Hey Guys,
I've been meaning to write this for a couple of days now, but it's been one of those things I guess. I'm also not sure where exactly I should post a thread like this, so please move it if necessary.
I thought it my duty to inform you all that last Saturday, 29th January, 2011, one of our DeeperBlue brothers, Rodrigo Lobo Vieira (aka RLobo), 41, passed away in a tragic diving accident in Natal, Brazil.
An accomplished spearo, the official story is that he was diving with a group of buddies in one of his preferred spots, in about 18m of water. There was a fair current that day, as apparently is not uncommon in that area. They were all finishing up for the day and were all on the boat grabbing a bite to eat when Rodrigo decided to go for one last dive. When he didn't reappear at the mermaid line that they were using because of the current, his friends got anxious and started searching for him, only to find him on the bottom a short time later. Autopsy said the cause of death was drowning.
I never actually met Rodrigo, so if anyone on here knows him well, please accept my deepest sympathies. I began exchanging emails with him about our F10 watches after he responded to the thread about F10, and we were just talking about arranging a dive together. However, the diving communities of Natal and João Pessoa (where I now live) are close with the cities being 2hrs drive apart, so a lot of divers here that I know knew and respected Rodrigo.
I have attached a photo of Rodrigo, that I took from the dive forum site here in Brazil. I sincerely hope I don't offend anyone by this - my aim is to honour and respect our diving brother and his family.
This is the 5th diving death in Brazil since the 16th January!!! Please everyone, dive safe, respect the ocean and the conditions, and let's all make it home EVERY time!!
Best regards to All,
Aidan.
P.S. To my Aussie compatriots in Queensland, I hope you are all alright, hang in there, our thoughts are with you too!
I've been meaning to write this for a couple of days now, but it's been one of those things I guess. I'm also not sure where exactly I should post a thread like this, so please move it if necessary.
I thought it my duty to inform you all that last Saturday, 29th January, 2011, one of our DeeperBlue brothers, Rodrigo Lobo Vieira (aka RLobo), 41, passed away in a tragic diving accident in Natal, Brazil.
An accomplished spearo, the official story is that he was diving with a group of buddies in one of his preferred spots, in about 18m of water. There was a fair current that day, as apparently is not uncommon in that area. They were all finishing up for the day and were all on the boat grabbing a bite to eat when Rodrigo decided to go for one last dive. When he didn't reappear at the mermaid line that they were using because of the current, his friends got anxious and started searching for him, only to find him on the bottom a short time later. Autopsy said the cause of death was drowning.
I never actually met Rodrigo, so if anyone on here knows him well, please accept my deepest sympathies. I began exchanging emails with him about our F10 watches after he responded to the thread about F10, and we were just talking about arranging a dive together. However, the diving communities of Natal and João Pessoa (where I now live) are close with the cities being 2hrs drive apart, so a lot of divers here that I know knew and respected Rodrigo.
I have attached a photo of Rodrigo, that I took from the dive forum site here in Brazil. I sincerely hope I don't offend anyone by this - my aim is to honour and respect our diving brother and his family.
This is the 5th diving death in Brazil since the 16th January!!! Please everyone, dive safe, respect the ocean and the conditions, and let's all make it home EVERY time!!
Best regards to All,
Aidan.
P.S. To my Aussie compatriots in Queensland, I hope you are all alright, hang in there, our thoughts are with you too!
