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

Spare a Thought for Hurricane-hit Dive Businesses
Only Idiots Dive During a Hurricane
Read the First Chapter of Tropical Ice, an Eco-Thriller
Scubapro Mark X Regulator Explodes
Older, Deeper, Longer
Anxious or Enraptured at Depth?
Oxygen Can Kill!
What You Missed in the September issue of Undercurrent
Free: Eight Great Liveaboards (and One Disaster) and Eight Great Dive Resorts (and One Dog)

Spare a Thought for Hurricane-hit Dive Businesses  September 15, 2017

Many popular diving destinations in the Leeward Islands and elsewhere in the Caribbean and the Florida Keys have been hit by hurricane Irma. It may be annoying that this has affected your travel plans, but 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  September 15, 2017

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.

Read the First Chapter of Tropical Ice, an Eco-Thriller  September 15, 2017

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

Scubapro Mark X Regulator Explodes  September 15, 2017

In September, Undercurrent reported the case of a Scubapro regulator that exploded spectacularly and attributed the cause to service technicians not following the manufacturer’s servicing specifications. Scubapro recommended (more than 35 years ago) the compulsory use of a torque wrench set to a specific load when carrying out maintenance on its products, but many technicians over-torque parts resulting in micro-cracks developing with consequent corrosion.

Older, Deeper, Longer  September 15, 2017

The Wirral Globe reports that Ray Woolley, a 94-year-old Brit now retired and living in Cyprus, hopes to claim the Guinness World Record for the oldest scuba diver. He spent 41 minutes at a maximum depth of 38m (125 feet) on 28th August, diving the wreck of a Swedish-built RoRo truck ferry, Zenobia, outside Larnaca, Cyprus. The current record is held by Paul Staller who dived to a maximum depth of 16m (52 feet) for 36 minutes in the Turks & Caicos in 2014 at 93-years-old. Do you know an older diver? Let us know: BenDDavison@undercurrent.org

Anxious or Enraptured at Depth?  September 15, 2017

We asked subscribers if they had ever suffered from nitrogen narcosis. Different divers are affected at different depths. We’ve compiled some of your different experiences and offer them on our website for you to read. And, Goliath grouper are iconic fish among divers, but they are under threat in Florida. We tell what you can do to help protect them from being fished out. Both these features are free-to-read in the September issue at www.undercurrent.org.

Oxygen Can Kill!  September 15, 2017

Liu Hung was undergoing hyperbaric treatment in Nanxiong China People’s Hospital for a head injury and lit a cigarette he had smuggled in with him. His lighter blew up the chamber, destroying it and the patient. His family is demanding to know why the hospital failed to take away his cigarette lighter.

What You Missed in the September issue of Undercurrent  September 15, 2017

First-hand undercover reviews of Little Cayman Beach Resort and the MV Saman Explorer in Oman . . . Divemaster or Dive Guide? Which is it? . . . A Tank Tracks North . . . Risks of golf ball diving . . . Readers Telling It Like It Is . . . DEMA and the Paris Climate Accord . . . A Fast trip to the Top Kills . . . Sherwood Shirking Its Responsibility? . . . and much, much more. But, you can subscribe and download each issue.

Free: Eight Great Liveaboards (and One Disaster) and Eight Great Dive Resorts (and One Dog)  September 15, 2017

These two 40-page books are yours with your trial subscription to Undercurrent, the ad-free guide for serious divers, in our 42nd year of publication. You can download them or, if you live in the US or Canada, I’ll mail hard copies. I’ve pulled together first-hand reviews from our best travel writers who pay their own way and never disclose themselves. Then, each month, with your subscription, you will receive in your mailbox our 20-page, advertisement-free, issue of serious articles on safety, equipment, and all diving matters, as well as no-holds-barred travel reviews. And if you decide you don’t want Undercurrent, I’ll refund your payment, and both books are yours to keep, as my thanks for trying us. Sign up here for a $19 a seven-month trial subscription.

Ben Davison, editor/publisher
Contact Ben

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

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.

Highlights of Previous Online Updates*

Here are past Online Update emails sent out . You can sign-up for free to receive these in the future here.

Online Updates* Archive, 2000-2015

* Sometimes referred to as Upwellings