Stranded scuba diver awarded $1.68 million in damages

After being left stranded at sea on during a scuba diving excursion in 2004, 51-year-old Daniel Carlock has been awarded $1.68 million dollars in compensation.

The aerospace engineer from Santa Monica had been enjoying his scuba diving holidays by taking a scuba diving excursion off the coast of Long Beach, California with Ocean Adventures Dive Co. and Sundiver Charters with 20 other divers.

While diving in the Pacific, Carlock developed pain his ears and made his way to the surface. After realising he was no longer close to his diving buddy, he began blowing on his whistle and waving a yellow inflatable tube. However, the crew onboard the vessel failed to notice he was missing and marked him as present on the boat when it disappeared, leaving Carlock abandoned in the Pacific Ocean in foggy conditions and fearing for his life.

Fortunately for Carlock, he was finally spotted in the waters by a passing vessel carrying boy scouts after nearly five hours who contacted the coast guard and was taken ashore.

The diver suffered from hypothermia, post-traumatic stress and after being exposed for such a long time, he developed skin cancer.
Carlock sued both the diving company and boat charter company for negligence and after a 23-day hearing, he was awarded $1.68 million in damages by a Los Angeles Count Superior Court jury.

Mr Carlock said: "It has been an ordeal but I wanted to seek changes in the scuba industry."

This terrifying incident is unfortunately one of many which have occurred over recent years which have taken place during scuba diving holidays.

In 2004, British diver, Richard Neely, and his American girlfriend Allyson Dalton, were stranded in shark-infested waters off Australia's Great Barrier Reef for 19 hours after the couple found themselves struggling to return to the dive due to strong currents and high winds after exploring the diving sites at Bay reef near Hayman Island.

The couple survived the ordeal by strapping themselves together with rope for body warmth and shouting "I love you" every time one of them shut their eyes. They were eventually winched to safety by a rescue helicopter at 8.40am the next morning.