In what was a clearly preventable tragedy at Balicasag Island, the young life of a Chinese snorkeler was prematurely cut short in what can only be described as a preventable occurrence. I was staying with a friend who is a dive instructor at Alona Beach when a message was released on social media.
The woman apparently who was not a strong swimmer was unguided when she was found unresponsive and face down in a life preserver by locals. As was explained to me, she had purchased a ticket on a dive charter vessel as a snorkeler and was not a scuba diver. She had gone out snorkeling alone and clearly was not being monitored.
What is known is she was sent out snorkeling unguided and left unattended; at some stage she got into difficulty and the rest is unknown. As no one was looking after her, by the time her lifeless body was discovered by another boat there was little chance of resuscitation.
This is the Philippines and one doesn't expect much to happen here, a young life was tragically and needlessly lost in circumstances that should be considered negligent. When a boat finally arrived there was no resuscitation equipment aboard, no oxygen and certainly no trained personnel.
I don't think it is unreasonable to ask questions of why she was snorkeling solo, why she was left unchecked for so long and why nobody knew she was missing. I understand the commercial requirements of running a dive business and the need to generate revenue. I also know business operations have an obligation to their customers in regards to their safety, this can't be relegated behind safety aspects.
This rings just as true in developing nations where laws and/or legal systems would be considered lax by developed nations standards. Just because it is unlikely any legal action would be successful doesn't mean dive operators should take such an attitude.
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