Worst dive operation in 40 years of diving-Belize

[rusticfurnituremaker]

If you really want to waste your money and almost lose your life, be sure to book a dive with Hammerhead Sports (through Coral Breezes) in Belize.

I have been diving for over 40 years and have visited many different dive locations. We recently booked a dive with this operation while cruising on the Carnival Legend. I was joined by 2 family members who have recently gotten certified.

 

We met the boat after we tendered into port. The boat is primarily for snorkelers, but takes divers and snorkelers together on a 45 minute trip to Caye Caulker to meet the dive boat. We met our divemaster (and I use that term very loosely) Rich/Richard after arriving. He was the only one on the boat other than the three of us. (no captain or anyone else to stay on the boat). We never were asked to show our C-cards or sign any waivers, which should have been my second warning. Rich told me to take off my snorkel, as "you won't need it". I gave it to him, against my better judgement. We went to our first site which was just inside the reef (another 15 minute ride). The site was ok, but nothing special (quite a bit of silting and dead coral). Rich seldom looked back to see how any of us were doing, and seemed really preoccupied with playing with his arm/watch . He was FAR ahead of us most of the time. The dive had a maximum depth of 55ft and we only were in the water for 35 minutes.

 

After a brief interval back on the boat, we began our second dive. There was no briefing other than to tell us which direction we would be going in. I immediately noticed a VERY strong current and that we were drifting at a very fast pace. I was worried that we would have to swim back against such a strong current. Once again, Rich was far ahead of us and seldom, if ever, looked back. He turned around after about 10 minutes and headed back in the direction of the boat. My daughter and I were really working hard to stay with him and quickly realized that despite kicking as hard as we could, we were not gaining an inch. ( we are quite fit and good swimmers). We looked at each other and motioned to each other "where is Rich?". He was gone. Our other diver stayed with us. I motioned to my daughter that I was going to have to surface and see where we were and where the boat was. I was really sucking air trying to make some headway and needed to know just how far we were from the boat. After surfacing, it was evident that we were right at the edge of the reef and the waves breaking over our heads/in our faces were 3-6 feet. We could not see the boat due to the rough waves. Since we agreed that we could not swim on the surface due to the current and the crashing waves, we once again went down. Still no Rich in sight. After trying in vain to make forward motion either close to the wall or via any other path, we once again surfaced and inflated our BC's, try to preserve any remaining air we had. We bobbed there in the rough waves with 5-6 foot waves crashing on our heads for 15-20 minutes, although it seemed MUCH longer than that. We were exhausted from trying to kick away from the surf. We waved our arms, hoping that Rich had made it to the boat, even though we couldn't see anything. Finally we saw Rich coming with the boat. He pulled us in and his only comment was "I didn't know the current would be that strong". If I wasn't so worried about upsetting my daughter any further, I would have really let him have it.

 

I take partial blame, in that I should have questioned only having one divemaster and no captain, but I thought that maybe this is the way they do things in Belize and I didn't want to be a wet blanket.

 

I understand that accidents do happen, but this operation was a mess from the start. I have always been asked to show my c-card, but no one with Hammerhead cares if you are even certified. In over 300 dives, I have never seen a divemaster who cared so little for the people in the boat. He left us without ever looking back. He truly seemed to have no interest in us, our well-being, or our safety.

 

There are plenty of great dive shops in Belize that DO care if you make it back alive/safely. I hope to dive with them next time.

[scuba214]

Thanks for your review. I have considered diving with them because they do take snorkelers also. (I am the only diver in the family). This wasn't the first bad review I've read so I'm glad it never worked out for us. Sorry you had such a miserable experience, but thanks for warning others. I love Belize diving but I always end up going through the ship at that port it's just easier for me being a single diver.

[iowagirl411]

You think you had it bad! We did a "Discover Scuba" with them! Of course, since it was our first time, we had no idea how shaky it was until we started our certification course shortly after the cruise. Thank God we had no incidents like you did. Actually we had a great time & couldn't wait to get certified. The entire instruction consisted of, "Put this in your mouth & breath."

[rusticfurnituremaker]

You think you had it bad! We did a "Discover Scuba" with them! Of course, since it was our first time, we had no idea how shaky it was until we started our certification course shortly after the cruise. Thank God we had no incidents like you did. Actually we had a great time & couldn't wait to get certified. The entire instruction consisted of, "Put this in your mouth & breath."

 

 

Glad we all survived and were able to look back it as just a bad experience!:eek:

Amy

[w&k]

Wow- that's some story.

 

It's unfortunate that you had to go through this, but I'm very happy to hear that you all got back in one piece. You might want to try contacting the management - I'm sure they would want to hear about it.

 

Next time you go to Belize, try SeaSports Belize - they are wonderful, and only a couple blocks from the cruise dock. http://www.seasportsbelize.com

 

Wendy

[mollysdad]

I'm Amy's (the original poster's) husband and, like her, a certified diver for 40 years. I was an observer on the small dive boat but could not dive with them due to a leg tendon injury.

