Elderly US visitor dies after snorkelling off 7MB
(CNS) UPDATED: A 79-year-old man who was visiting the Cayman Islands from the United States died following a snorkelling trip on Sunday morning. The police said he had experienced difficulties while in the water off Seven Mile Beach just south of Canal Point Drive off the West Bay Road. He was assisted to shore, and CPR was administered by people on the scene until the EMS arrived.
Police and emergency services responded to the report at around 11:40. The man was taken to the hospital by ambulance, where he was pronounced dead. The man’s family contacted CNS and supplied a statement regarding the loss of their loved one.
“Our husband and father passed away following a snorkeling trip on Sunday,” the family stated. “He was an experienced swimmer and diver who had snorkeled at this particular location off Seven Mile Beach dozens of times over the past 15 years. He was assisted to shore by a family member who was swimming with him. While an autopsy is pending, all evidence suggests that he suffered a medical emergency while in the water.
“The family is eternally grateful for the Caymanian authorities and so many others, including those on the beach who rushed to his aid and the staff at our hotel, for their professional and compassionate response to this tragedy. Our dad loved this island, and he would have wanted us to encourage all swimmers and snorkelers to continue enjoying its beautiful waters while exercising proper safety precautions.”
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Category: Local News
There is a nice group of coral heads about 150-190 yards out from Caribbean Club. I have also snorkeled there many times. It is inside the markers for the boat lane. Many prayers for this family and I am very sorry for your loss.
Very sad and quite possibly avoidable death. I wonder, is there any correlation to the type of equipment he was using? Full-face mask for example. I’m not making any accusations, just wish more information in hopes of compiling helpful info.
Time and again, Our waters can become notoriously dangerous especially for inexperienced snorkelers that go off into the water without having multiple exits planned before they set out , not to mention I keep seeing people going off in suitcase friendly travel fins which are not even close to provide proper power to even the best possible swimmers .
As a side security measure, I would recommend checking the currents from your entry point in the water : Applications like Windy for example provide not only winds but also current strength and direction, swell heights etc and are quite accurate!
Most accidents like these are entirely avoidable if minimal caution is observed and you don’t venture into the boat channels where currents are noticeably much stronger and can catapult you into the open water 2 to 3 knots faster than inside the bay , as winter arrives expect a big difference in speed and temperature as soon as you reach those areas!
Lastly , Never ever go alone in an environment you aren’t familiar with and even then you might be facing a surprise situation and have to use alternative exit strategies.
I free dive extensively around the island and it saddens me greatly when such situations happen as they simply needn’t to if there were proper warnings and flags on the public beaches, that the dive shops around the island would provide on point warning and advice to would be snorkelers . Our newly minted DOE minister could address the problem and have it solved in a matter of weeks and our beaches would be much safer for residents and tourists alike !
(I know it might be a bit too much for MoonBoy to process at this point in between his collisions with inanimate objects while traveling to and from his “office” and no ,I am not speaking about the one located in Evron Plaza in Bodden town but the one located at 701 Bodden Town Road)
Application can be found here: https://windy.app/
Just south of Canal Point Drive?
He was a guest at Caribbean Club in earlier reports. Far more informative.
Someone pressured you and Cayman Compass to change this.
CNS: I’m not being flippant here, but if you see conspiracy theories everywhere, it’s a mental health issue. CNS and the Compass used the RCIPS press release, which you can see here. I don’t know where you got that he was staying at Caribbean Club, but that is not in the slightest way relevant, and trying to create the idea that there is some sort of cover-up is just an added cruelty to those who are now grieving. Stop it.
Conspiracy theory addiction is a thing. Again, I’m not trying to be mean, but I think you should seek help. If that’s not possible, think about just staying off all social media and all online news media for a while.
Good comment, CNS!
Great response CNS! As Grandpa used to say ” if you can’t say something good don’t say anything!
He was staying at Caribbean club and CC staff response with the AED was very slow. At first it was unclear whether they had one, then they finally said they did but it was expired and then It was finally brought out far too late. Not saying it would have changed the outcome but they needed to do better. Their staff need to redo their first aid training.