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Old 06-20-2017, 09:48 PM   #1
tobyhere
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Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

Went fishing Sunday with some friends and mid afternoon one of my buddies spotted a safety sausage in an area with no boats in eyeshot. We're at the north end of the condos off of singer island in about 140'.

We putt over to the float and don't see any bubbles and tug on it but there's no resistance. We're thinking maybe someone dropped it, or perhaps lifted a fish with it and the boat missed it. Picked it up and the line came right in - about 40' or so with a reel at the end. While sitting there wondering what could have happened, another safety sausage pops up in the vacinity. We putt over to that one and we can see bubbles coming up from some divers. Still no flag or boat anywhere in sight. There's a huge front moving toward us from the south and I'm thinking these guys are damn lucky we spotted them.

We hang tight for 15-20 mins and finally I hail channel 16 asking if any boats are missing divers giving my location and depth. No response except from coast guard. They ask us to stay with the divers which we were going to do anyways. I have one of my buddies hop in with a snorkel and see if he can spot the divers. He yells back to the boat that it's 3 guys, all with double or triple tanks on a technical dive - about 30' down on safety stop.

I inform Coast Guard and after about another 15 minutes I can see a boat heading our way from north,. As it gets closer, maybe a mile or so away, I can tell that it's a huge dive boat. Sure enough the boat pulls up and it's loaded with other divers. They claim the 3 guys that have still not surfaced. I let them know that I was trying to hail them on 16 and that I informed coast guard of the divers with no boat. The captain begins to tell me they'd been searching for the 3 divers but only listen to channel 78...

Bullshit - they dropped these guys off for a long dive and headed up to Jupiter to let their recreational guys dive and came back to pick up the others. This 2 story boat was completely out of eyeshot. Miles away to the north. We left before the divers surfaced and we had drifted into less than 100'. The storm hit as soon as we got going. These guys would've had a hell of a time finding there their divers had that storm moved in 15 minutes earlier. The boat was Down Deep run out of Jupiter by Stuart Scuba.
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Old 06-20-2017, 11:57 PM   #2
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

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Originally Posted by tobyhere View Post
Went fishing Sunday with some friends and mid afternoon one of my buddies spotted a safety sausage in an area with no boats in eyeshot. We're at the north end of the condos off of singer island in about 140'.

We putt over to the float and don't see any bubbles and tug on it but there's no resistance. We're thinking maybe someone dropped it, or perhaps lifted a fish with it and the boat missed it. Picked it up and the line came right in - about 40' or so with a reel at the end. While sitting there wondering what could have happened, another safety sausage pops up in the vacinity. We putt over to that one and we can see bubbles coming up from some divers. Still no flag or boat anywhere in sight. There's a huge front moving toward us from the south and I'm thinking these guys are damn lucky we spotted them.

We hang tight for 15-20 mins and finally I hail channel 16 asking if any boats are missing divers giving my location and depth. No response except from coast guard. They ask us to stay with the divers which we were going to do anyways. I have one of my buddies hop in with a snorkel and see if he can spot the divers. He yells back to the boat that it's 3 guys, all with double or triple tanks on a technical dive - about 30' down on safety stop.

I inform Coast Guard and after about another 15 minutes I can see a boat heading our way from north,. As it gets closer, maybe a mile or so away, I can tell that it's a huge dive boat. Sure enough the boat pulls up and it's loaded with other divers. They claim the 3 guys that have still not surfaced. I let them know that I was trying to hail them on 16 and that I informed coast guard of the divers with no boat. The captain begins to tell me they'd been searching for the 3 divers but only listen to channel 78...

Bullshit - they dropped these guys off for a long dive and headed up to Jupiter to let their recreational guys dive and came back to pick up the others. This 2 story boat was completely out of eyeshot. Miles away to the north. We left before the divers surfaced and we had drifted into less than 100'. The storm hit as soon as we got going. These guys would've had a hell of a time finding there their divers had that storm moved in 15 minutes earlier. The boat was Down Deep run out of Jupiter by Stuart Scuba.
Wow.. they were not listening to channel 16 but were searching for the divers....

That doesn't make sense.

What are you going to do with your new souvenirs?
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Old 06-21-2017, 12:02 AM   #3
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

I'd lose my shit on a captain if he did me like that.. especially if I paid to be on the trip.
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Old 06-21-2017, 12:35 PM   #4
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

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Wow.. they were not listening to channel 16 but were searching for the divers....

That doesn't make sense.

What are you going to do with your new souvenirs?
Exactly Jim, trying to cover his butt after I told them I called coast guard on the "lost" divers..

Gave the float and reel to the boat
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Old 07-02-2017, 09:56 AM   #5
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

Hmmm, definitely doesn't sound like the safest operation. I do know the owner fairly well and ive dived with them several times, i think their operation is for the most part ran pretty well. Seems like they were in it to make a little extra money and or it was a prearranged with the capt. Normally the tech divers are doing wrecks in the 150ft range or more and theres no recreational divers amongst them.
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Old 07-02-2017, 10:37 AM   #6
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

I have followed this operation since it started,I will bite my tongue and only say that I will never dive with them or refure them.
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Old 07-02-2017, 05:56 PM   #7
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

Thanks for being the good guy with the divers welfare as your main concern. We could use many more of you out on the water. Safe travels!
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Old 07-03-2017, 08:56 PM   #8
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

I want to thank you for posting this report!!! Actions or inactions like this should be known to all diving consumers.
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Old 07-16-2017, 06:18 PM   #9
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

sadly the negative comments here are undeserved. there is nothing negative about this highly experienced operation. I suspect that the posts are due to some people having a personal bone to pick.
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Old 09-29-2017, 11:00 AM   #10
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

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sadly the negative comments here are undeserved. there is nothing negative about this highly experienced operation. I suspect that the posts are due to some people having a personal bone to pick.
Sorry for the late reply but I don't know check this site very often and I never saw this comment until now. I'd like to clarify that I've never encountered this boat before or since this incident. I don't know anyone involved with this operation whatsoever. I am only stating the facts as they happened on that day. I hate seeing this type of negligence in this community and thats why I made the post.
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Old 09-29-2017, 12:09 PM   #11
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Re: Stuart Scuba - Down Deep boat complaint

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sadly the negative comments here are undeserved. there is nothing negative about this highly experienced operation. I suspect that the posts are due to some people having a personal bone to pick.
Paul,

You seem to be making the accusation that the complaint has a personal issue and that the op has some type of conflict of interest.

Don't you work for the operation in question? Aren't you heavily involved in marketing for them? maybe I have you confused with someone else.

If you do work for them and dive very frequently on their boat, possibly it would be relevant to make this known before you accuse another of a conflict of interest.

please accept my apologies if I am incorrect.
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