Fatality in the Bahamas

[mcguiver]

A well known diver in the shark diving community passed away yesterday. He was a deckhand on the Charter boat 'Dolphin Dream'. I had the pleasure of spending a week with him and the rest of the crew last year and he was an awesome guy. I haven't heard many details on what happened but it appears he was freediving when something happened. According to Shark Diver Magazine's Facebook post the accident was not Shark related. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shark-Diver-Magazine/143630888993135?fref=nf&pnref=story

 

[DandyDon]

21-year-old dies during expedition with US dive operator off Grand Bahama | The Tribune

AN American man reportedly drowned while on a dive expedition with a US dive operator off West End, Grand Bahama, making it the second fatal incident this year involving US-registered vessels conducting dives in the Bahamas. #The 21-year-old man was discovered unresponsive in the water around 8pm on Monday. According to police reports, he was among passengers on board a US-registered dive boat, diving off West End.

#The victim’s identity was not released yesterday and police are investigating the incident.
#The Tribune has learned that the man was not a passenger, but a crew member of the Dolphin Dream, an 85-foot research yacht, out of Lake Park, Florida.
#A representative of the company, when contacted yesterday, told The Tribune that they do not know what happened. “He was not a passenger, he was a member of our crew and we know nothing until an autopsy is done,” a woman from the company said.
#Dolphin Dream operates “unique Bahamas adventure cruises”, which includes wild dolphin encounters, shark diving, scuba diving and custom trips to The Bahamas.
#According to its website, the shark diving trip involves dives with Tiger, Lemon and Reef Sharks. The company conducts most trips for seven days and six nights. West End is a known site for shark diving.
#In July, US commercial dive operator Jim Abernethy Scuba Adventures, which is based in Lake Park, Florida, lost a diver off West End during a shark diving expedition.
#Dr John Petty, 63, of Texas, was diving with several others from the Shear Water when he disappeared. A three-day search was called off for Petty, who is believed to have been the victim of a fatal shark attack after his camera and shredded dive gear were discovered at the bottom of the ocean. While this latest fatality appears to be a drowning, concerns have been raised by the Bahamas Dive Association regarding dive operations conducted by US dive companies in the Bahamas.
#Neal Watson, BDA president, said the association has no control over the activities of US dive operators. Mr Watson has said that the BDA is in discussions with government to establish guidelines and procedures to ensure proper safe diving procedures are followed by foreign-based operators.
#Expert Bahamian diver and spear-fisherman David Rose believes that shark diving and feeding is unsafe and should be banned in The Bahamas. Shark diving tourism is a multi-million dollar industry and The Bahamas is considered one of the shark dive capitals of the world.

 

[rcmcg]

21-year-old dies during expedition with US dive operator off Grand Bahama | The Tribune

Gotta wonder what kind of "research" they were doing.

 

[Johnoly]

Gotta wonder what kind of "research" they were doing.

You might want to look at the boat's website.

 

[Abdullah]

You might want to look at the boat's website.

Assuming this is the same operator, I'm not seeing the research on their website. Looks like a typical LOB operator.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

21-year-old dies during expedition with US dive operator off Grand Bahama | The Tribune

Given the amount of yellow journalism in that piece, I wouldn't put much weight on the article calling it a "research yacht." A young man dies in an accident and about 3/4 of the article is trying to tie it back to Dr. Petty's disappearance and the shark-baiting controversy, complete with mention of Neal Watson's rather transparent campaign to put the US liveaboards under the BDA's thumb (i.e. him).

Tragic news. I wasn't acquainted with him, but PJ was well known to several of my friends in the dive community. Sounds like he was a hell of a guy who left us too soon. I'm not pleased to see certain parties using his loss as a card in their own little pissing matches.

 

[Odo]

Very sad news. Here is the article from the Palm Beach Post.
Jupiter man, 21, dies while diving in Bahamas | www.palmbeachpost.com

 

[tursiops]

Assuming this is the same operator, I'm not seeing the research on their website. Looks like a typical LOB operator.

It is a not a research vessel. It is a vessel that can be chartered for research trips....as can all vessels, I believe.

 

[Wookie]

Snip... complete with mention of Neal Watson's rather transparent campaign to put the US liveaboards under the BDA's thumb (i.e. him). ....snip

Some US based liveaboards have tried to join the BDA. Their applications have not been accepted.

---------- Post added December 20th, 2014 at 01:13 PM ----------

It is a not a research vessel. It is a vessel that can be chartered for research trips....as can all vessels, I believe.

Well, actually, a having a ORV or Oceanic Research Vessel (46 CFR Subchapter U) designation can relieve a tremendous amount of regulation on a vessel. Dolphin Dream is not a designated ORV, it is an uninspected passenger vessel over 100 Gross Registered Tons, relieving even more regulations than an ORV.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

Some US based liveaboards have tried to join the BDA. Their applications have not been accepted.

Level of surprise: 0%.

Well, actually, a having a ORV or Oceanic Research Vessel (46 CFR Subchapter U) designation can relieve a tremendous amount of regulation on a vessel. Dolphin Dream is not a designated ORV, it is an uninspected passenger vessel over 100 Gross Registered Tons, relieving even more regulations than an ORV.

Yes, liveaboards can be chartered for research. The firm I work for actually used to charter the M/V Spree for monitoring the Flower Garden Banks (sadly before my time; I would have probably merrily traded my then-ongoing graduate degree for that experience). I know Neil Hammerschlag's group at U of Miami and a few others charter the Shearwater for shark research from time to time; I'm sure the Dolphin Dream ​has seen similar use.