A two-man dive team from St. Croix will try Wednesday to scuba dive deeper than anyone has ever been in Virgin Islands waters – and deeper than most divers in the world.
The attempt was announced Tuesday by Ed Buckley, owner of St. Croix Ultimate Bluewater Adventures. The two men attempting the record dive are members of the Ultimate Bluewater Adventures ’ ScubaTec team.
Dr. Guy Garman, a St. Croix physician and underwater diving medical specialist, and Shawn Widerski, a technical diving instructor for SCUBA, will dive to 650 feet using only scuba diving gear. That will be 100 feet deeper than anyone has ever dived off of St. Croix, according to Buckley.
The previous record of 550 feet was set by the same diving duo in July 2013, he said.
The two divers will be supported by a team that includes two divers going to 250 feet to meet and check on them as they make their way back to the surface, another shallower support team meeting them at around 100 feet, and a surface support team consisting of the dive boat’s captain and a nurse.
The total time of the dive will be 162 minutes, which includes about seven minutes to descend to 650 feet, less than a minute spent at that depth, and a long decompression time slowly returning to the surface.
According to the release, the two divers will use specialized mixes of air, oxygen and helium to lessen the possibility of suffering from decompression sickness.
St. Croix Ultimate Bluewater Adventures is the only technical diving facility in the Virgin Islands, Buckley said in the announcement, and though very few of their technical dives involve going to these depths, they do regularly teach divers how to safely descend beyond the normal 130-foot, recreational depth limit.
