Official statement of Otmar Hanser on the recent accident in Malpelo

[Coiba Dive Expeditions]

Official statement of Otmar Hanser, owner of Yemaya:

I would like to clarify that the views expressed by Sten Johansson in his blog regarding the operation of Maria Patricia and her crew are solely his. Coiba Dive Expeditions and the crew of Yemaya do not share his opinions nor did we not contract him to specifically promote Yemaya over any other dive boat currently operating in Malpelo. I was on a trip to Malpelo when the blog was published, so I was very surprised to learn about it yesterday when the notifications started arriving as I got closer to land.

No vessel is safe from any diving accident and we deeply regret the loss of two divers. We can only imagine the trauma that Captain Harold and the crew of Maria Patricia are going through, and we empathize with them for the heartache that Sten Johansson’s recent post has caused them. We hope that no other dive boat has to go through something so painful.

We are not here to judge any dive boat, SFF Malpelo, the Colombian Navy or the Colombian authorities because that is not our business. We appreciate all the efforts of the Colombian Army in the search and rescue operation, which lasted for weeks. In our point of view everything possible was done and we are very grateful for the solidarity of the diving community in extending all the help they could to find the lost divers alive. There is no doubt that they did a good job.

We do not gain anything by hiring someone to sell our trips, which are already full until next year.

Again, I would like to emphasize that any views expressed by third parties are not our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Coiba Dive Expeditions.

Thank you,
Otmar Hanser
Owner of Yemaya

 

[wgw04024]

Link to the blog post this is in reference to?

 

[Coiba Dive Expeditions]

Link to the blog post this is in reference to?

Hi soldsoul4foos, here is the link to the blog post: http://jamtsisu.com/license-to-kill-lost-divers-in-malpelo/

 

[wgw04024]

That didnt' take long...

License to kill: Lost divers in Malpelo

 

[Wookie]

Otmar, as a previous and future liveaboard owner, I think most folks understand that the crew does not speak for the owner. I'm sorry, though, that you are going through this. I've been through it once or twice myself.

 

[Greenjuice]

A good and understandable statement to have made; and I share my sympathies and condolences to those directly affected.

However, by saying 'everything possible was done'; I hope it is not implied that there were no lessons to be learned or changes to be made. The other thread here on ScubaBoard might suggest otherwise.