US Tourist Dies During Snorkeling Trip in Belize

[azkcruizers]

http://edition.channel5belize.com/archives/48021

 

I was looking for information on the tender situation in Belize and found this headline instead. Not many details at this point. Very sad.

[Vanessa L]

http://edition.channel5belize.com/archives/48021

 

I was looking for information on the tender situation in Belize and found this headline instead. Not many details at this point. Very sad.

 

"Chopped by a boat propeller"? Every snorkeling trip I've been on, the captain cuts the motor before letting people into the water. How does one get "chopped by a boat motor" while snorkeling, exactly? Very odd.

[gargoyle999]

"Chopped by a boat propeller"? Every snorkeling trip I've been on, the captain cuts the motor before letting people into the water. How does one get "chopped by a boat motor" while snorkeling, exactly? Very odd.

 

I've been snorkeling in places where there are a lot of other boats around, not just the one I was on so the person could have been hit by a different boat.

 

That is sad. :(

[pe4all]

:eek:! We are going snorkeling to Goff's Cay in 3 weeks! What a horrible accident. I know the Cay can get pretty crowded with excursions. Maybe it wasn't her tour boat that "got" her - could have been another one, and she got too close, or was pushed into the prop by waves. Any way it happened, it is terrible, and my thoughts go out to her family.

[going2cruz]

So sad...................

[Vanessa L]

It is very sad, 100% preventable and likely going to bankrupt the idiot who didn't turn off his/her boat motor with a bunch of snorkelers around. Good grief. Where has common sense gone?

[azkcruizers]

http://www.7newsbelize.com/index.php#story1

 

More news here......I'm wondering if this will change anything with the situation between Carnival and Belize now.

[salty dingo]

Very unusual, and so tragic for the person who suffered and her family! I will say a prayer for them.

[vfb2girls]

What a horrible tragedy! How devastating for the family.

[seguincruiser]

How sad for her family. I hope people who have never snorkled before get the info that this is very unusual.

[crewsweeper]

Very sad. Our thoughts go out to her family.

 

Hopefully we'll find out more about this as time goes on. Appears that for some reason the catamaran did not return to the front of the caye as they usually do. I heard that the seas were very strong around Ambergris Caye yesterday, I wonder if that might have been true for Goff's Caye as well. Maybe the cat couldn't anchor or be situated properly to wait for and retrieve snorkelers from the front side so it went to the back side to pick them up? Regardless a tragic situation for all.

 

Most likely the captain will lose his license/boat. And crusie lines may stop snorkel excursions under certain weather conditions, if not entirely.

[pe4all]

Belize doesn't need another "black eye" right now. Their local vendors are already suffering from the tender problems- to lose more tourism on top of that would really hurt the local economy....

[luvofthecruise]

I was in Goffs Cay in September and I can tell you it was dangerous. There were too many people and they do not cut the boats off. I was almost sucked in myself. Everyone was crowding around the boat trying to get back on and this lady kept kicking me and she was not a very strong swimmer at all. Everyone was in each others way and I was being pulled by the boats propellers. My DH pulled me away and we swam away from everyone until it calmed down. I can totally see how this happened.

[MamaParrotHead]

I was on a snorkeling excusion in Belize where I honesly don't think anyone had any business even being in the water. I honestly didn't see a THING...not one piece of coral, not one fish, because the water was so rough and stirred up. We had such a hard time swimming back to the boat (we were swimming and swimming and making ZERO headway) that the snorkel guide had to almost literally tow us back, pulling us by our lifejackets. Several people ended up almost literally throwing up because of the sheer physicality of the effort to get back to the boat. It was insane and probably the most dangerous situation I've been in personally, no lie.

 

Not that it compares to being killed by a boat prop, but I can see how that could happen. Not to mention the crew we had with us on our trip weren't the brightest bulbs in the bunch and were so preoccupied with chatting and jacking around on the boat they didn't notice that we were having difficulties.

[Megan_Strick]

wow the word "chopped" is a little disrespectful to the family to me.

[sarzyn]

Unfortunate tragedy...but completely preventable. This is what happens when you combine a group of inexperienced swimmers/divers on vacation, who are being supervised by a "tour operator". Its a deadly mix of weather, current, inexperience, panic, and disregard for safety. All factors which can lead up to such a horrific accident.

 

I agree...the word "chopped" is completely disrespectful to the family members.

[Minoushka]

When we were in Barbados we were swimming with turtles. We were on a small boat All of a sudden the big catamaran came upon my friend and I.THeir people were on board

The guys on board laughed I yelled can;y you see us what are you doing My friend screamed STOP I cannot swim I could see that propeller coming at us .I grabbed my friends hand told her to kick hard and I started to tow her away from the Cat. With fins I have great speed. My friends further away filmed it .Apparently I got back in record time THe guys on the boat thought it was funny and laughed their heads off

NOT CUTE NOT FUNNY WE could have gotten VEry hurt .They had NO intention of stopping

 

I hope that accident was not because someone on another boat acted stupid

 

Michele

[silkhair1]

How tragic. I can't imagine that happening on a vacation. This will not be good for Belize. I feel for the people of Belize too.

[MagnoliaFly]

Sounds like it hasn't been done safely a few times.... time to GTFO of Belize and get a new port. I know everyone speaks of how wonderful the diving and snorkeling but I wouldn't wanna risk my life on it.

 

Water Safety: Boats serving the public, especially water taxis, often do not carry sufficient safety equipment. Many carry an excess number of passengers and may sail in inclement weather. Rental diving equipment may not always be properly maintained or inspected, and some local dive masters fail to consider the skill levels of individual tourists when organizing dives to some of Belize’s more challenging sites. Deaths and serious mishaps have occurred as a result of the negligence of dive tour operators and the lack of strict enforcement of tour regulations. The Embassy strongly recommends that anyone interested in scuba diving or snorkeling while in Belize check the references, licenses, and equipment of tour operators before agreeing to or paying for a tour. Safety precautions and emergency response capabilities may not be up to U.S. standards. All tour guides and boat captains are now required to be licensed by the Government of Belize. The only hyperbaric recompression chamber in Belize is located in San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye.

[Karysa]

So tragic and preventable. My thoughts and prayers to the woman's family.

[niagaracris]

This is terrible!!! Horrible for her family, horrible for tourism in Belize. Is a big wake up call for potential dangers when snorkeling anywhere!:(

[pacarolinagirl]

That is such a horrible tragedy. So sad for her family. :(

[victoryred]

Unfortunate tragedy...but completely preventable. This is what happens when you combine a group of inexperienced swimmers/divers on vacation, who are being supervised by a "tour operator". Its a deadly mix of weather, current, inexperience, panic, and disregard for safety. All factors which can lead up to such a horrific accident.

 

 

Yep and could happen at any port.......

[semichigan]

How sad and tragic....can't help but remember the woman from Miami that was on the Glory in 2008 who drowned while cave tubing in Belize. Granted, these things can happen anywhere but we have so many safety rules in the U.S. I think sometimes we (wrongly) assume that we will have the same protections when we travel.

 

My prayers for peace for the family.

[LHP]

Our hearts go out to this family ....