THE owner of tour boat company Seas the Day said it has temporarily shut down operations in the wake of a shark attack that claimed the life of one of his customers last week.
Jeff Moulton, the owner of Seas The Day Bahamas, told YourErie.com about the efforts by the boat’s crew to help 58-year-old Caroline DiPlacido of Lake Erie, Pennsylvania.
She died last week after a shark attack while snorkelling with family near Green Cay. Police say the family came by cruise ship and booked a tour with a local company — later identified as Seas the Day — that took them to the cay.
It was further reported that family members observed a bull shark attacking the woman.
According to YourErie, a Pennsylvania-based outlet, the woman was “standing in about three feet of water when she was attacked”.
Mr Moulton claimed that her son gouged the shark’s eye to remove it off his mother, YourErie reported.
According to the article, Mr Moulton said the boat’s captain drove in the direction of the woman to run over the shark and then pull her on board.
“The tourniquet was not applicable. The daughter worked on her mother the entire way back. I don’t know how she did it, trying to get the bleeding under control, but was unsuccessful,” the boat owner told YourErie.
Mr Moulton felt that his crew handled the incident “to the best of their ability”.
“I think he did everything right, but sometimes everything right is still not enough. But I’m proud of what he did and I just hate the outcome is what it is,” he said.
Press liaison officer Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings had previously said that Green Cay is known for snorkelling excursions, however the beach has been temporarily closed by officials for such operations.
Mr Moulton told the American outlet that his company has shut down its operation after the incident.
“Right now we’ve shut down our operation. We’re not doing anything right now. We know people are still going to come down there and still want to go snorkelling the beautiful waters of The Bahamas. There are going to be excursion companies lined up to take them, but I don’t know if we’ll ever be one of those again. I don’t know,” he said.
On its Facebook page, the company released a statement expressing sympathy for the tragic accident.
“All of us at Seas The Day are deeply saddened and shocked by the shark attack at Green Cay yesterday (last Tuesday). Please keep the family in your prayers,” the company said.
Comments
themessenger 1 year, 8 months ago
With all due respect and sincere condolences to Mrs DiPlacido’s family. The statement by Mr Moulton is confusing and the information doesn’t jibe with that disseminated by the local authorities, his sudden decision to close down operations is also curious. No business, no liability?? Is Mr Moulton Bahamian and if not how is he able to operate a beach tour and snorkeling company or are there Bahamians fronting for him?
There’s more to this than meets the eye.
ThisIsOurs 1 year, 8 months ago
"standing in about three feet of water when she was attacked”.
thats interesting, she was on shore... unless it was low tide. either way ...
Dawes 1 year, 8 months ago
Standing in 3 feet and yet the shark attacked her upper body per reports. One of those doesn't make sense
tribanon 1 year, 8 months ago
The cruise ship company marketed the snorkling excursion, took her money, had her sign a piece of paper holding them completely harmless, and banked the generous commission earned from their passenger booking the excursion.
And like most of the excursions marketed by the cruise ship companies, they claim the signed 'hold harmless' piece of paper does not require them to do any type of periodic safety review of the excursion operator's business nor verify that the excursion business is properly licensed and in compliance with safety protocols required by local laws and regulations.
This shark attack victim no doubt had in her mind when she booked the excursion that cruise ship company would not allow itself to be associated with an excursion considered to be in any way unsafe. You can bet that 'hold harmless' piece of paper she signed said absolutely nothing about the risk of a shark attack, the risk of stepping on a sting ray, the risk of coming into contact with a poisonous spiny lion fish or the risk of coming entangled in the long tentacles of a man o war jellyfish. And that's because an awful lot of cruise passengers would never book an excursion with those types of warnings.
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