didn't see it, Ginge's mother has posted a request for photos of her son on the other thread that addresses this topic. If you have any, please forward them to culmon@msn.com or to his brother at tmonk00@hotmail.com

Dive safe

Gale

 

[Fuzzmutton]

Hi Gale!

I believe I can clear up your confusion over your link not working. Posting links to that website on Scubaboard is not allowed and it gets "censored" every time. They have pretty good reasons for doing so but I'm not going to get into that. I didn't know it until I read a thread that was discussing it.

Fuzz

 

[almitywife]

im assuming its c d n n that is being **** out....... and with good reason

imho, that site is the national enquirer of scuba news

 

[Zippsy]

you honor c d n n just by mentioning them in the same breath as the National Enquirer. They are not really that good, ethical, moral or honest. Think of c d n n as being as far below the National Enquirer as the National Enquirer is below the Wall Street Journal or New York Times. But I disgress.....

 

[Gale68]

Whoops! Thanks all for the heads-up on that tabloid website. I'd never visited that site before, and the story itself, while inaccurate in some details, was not sensationalized except for the stupid DIVER DEATH graphic at the top, so I didn't realize what a bad rep they have.

 

[nauticalman]

As a crew member who worked with Ginge, let me assure you that He was TRULY loved and embraced by the crew. The only thing I can imagine that might explain a 'lack of emotion' is to put simply SHOCK. Had I been on board when this happened, I too would be in disbelief, as Ginge was a really enjoyable crew member to work with. How can you lose such a close friend and be 'entertaining' to your guests? You can try to create a pleasant atmosphere for your guests after such an incident, but inside, the loss would just tear you up.

 

[cappyjon431]

As a crew member who worked with Ginge, let me assure you that He was TRULY loved and embraced by the crew. The only thing I can imagine that might explain a 'lack of emotion' is to put simply SHOCK. Had I been on board when this happened, I too would be in disbelief, as Ginge was a really enjoyable crew member to work with. How can you lose such a close friend and be 'entertaining' to your guests? You can try to create a pleasant atmosphere for your guests after such an incident, but inside, the loss would just tear you up.

nauticalman--I think your analysis is right on the money. I worked on the Pilot for 8 years (1995-2003) and while we had never lost a crewmember onboard when I was there, I had been aboard when passengers have passed away (two heart attacks). "Shock" is the best way to describe it--but as crew we also have to put on a strong face for the guests. I am deeply sorry for the loss of your friend and crewmate.