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For David Denson Whiteside (with username 'dwhitesi', exp: 2024-08-20, at dwhite95815@hotmail.com )
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September 15, 2017

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Spare a Thought for Hurricane-hit Dive Businesses

Many popular diving destinations in the Leeward Islands and elsewhere in the Caribbean and the Florida Keys have been hit hard by hurricane Irma. While some of you have had your travel plans affected, stop and spare a thought for those for whom this is a disaster. If you wish to donate funds, go here.

Only Idiots Dive During a Hurricane

Social media went viral with a video of two residents of Riviera Beach, Florida, bravely leaving their condo during the storm to help retrieve a struggling diver from the water with the aid of a rope. The stupid guy had swum out to reposition his boat and had attempted to swim back through the surf in his scuba gear but was unable to get out of the water.

Have you Bookmarked Undercurrent?

A few days ago we advised that some old bookmarks and links no longer work with our change to a completely secure website. But with his wizardry, our webmaster and website founder, Dave Eagleray, has resolved the problem and there is no need now to modify old or create new bookmarks, or even modify links from old emails. The old ones will work just fine, and our site is as secure as they come. Thanks for being a loyal member. We've been publishing ad-free for 43 years, thanks to supporters like you.

Chucking Money at The Problem?

A section of the Mesoamerican coral reef off the coast of Puerto Morelos in Mexico is set to make history. Thanks to the newly founded Reef and Beach Resilience and Insurance Fund (RRIF), local businesses will contribute to an insurance policy that will protect the 40-mile length of colorful reef. Working with the Nature Conservancy, insurance company Swiss Re AG are setting up the policy. In the event of damage from whatever reason, pay-outs will ensure the reef is restored to its former glory. Good luck with that!

For Divers Who Have Everything

The Aquanaut self-propelled diving suit maintains sea level air pressure while enabling descents to 1,000 ft. (300m) below the surface. That’ll top those divers who are depth-fiends and want to go deeper than normal recreational diving depths. It’s sealed and integrated aluminum alloy rotary joints provide full mobility for the wearer’s arms and legs. Four thrusters integrated into the suit provide vertical, horizontal, and rotational movement, and two 150-watt LED lights illuminate underwater subjects. It’s your from Hammacher Schlemmer for a mere $850,000.

Errors and Omissions

Well done, to those who noted that we had used a picture of the condos at the Southern Cross Club, erroneously saying they were condos at the Little Cayman Beach Resort in an early version of this month’s Undercurrent PDF. Similarly, the Scubapro regulator recall (Undercurrent Oct 2006) was for the Mk20 first-stage, rather than the Mk10 (also known as the MkX - a much older model), although each can be over-torqued during servicing, leading to a potential explosion, as the case we discussed.

Read the First Chapter of Tropical Ice, a Scuba Eco-Thriller

Divers gather round a frozen baitball during shark week in Belize, as marauding sharks rip out a body, sending divers scurrying. That’s the kickoff to Tropical Ice -- read it by clicking here – an exciting new eco-thriller tackling shark finning, seahorse mining for phony Asian aphrodisiacs, and endless crimes against the reefs. And scuba travel writer Matt Oliver finds himself smack in the middle of trouble. The book was actually written by the founder of Undercurrent, Ben Davison, Order a copy or a Kindle at Amazon by clicking here. Read reviews at www.tropicalicethriller.com.

Chasing Coral – A Netflix Documentary

Richard Vevers, an advertising executive, realizing that the reefs he dived were changing for the worst, teemed up with Jeff Orlowski to make a film that is all together eloquent, filled with stunning photography and an accessible science lesson. Chasing Coral is a must-watch for all ages, and especially for non-divers or those uninterested in ocean issues. Maybe it should be required viewing!

A Saucy Roman Discovery

Archaeologists have come across a vast network of underwater ruins of the ancient Roman city of Neapolis, which was largely washed away by a powerful tsunami around 1,700 years ago. The dramatic find off the coast of Tunis in the Mediterranean, includes streets, monuments, and around a hundred tanks used to produce garum – a fermented fish sauce that was a popular condiment in ancient Rome and Greece.

Coming Up in Undercurrent

Costa Rica and Cocos . . . Mucking around in the Philippines . . . Regulators under ice . . . SIPE and those little blue pills . . . A solution to ear infections . . . Sunscreen – does it kill coral? . . . Tax-deductible or not? . . . Time to hang up our fins? . . . And much, much more.

Reader’s Reports – Keep ’Em Coming

This important resource is the result of reports from you, our reader. Not beholden to any advertising revenue, Undercurrent is unique among diving media. For you, it’s an opportunity to tell it like it is. Send us your reviews of dive operators, liveaboards, and resorts you’ve dived this year by filling out our online form here https://www.undercurrent.org/members/UCnow/SubRRTopMA.php. You can also follow the link “File a Report” on the left side of our homepage at www.undercurrent.org. Or after logging in, follow the “Reader Report” link in the top navigation bar.

Ben Davison, editor/publisher
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