Thanks for your kindness re: their survival. The events of the day were very scary, indeed. The small boat (about 20 foot) was moored to a buoy inside the reef with me aboard. The single divemaster left the boat with the divers with no boat operator left behind to guard boat from theft, slipping its mooring, or to perform a rescue if needed. There was a strong outgoing current and the divers were swimming with it toward the reef. Rich (divemaster) disappeared from the boat, and subsequently disappeared from the three divers as well.

My wife, daughter, and fiance were next seen as bobbing heads far out to sea about a quarter mile away, well outside the barrier reef. I watched intently as they kept moving farther out. I was considering detaching from the buoy, starting the boat, and making an attempt to cross the reef myself. The reef broke the surface in many, many areas and I had no local knowledge of crossing points. Additionally, the waves breaking over the reef were in the 8-10 foot range. I estimated my chances of successfully crossing it as about 50%. If the reef took the boat, I would be in the water, on the reef, without tank, mask, or fins. Not sure about life vests, but none were visible. If I was "lost", there would be no one available to take the boat back to shore for help, or call for help(if the boat had radio---I didn't look). The divemaster and my family would then be truly "lost at sea". SCARY!!!

Just before being forced to make that decision, however, I could see one of the "bobbing heads", now perhaps about 1/3-1/2 mile away, separate from the other divers. It appeared someone was trying to cross the reef on the surface, ostensibly trying to swim against the current toward the boat. It was Rich, who swam exceedingly hard and did eventually reach the boat, winded, and appearing frightened. Had he not, I had decided to try to perform the rescue myself by that point. I helped with lines and detaching from the buoy while Rich started the boat. He picked his way through an opening in the reef and through the waves to near the three divers. One was obviously exhausted and I wanted to throw a ring or other throwable device. None was available on deck. Two divers were able to climb into the boat and the other was lifted.

 

Amy, and then I, had a serious talk with "Hennie", the lady in charge on our return. She apologized, and promised to do better. We talked about death, lost divers, potential legal liability, and the "reputation factor" in the dive business. She seemed to understand.

 

LESSONS: Never get on a dive boat if no one asks to see your C-card or sign a waiver. I believe all reputable shops do both.

Never get on a boat with only one person acting as captain and divemaster simultaneously. Someone MUST remain with the boat.

Never leave a piece of your equipment behind (i.e. snorkel, even if divemaster says you should).

 

I am very, very happy to still have the family I started the trip with.

[Laurie S.]

Wow- that's some story.

 

It's unfortunate that you had to go through this, but I'm very happy to hear that you all got back in one piece. You might want to try contacting the management - I'm sure they would want to hear about it.

 

Next time you go to Belize, try SeaSports Belize - they are wonderful, and only a couple blocks from the cruise dock. www.seasportsbelize.com

 

Wendy

 

That's who I'm diving with in August and I've also heard excellent comments about their operation.

[mitsugirly]

I was wanted to say thank goodness everyone is ok. I was scared and my heart was beating fast just reading both stories. That is very scary. I'm so happy that everyone made it back safely. :)

[rusticfurnituremaker]

Thanks to all for your thoughtful comments. I have also posted on several dive sites as well as Trip Advisor. I hope they can improve their operation. My only purpose in posting is to :

1. Prevent other divers who might have become "lax" as I did from accepting what their gut told them was wrong.

2. Prevent newer divers from traveling with a divemaster who clearly is dangerous.

 

Amy

[CB5150]

Glad you guys are safe! It sounds like everyone (you and your family) kept their heads and didn't let panic take over.

As a fellow diver I believe it is important that we share our experiences, good or bad, so that we can always keep learning. Thank you for sharing yours.

Have you filed an official complaint with the operation's parent agency (PADI, NAUI, SSI, etc)?

[rusticfurnituremaker]

Glad you guys are safe! It sounds like everyone (you and your family) kept their heads and didn't let panic take over.

 

As a fellow diver I believe it is important that we share our experiences, good or bad, so that we can always keep learning. Thank you for sharing yours.

 

Have you filed an official complaint with the operation's parent agency (PADI, NAUI, SSI, etc)?

 

 

No, I haven't. I made comments here, on a couple of scuba review sites, and Trip Advisor. Your suggestion is wonderful, sorry I didn't think of it. I know they are PADI, so I will look into letting them know.

 

I agree that I want to know about the good and bad of any company I might dive with. It also helps me to know what things can happen and how to be prepared for them or prevent them in the future. This experience wakes me up and bit and reminded me of my responsibilities as a diver and protecting myself. I am quite sure in the future that:

 

I will not go on any boat without a captain/first mate staying on the boat

If a company doesn't ask for my CCard, I want to know why

I will let any future divemasters I go with that I have difficulty with very strong currents

I will let any future divemasters know my feelings about their staying with the "group"

 

In general, I will return to the lessons I know/should have known.

Amy

[JudyK]

Thanks for the heads up on this Dive Op. I could not find much on Hammerhead Sports and now I will not even consider them !!