Greg Mossman wrote:
I had to re-read this one. At first, I thought the guy who hit his
head and started swallowing water was sure to be the casualty, but
he's OK (so fie on all of you who think it necessary to keep reg in
mouth until aboard the boat). RIP buddy, however, who probably had a
heart attack. The article doesn't venture a guess as to cause of
death, but it does put in a plug for PADI:

"There is no record of Brown receiving either a Professional
Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) or National Association of
Underwater Instructors scuba certification, according to an online
records search using his name and date of birth. It is not illegal to
dive without certification, but dive businesses will not fill divers'
tanks without the certification.

"As part of gaining a scuba certification, divers are tested and
trained on such experiences as dropping a weight belt and surfacing
when a problem arises and when struggling to surface. PADI training
courses also outline how to deal with swift currents and advise always
having someone stay in the boat while diving."

I've never been keen on having someone stay in the boat while diving. It's
such a pain re-floating it afterwards.

That's how the article ends, implying that a PADI training course may
have saved the guy's life.  How does PADI train divers to "deal with
swift currents" anyway?  Is there a special PADI finning technique?

Well I remember being taught... in a PADI class the change your dive level
to help with the currents... but you do not want to be going up and down
during the whole dive.. of course it was the advance diving cert... and it
was also off the cost of Cozumel...