Mailing List Archive Mailing List Archive
LUSITANIA MISHAP, Aug 21st.95.
The members of the official 1995 Lusitania Expedition would like to express
their sincere regret at the news of the accident which occurred during the
English teams return visit to this protected wreck.
In particular we would commend Richard Tully, a research assistant at Brunel
University, for his astuteness in catching an oxygen toxicity hit in his
buddy, Jamie Power, the youngest member of the team, who works for British
Airways. Jamie is reported after his stint in the Irish Navy's pot and his
stay in Cork University Hospital to be in good form.
As an aside, what would be the reaction of the various training agencies
involved in Tech. Diving, to the suggestion that his group, known as the
Starfish Enterprise, admit from their own publications, to leaving a trail
of accidents, such as ...death, spinal bends, oxygen fires and now an oxygen
toxicity hit, that the attention of the Health and Safety Executive (H.S.E.)
in the UK and the Health and Safety Authority (H.S.A.) in Ireland is now
looking more of a certainty.
When the H.S.E./H.S.A. get involved the resulting effects will be as follows...
(1) Some groups or organisations may go underground to avoid the stringent
regulations.
(2) The Tekies who got their honorary qualifications on the 'Grandfather
Clause' will have their certifications checked and this may leave some
agencies in a compromising position.
(3) The growth of our sport will be curtailed and advances in equipment and
techniques will have to be vetted by the H.S.E./H.S.A. with the infamous
jaundice eye.
The members of Irish Technical Diving (I.T.D.) would also like to take this
public opportunity to reply to the recent publication of the challenge made
by Mr Lad Handelman, Oceaneering founder and two members of the
British/American 1994 Lusitania Team in aquaCORPS journal N.10 under Forum:
'The 94 Lusitania Expedition, Seductive or Suicidal?'
TO THE COMMERCIAL DIVING COMMUNITY
The remark by the American Tekie about putting 'a monkey in a hard hat rig
and put him down at the bottom of the ocean' is without exemption a
ridiculous remark which only serves to widen the gap between both of our
communities.
TO MR. LAD HANDELMAN
The remark about skiing by the same Tekie, was uncalled for and somewhat
below the belt. The language used by the British Tekie to Mr Handelman was
offensive in the extreme. We have never seen or ever hope to see that sort
of language used in public again by any member of our community.
The printed story about the Irish team's incident in 1994 has now gone from
the ridiculous to the sublime...It came as a surprise to all of us here to
learn that an alledged trip to D.D.R.C. was made, as the Irish chamber was
supposed to be 'Inadequate', despite the fact that we had a chamber operator
trained in mixed gas technology, which when called on worked perfectly. No
trip to the UK was deemed necessary.
On a point of clarification to the misleading representations which are
typical of the uninformed, the average dive experience of the Irish Team was
twice that of the British team and all are senior active instructors,
several of whom worked for the National Diving Organisation's Technical
Commission.
To spite representations to the contrary, the Irish Team's Technical diving
instructor conveyed and confirmed in writing 'The best of luck with the
Lusitania'. In the same vainness, contrary to what the uninformed would
have you believe, the hard fact of the matter was the Irish Divers training
and experience, coupled with a knowledgeable and well equipped surface
support team prevented an accident from becoming a fatal incident.
Some of the aspiring Tekie pioneers have forgotten the old adage..
THERE ARE OLD DIVERS, THERE ARE BOLD DIVERS, BUT THERE ARE NO.......
Des, Brendan and Eugene @
I.T.D. Phone 353 1 8733044. Fax 353 1 8733969
___ |
| |~~~| |
| |~~~|D |
| o . C|. :|D |
| . o . |: .|D |
| . |___| |
| \\|// || |
| |^ _| || |
| ( -_+ ) | |
| |_\ O / / __ __ __ |
| || \_/ / | | | | | | |
| ||____/ | | | | | | |
| ---`----- \-- ---| |-| |--| |-- |
| '-' |==| |==| |==| |
|
Navigate by Author:
[Previous]
[Next]
[Author Search Index]
Navigate by Subject:
[Previous]
[Next]
[Subject Search Index]
[Send Reply] [Send Message with New Topic]
[Search Selection] [Mailing List Home] [Home]