Current Online Updates*
The Latest Dive News   What's this?

Is Equipment Insurance Worthwhile?
There's a Cockroach in my Regulator AND a free subscription to Undercurrent online
The Lionfish Cookbook
Update on Red Sea Dive Trips
Scuba Tanks as Lethal Weapons
Hawaii's Latest Marine Protection Efforts
Jim Abernethy Gets Bitten
A New Marine Fund for Turks & Caicos
A New App for Divers
What You're Missing In The February issue of Undercurrent

Is Equipment Insurance Worthwhile?:  February 23, 2011

If you've got insurance on your scuba gear and have filed a claim for damaged, lost or stolen equipment, is your insurance company coming through for you? Do you feel like you need a policy for your gear, or are you fine with insuring through your homeowners policy? We're writing a story on this topic, and we'd like to hear from readers and the results of your claims the good, the bad and the downright ugly. E-mail your stories to me at PublisherBenD@undercurrent.org

There's a Cockroach in my Regulator AND a free subscription to Undercurrent online:  February 23, 2011

Our great of book of unusual, funny and mysterious scuba stories from 35 years of Undercurrent is available on Kindle. Click Here. Or, buy the paper back directly from Undercurrent. Click here. Buy it now and I'll throw in FREE an online subscription until June sent to your email address monthly. It's a great deal.

The Lionfish Cookbook:  February 23, 2011

We've written much about lionfish and how the Pacific native is threatening reefs and marine life in the Atlantic and Caribbean. Lad Akins of REEF believes humans are the best hope as the lionfish predator, and his motto is "If you can't beat 'em, eat 'em." He worked with Tricia Ferguson, a "personal chef to the stars," to create The Lionfish Cookbook, a collection of 45 lionfish-based recipes, each with a full-color photo. Order through Undercurrent at /UCnow/bookpicks.shtml and you'll get Amazon's best price -- and our profits will go to save coral reefs.

Update on Red Sea Dive Trips:  February 23, 2011

Egypt's coastal resorts are peaceful but quiet. DIVER magazine reported that the large protests and battles have been limited to Cairo, Alexandria and Suez. The Red Sea resorts have seen few demonstrations, and those that occurred were peaceful. Some dive shops are operating as usual, but others have decided to close temporarily until life goes back to normal, and some tour companies have suspended flights. Undercurrent contributor John Bantin was at Sharm el Sheikh on assignment recently and confirmed that all was quiet, "with good food supplies and fuel [for dive boats] adequate."

Scuba Tanks as Lethal Weapons:  February 23, 2011

Last month, a videographer lost his hand and experienced major burns when his tank was tipped over, hit the floor and exploded. His tank was full of pure oxygen, but even the standard diver's air tank can wreak plenty of havoc. Read our story "Scuba Tanks as Lethal Weapons" for free at Undercurrent to see the worst-case scenarios divers can experience with their tanks, and how to securely fill, carry and store them so you don't lose any limbs.

Hawaii's Latest Marine Protection Efforts:  February 23, 2011

Hawaii was the first state in the U.S. to pass a law banning the sale of shark fin soup, and it continues its groundbreaking efforts to protect marine life in its waters. If you read our July 2009 story "Where Have Hawaii's Fish Gone? (read it at Undercurrent by clicking on "Back Issues"), you'll remember that Hawaii's dramatic decline in reef fish is due to commercial collectors gathering them for hobbyists' aquarium tanks. Now state senators have introduced legislation that would impose a statewide ban on collecting reef fish for sale in the aquarium trade, with fines or jail time. To have your voice heard, sign this petition from Change.org.

Jim Abernethy Gets Bitten:  February 23, 2011

We've wrote much about Jim Abernethy and his controversial shark-feeding dive trips in the Bahamas, one of which resulted in the 2008 death of an Austrian diver after being bitten by a shark. Abernethy proclaims his love for the sharks but they don't necessarily love him, as one showed him with a healthy bite last month. Read the story "Jim Abernethy Catches a Few Teeth" at Undercurrent.

A New Marine Fund for Turks & Caicos:  February 23, 2011

Oceanographer Don Stark has started the Turks & Caicos Reef Fund to raise money for marine environmental programs in the area. "We have modeled the nonprofit on the successful Bonaire Marine Parks program, and are selling annual dive tags to divers. The donation ($10) is voluntary and the tags are being offered through virtually all the dive operators throughout the TCI. We are also raising money from other visitors through the sale of wristbands similar to Lance Armstrong's LiveStrong wristband effort. We have already raised a couple thousand dollars, all of which will go back into marine projects." For more information and to donate, visit www.tcreef.org. Better yet, if you want to do something, start a similar project at another destination.

A New App for Divers:  February 23, 2011

For iPhone and Android smartphone users, PADI has launched a new app to help them find their nearest dive shop. Enter city or post code, and search results appear, with details like business hours, courses offered, available equipment lines, etc. Doesn't sound that great if you already know where you're headed to dive, but PADI says it will add more features in the future. Download it at www.padi.com/mobile-apps.

What You're Missing In The February issue of Undercurrent:  February 23, 2011

M/Y Yemaya at Panama's Coiba Island . . . a controversial shark-feeding dive operator in Hawaii experiences a lawsuit and two cases of arson . . . reader-recommended dive sites in the Virgin Islands, Little Cayman, Palau and elsewhere . . . scuba tanks as lethal weapons . . the next generation of rebreathers, and the safety and insurance issues surrounding them . . . a dive shops gets our "Green B.S. Award" . . . who's responsible for a diver's death? . . . and much, much more.

Ben Davison, editor/publisher
Contact Ben

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Note: Undercurrent is a registered 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization donating funds to help preserve coral reefs. Our travel writers never announce their purpose, are unknown to the destination, and receive no complimentary services or compensation from the dive operators or resort.

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