Innovative communications system delivers a simple way to communicate with divers during a dive

The unique Equinox Diver Recall Speaker System is a product that more and more dive boat operators are electing to add to their equipment lists. The reason is simple - safety and conveniences. While there may not be a need to use the system very often, it's important for it to very available when the situation arises.

According to T.J. Mansfield of Equinox, "Chances are you may never be on a dive that needs to be ended early or that the boat needs to leave early. But if that happens, you want to confidence in knowing that you could alert divers while they are in the water. The recent 'Open Water' movie, while fictional, points out that there is always a need for better safety equipment and the Recall Speaker System is something dive professionals should consider."

Mansfield gave a hypothetical example of a diver who surfaces from a dive needing first aid and an immediate doctor. However, there are still many divers in the water. In that scenario, there is a certain delay that could cause a medical problem. However, if the boat captain had the Equinox System in place, getting the divers back on board is much simpler.

Beaver Sports proudly sponsor GB Ladies Elite Underwater Hockey Squad

Throughout the hair raising 2004 World Championships held in New Zealand this spring, Beaver has sponsored the UK Ladies and are proud to be a part of the team which has increased the UK's world ranking from 9th to 6th. Two significant victories were achieved over the French and US - neither team having been beaten at international level in recent years.

With luck, the 2006 World Championships will be held in Sheffield - a stone's throw away from the Beaver HQ! Show your support for the sport by visiting http://www.gbwuhs.org.uk

We wish the GB Ladies the best of luck for future success in the European Championship in 2005! Click here for the Beaver sports website.

Diving in the Red Sea has never been easier or more accessible! Longwood Holidays, the leading specialist operator to the Red Sea, has introduced three new departure airports - Newcastle, Glasgow and Luton - to its Egypt and Jordan programme, offering weekly direct flights to Sharm El Sheikh from 1 November 2004.

The greater choice of departure airports, six in total, means greater accessibility to the destination and opens up the Red Sea diving opportunities to enthusiasts from all over the country.

Dan Lion, dive product manager, Longwood Holidays said: "We have been overwhelmed by the demand for seats on our flights to Sharm. These additional flights will allow us to cope with the demand in bookings and open up the destination to areas of the country previously unserviced by direct flights. We anticipate that this will encourage more people to explore the underwater world of the Red Sea"

Longwood Holidays also has a dedicated dive brochure designed to be a travel guide for everything there is to know about diving in the Red Sea. Alongside practical advice and destination information are detailed reviews of all dive courses, schools and sites on offer.

For further information visit www.longwoodholidays.co.uk

Lion-fish threat in the Atlantic

Growing numbers of Indo-Pacific lionfish in Atlantic waters may pose a risk to other marine life, according to scientists who say the species have few, if any natural predators in their new environment.

The lionfish has established itself over the past few years as the first Pacific marine fish known to populate Atlantic waters. It is believed that the venomous predatory species was introduced to the Atlantic through releases from aquariums.

‘These visitors pose potential risks both to people and to their new marine environment,’ said Paula Whitfield, scientist at NOAA. ‘We hope our research can lead to improved understanding of the lionfish invasion.’

The expedition this year will concentrate on Florida, North Carolina and Bermuda, where the numbers of lionfish appear to be growing rapidly.

Rescued divers back on their holiday
 
Twelve European divers who went missing for 11 hours in the Red Sea off Egypt have returned to the depths just a day after they were rescued. The five Britons, five Portuguese and two Belgians disappeared on Sunday during a week-long diving trip off the coast of al-Quseir.

The group drifted for miles from their boat in strong currents before being rescued by naval boats.

The divers were back in the water continuing their holiday on Monday. An investigation is to be launched by the Red Sea Association for Diving and Watersports into what went wrong. The group had been diving near the tiny island of El-Akhawein off the coast of al-Quseir, a resort 330km (205 miles) south of Cairo.

The party, led by British dive master Richard Hallam, were rescued by Egyptian naval boats after they were reportedly spotted in the water 25 miles from El-Akhawein by a search helicopter. The four other Britons have been named as Paul Moulton, Geoff Woodfield, Bruce De Courcy and Alexandra Douglas.

A British Foreign Office spokesman told BBC News Online that all 12 of the divers were "safe and well". On Monday, the group continued its trip on board the luxury dive vessel the Oyster, which set off on Friday from the Marsa Alam resort.

George Saleed, spokesman for trip organisers Oyster Club, said: "Everybody is diving today, they are getting back to normal. "It was a long search and thank God that we found them in the end."

He said group leader Mr Hallam was a very experienced diver who had worked for the company for a while. "He has done this dive many times and he has been working on the boat for a long time", he added.

A spokesman for the RSADWS, said two groups of divers had gone out on Sunday. The first had returned after 45 minutes. The spokesman said an investigation would be launched "to ensure we avoid this ever happening in the future".

The 10-year census, which began in 2000, aims to record all known marine life, in an aquatic "Doomsday Book".

The latest study used deep-sea probes to explore the undersea mountain ridge, running between Iceland and the Azores.

A team of marine scientists set out on 5 June to investigate the marine creatures living along the Earth's largest mountain range. The mid-Atlantic ridge rises to 1.3 miles above sea level in Iceland and the Azores, but is submerged in-between.

The expedition, which covered 4,000 miles and passed twice along the entire length of the underwater ridge, used a variety of sophisticated equipment, including underwater robots and video cameras, as well as a manned submersible.

The pioneering trip, which was the first of its kind, uncovered 300 new species of fish, and around 50 species of squid and octopus.

One of the new fish that the marine scientists hauled aboard their boat, was similar to an anglerfish - which has a kind of in-built "fishing rod" to attract prey.

Scientists are also inspecting a bright red squid, which was found at a depth of about one mile, to decide whether it is a new species.

The decade long census, which will be completed in 2010, is divided into seven parts. As well as the mid-Atlantic ridge, scientists are examining the Pacific shorelines, the Gulf of Maine, hydrothermal vents, coastal salmon runs - and more.

New movie provides visual evidence of why signal devices play an important role in protecting today's well-equipped diver.

The new movie "Open Water" shines a bright light on the need for divers today to carry and know how to properly use safety devices. It's quite possible that if safety devices like the DiveAlert were used by the divers that "Open Water" is based on, there might not even have been a movie.

According to Dave Hancock of DiveAlert by Ideations, "Dive professionals have taken the message of 'Open Water' to heart. Our phones are ringing and retailers have been ordering large number of DiveAlert units. We're pleased that so many divers and future divers will be better equipped going forward."

The DiveAlert is a pneumatic signaling device that produces a loud audible sound that helps divers attract the attention of personnel aboard dive boats. Connecting simply to a diver's BCD/Power Inflator, the DiveAlert has been proven effective time and time again.

"This movie is going to scare some people, entertain some people, but everyone is going to get an education," Hancock observes. "There's never been a more appropriate opportunity for dive educators to teach the importance of safety devices. We are here to help in this endeavor."

For more details about DiveAlert visit the website at www.divealert.com.

From October 2004, Longwood Holidays will exclusively represent the illustrious Red Sea Liveaboard boat, VIP ONE, in the UK.

VIP One is a luxury motor yacht built to offer the best in comfort and safety and to provide an exceptional first class service. She will be visiting the best of the Wrecks and Reefs in the Northern Red Sea including The Thistlegorm, The Dunraven, Carnatic, Giannis D and Chrisoula K.

Her spacious, fully air conditioned, interior, includes, large double cabins with private en suite bathroom and shower, plus a saloon, dining room and bar. Outside, a sundeck, perfect for sunbathing and relaxing or barbecuing, make VIP an ideal choice for those in search of something a little bit special. The crew on VIP One is entirely dedicated to service, to make every guest’s stay on board an unforgettable experience.

For further information and reservations visit www.longwoodholidays.co.uk.

Exotic muck-diving and drop-offs

Eco Divers, North Sulawesi’s only PADI 5 Star Gold Palm IDC resort, is offering a combined diving package giving divers the opportunity to dive two resorts and experience two very different worlds of diving in Bunaken and the Lembeh Strait.
Bunaken Marine Park’s bio-diversity and stunning drop-offs have made this dive area an award-winner of the British Airways ‘Tourism for Tomorrow Awards’, which raises awareness of the world’s leading role models for responsible tourism.

Over in Lembeh, the world-class muck-diving promises a multitude of rare and mysterious ‘critters’ and captivating solitude, all under the one umbrella of Eco Divers.

Eco Divers’ special ‘combination package’ gives divers the flexibility to experience the best of two unique diving worlds. They can split their holiday by staying at the recently upgraded Kungkungan Bay Resort, which is superbly located on the Lembeh Strait, and at the popular Tasik Ria Resort for the diving in Bunaken Marine Park.

For more information go to www.eco-divers.com.

Divers vindicated in clash with fishing charter

South African divers who distributed leaflets describing the killing of sharks as "senseless slaughter" have had the legal case brought against them by a shark fishing company dismissed.

Shark fishing operation Sensational Charters, based on the KwaZulu Natal southern coast, had legal proceedings for defamation against specialist shark dive charter African Odyssea dismissed, after the judge found that information in the leaflets distributed by the divers was correct and justifiable.

The legal action was started in August 2003, after dive charter director Trevor Krull was accused of distributing leaflets which portrayed the shark fishing operation as responsible for decimating the local shark populations, and which described shark-fishing activities as 'senseless slaughter'. Sensational Charters claimed that this was untrue; that shark populations are increasing, and that the leaflets were damaging their business.

In a judgement that fully vindicated the stance taken by the divers and conservationists, the judge found that there was sufficient evidence to show that South African shark populations were under serious threat from fishing. The information in the leaflets was, therefore, not untrue and could not be classified as defamatory*

Aqua-Marina, Tenerife under new ownership

One of Tenerife’s premier PADI dive centres, Aqua-Marina, has recently changed hands and the new owners, Madge Hawkes and Steve Knight, are now up and running and welcoming clients old and new.

Aqua-Marina was founded 5 years ago by Fiona Alexander and Andreas Palmas and more recently has been run by Fiona’s sister, Rhona. Madge and Steve loved the friendly and relaxed but professional style of Aqua-Marina when they first dived there in February, and were blown away by the quality of the diving in Southern Tenerife – so much so that they bought the company!

Working with Rhona they are maintaining the same service-focussed style whilst improving the facilities, such as opening a shop above the dive centre and upgrading the boat and minibus. See their website for more information on the great diving Tenerife has to offer: www.aqua-marina.com.

News archives :

News August 6th to 11th 2004.
News August 1st to 5th 2004.
News July 2004.
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