British woman drowns in Thailand

[Diver71_au]

British grandmother Debra Gardner, 53, dies snorkeling on 'dream holiday' in Thailand | Mail Online (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2027915/British-grandmother-Debra-Gardner-53-dies-snorkeling-dream-holiday-Thailand.html)

53yo British woman died while snorkelling.

She was separated from the group and found dead 40 minutes later about 800m from where they had been snorkelling

Her husband administered CPR but without success.

[DevonDiver]

When working on Koh Tao, we often had the opportunity to witness the 'snorkelling excursion' boats which came to visit from other islands. There was rarely any supervision provided for the snorkellers, and although life-preserves seemed to be available, few snorkellers seemed inclined to use them. Snorkellers often 'bomb-burst' away from their boats and groups.

On one occasion, I had to provide a full-blown rescue for a Japanese girl, who had swum into the middle of a bay - away from everyone else - before getting exhausted and panicked. By the time I had finned 600m from our dive boat, the girl had gone quiet and started to slip below. If I hadn't intervened, I am convinced she would have drowned soon afterwards. Nobody from her group, or the tour boat, had noticed the incident.

[AfterDark]

This is the second snorkling death in 2 days. Should we be expecting a 3rd? Job Well Done on the rescue DevonDiver.
I guess it'll take a few lawsuits to bring the ops around to taking some precautions like oh say maybe a couple of lookouts?

[DevonDiver]

I don't think there is much fear of lawsuits in Thailand. Even PADI doesn't require instructors to have liability insurance there (though most do).

[AfterDark]

I don't think there is much fear of lawsuits in Thailand. Even PADI doesn't require instructors to have liability insurance there (though most do).

Probably, until some big shot's kin drowns.

[jkaterenchuk]

Probably, until some big shot's kin drowns.

You need to spend some time in Thailand so you know what your talking about. Sorry to let you know but the rest of the world does not necessarily operate the same as the USA. Expectation and Cultures can be considerably different.

[DevonDiver]

Probably, until some big shot's kin drowns.

Liability risk would be the last thing I'd fear. Bullet in the back of the head more likely.

[DandyDon]

British grandmother Debra Gardner, 53, dies snorkeling on 'dream holiday' in Thailand | Mail Online (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2027915/British-grandmother-Debra-Gardner-53-dies-snorkeling-dream-holiday-Thailand.html)

53yo British woman died while snorkelling.

She was separated from the group and found dead 40 minutes later about 800m from where they had been snorkelling

Her husband administered CPR but without success.
The article at that link is much longer and detailed. Sounds like they blew off any idea of buddy swimming and may not have used any flotation devices. I used to snorkel that way when I was 30 something and stupid but at least was using a snorkel vest by my 50s when I discovered scuba.

I got snorkel vests for my daughter's family and try to nag them into using them but to no avail. I wear mine on almost any moving boat as well as swimming if not in scuba gear. Wore it every day this week; I don't care how much background talk there is.

[similandiver]

Yes...living working in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia has really shown the vast difference between First world standards and expectations and the reality of these places. Many of these snorkeling operators are offering these tours at bare minimum costs and safety. It is typical to have 30 or more guests on a boat with one or no in-water guides and the staff will have no frist-aid training of any kind.

The blame? Sure - we can blame the operators, but almost all tourists do not want to spend money, want to see some fish and don't care about much else. There are no government regulations and in the end everyone blames the snorkeler.

In visiting these places - it is probably worth it to spend a bit extra and get the safety and standards that can prevent accidents - but when you can get a trip for $20, try telling that to a guy buying his tour from some little matchbox on a streetcorner?

[Simon-]

It isn't just the far east that does not require insurance for instructors.

The UAE doesn't either. However, any instructor who doesn't have insurance is an idiot. The main concern we have in here is payment of "Blood Money". Pay that instead of going to jail if someone dies (at the families discretion). If it is a local, expect to be paying out one hell of a lot of money.

[jkaterenchuk]

[QUOTE=Simon-;6022870 The main concern we have in here is payment of "Blood Money". Pay that instead of going to jail if someone dies (at the families discretion). If it is a local, expect to be paying out one hell of a lot of money.[/QUOTE]

From what I have seen the same situation in Thailand except the sums seem to be less. But if a foreigner is paying they seem to get increased substantially. I have always wondered if the dive insurance carrier would indeed make such a payment or walk away saying it's not part of the policy? Anyone have any first hand experience in a situation like this?

[ChrisMan]

I was on a boat and spotted a body, obviously dead, at sea in the Gulf of Thailand. Contacted the boat owners and was told under no circumstances to bring the body back to shore as that would leave us open to liability. We got in touch with, the coastguard gave our position and were told we could carry on. We later saw a coastguard ship heading in that direction. Nothing else was heard about the incident. That's the way of things out there. :coffee: