Scuba Geek

Man dies while scuba diving off East Honolulu May 24, 2006

Posted by Andy Carroll in : Accidents, News , 2comments

Reports are appearing which detail a scuba diver fatality in the waters off East Honolulu.

a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army Reserve, aged 47, who had recently returned from Iraq, was taking a vacation, and was diving at a popular diving spot, called ’spitting caves’.
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Wikiscuba needs more contributors May 23, 2006

Posted by Andy Carroll in : Trivia, general , add a comment

A few months ago I posted about Wikiscuba, which is a project I started with another scubadiver, Charles. The idea is to create a scuba diving encyclopedia which compliments successful websites like wikipedia and wikitravel, by providing information specifically for scuba divers. The whole website is free and non-commercial, just like wikipedia and wikitravel, and also aims to provide information which is non biased and has a neutral point of view. I think it would be really cool to have a resource like that on the web, for all scuba divers to benefit from.

Well, so far the project has been progressing well, and I can see that it is starting to take shape, but we could do with more scuba divers contributing information. If you find you have a little time on your hands and would like to see what wikiscuba is all about then hop over and take a look. If you see some information which is incorrect, you can simply edit it, and even create new pages with just a click of the mouse.

BSAC issue statement on wreck protection review May 23, 2006

Posted by Andy Carroll in : News, WreckDiving , add a comment

Following concerns by scuba divers about some proposed legislation regarding historic wrecks the BSAC managed to hold meetings with government officials and have issued this report;

British divers will not be ‘overlooked’ by the government while reviewing historic wreck laws, according to the UK’s scuba diving governing body. BSAC representatives met with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites (ACHWS) and other main diving agencies to discuss proposals for new wreck laws in the UK.

‘We are addressing this issue and are in the process of nominating a representative for future occasions,’ said BSAC underwater heritage advisor, Jane Maddocks. ‘However, we have been assured that the interests of recreational divers are very much to the fore, and we are in no danger of being overlooked. We have been promised that we will be fully engaged in further stages.’

There has been growing concern in sections of the British diving community about perceived plans by the DCMS to severely restrict wreck exploration, including a complete ban on diving wrecks more than 50-years-old. Maddocks said this had never been an option.

‘There is not and never has been any suggestion that all wrecks over 50-years-old would be made historic wreck sites that would need licenses before we could dive them,’ she said. ‘What is correct is that historic assets are beyond wreck - the discussion is about what is 50-years-old or older that might need management. Marine sites may also have historic potential, such as remains of slipways from the D-Day landings. Again it was emphasised to us that the groups are working groups and are not preparing draft legislation.’

Maddocks said that BSAC had been told that the British diving community would be involved throughout the process.

‘We were assured that no legislation would be introduced, irrespective of the mechanism, without full consultation of all stakeholder groups, including the diving organisations,’ she added. ‘It is important that we continue to build on the links we have made with DCMS. It is right that we are vigilant, but we have a way forward now, and we can be very confident that we are recognised as important stakeholders in the maritime environment.’

WKPP scuba divers break own cave diving record at Wakulla Springs May 23, 2006

Posted by Andy Carroll in : CaveDiving, Conservation , 2comments

I recently posted about the WKPP’s plans for extending their exploration of Wakulla Springs this year, due to increased visibility in the cave. Well, it appears that they have done just that, as reports start to surface following a 24 hour dive conducted by the team last weekend.

Jarrod Jablonski and Casey McKinlay managed to extend the cave by 3,000 feet, following a tunnel they found at around 17,000 feet in the cave. The bottom time was around 7 hours at an average depth of 300ft (90 mtrs) and they spent a further 14 hours in decompression.
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Cis-Lunar developing new rebreather with DP Scandinavia May 22, 2006

Posted by Andy Carroll in : Rebreathers , 1 comment so far

The Cis-Lunar rebreather was originally launched in 1998 with Dr Bill Stone and has been regarded as one of the best rebreathers available. The MK5 are still considered the ‘best-in-class’ rebreathers by many in the rebreather community. Cis-Lunar couldn’t raise the finances to mass produce the rebreather though and they ceased production in early 2000.

Well, now it seems that the Cis Lunar could be back, as Dr Bill Stone has teamed up with a Swedish industrial group, DP Scandinavia, according to OutdoorNewsWire
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Pictures from the USS Oriskany, the new artificial reef May 22, 2006

Posted by Andy Carroll in : WreckDiving , 1 comment so far

Bill Reals over at Divester has posted a link to a bunch of great pictures showing the state of the USS Oriskany, a new artificial reef, which was sunk last week, one of the largest intentionally sunk shipwrecks in the world. It is now resting upright in the Gulf of Mexico off Pensacola.