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Skeletal Remains of Scuba Diver Found in Spain Identified

Published

11 years ago

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Police have now officially confirmed the identity of the skeleton, wearing a neoprene scuba diving suit, found off the coast of Calpe in the Mediterranean sea in July 2013.

The gruesome discovery was made by the occupants of a yacht called “Yaiza”, just 40 miles off the coast of Calpe.

The skeleton was still wearing scuba diving gear and a backpack containing 540 euros in cash, a cellphone and a passport in the name of Abdelaziz Elfayafi, born on January 8, 1989 in Imzouren in the Rif region of Morocco.
As the body was so badly decomposed, it was at first impossible to confirm whether the diver was the owner of the passport found in the backpack.
Following a DNA test, the Civil Guard have now solved the mystery and have confirmed that the body did, in fact, belong to Abdelaziz, and his family have been contacted.
Farah Elfayafi, sister of the deceased, has also confirmed that the body belongs to Abdelaziz, or Abdel as he was known to his family and friends. He was buried on Sunday in the Berber village of Boukidan, where he had lived with his parents, Hafida and Hammadi.
The Moroccan consulate in Valencia paid for the transportation of the body from Spain to Tangier, and the transfer to his family’s village, where they buried him according to Muslim rites.
This is not the first tragedy to strike the family, as, at only 21-years-old, Farah has now buried two siblings, with another five remaining. The family’s first loss occurred in 2011, when their 27-year-old son Mohammed, a university professor, was found dead inside his apartment.
“He died of natural causes, because he had a heart condition,” explained Farah. And now in June 2013, it was the turn of brother Abdelaziz.
Farah said that Abdelaziz had degrees in both computer administration and accounting. He spoke four languages – Arabic, French, English and Dutch.
He was also involved in a course in humanities at Oujda University and loved travel, swimming, music and sports.
He had been performing clerical work at a couple of businesses, one owned by a relative, and was seeking employment in the months leading to his death.
Abdel’s mother was the last person to see him alive on May 27. Farah explained: “He left the house like any other day, and said he was going to Tangier.”
“A while later he called home and told her that he was at the port of that city because of a project,” she added.
Farah feels that Abdel may have been visiting Tangier as part of plans to start a business with his older brother Ahmed, who lives in Belgium. The two brothers were investigating the possibility of importing spare car parts to Morocco and Tangier would be the ideal port for delivery.
However, this does not explain why Abdelaziz jumped into the sea in a diver’s suit. Farah, who is now caring for her distraught mother says, “I think there is a secret behind my brother’s death.”
Speaking of her mother, she added, “She says that nothing matters to her anymore, but in time she will forget. Such is life.”
Some people had suggested that drugs were involved in the diving incident, but Farah rules this out, saying: “I know what it might look like, but he wasn’t like that.”
“He was an extraordinary guy, very good with computers, and shy – he didn’t talk much. He was looking for a job but did not need money, and he was a good diver. We all are, because we were born right by the beach.”
And while the Spanish Civil Guard initially thought that Abdel may have been an immigrant trying to reach Spain by sea, Farah disagrees.
Spanish police have concluded that the death is by natural causes.
“Spanish authorities gave us no information, they just said that since the body showed no signs of violence, they would not be investigating any further,” said Abdel’s brother Ahmed, who has decided to launch his own investigation into the mysterious death of his brother.
The Facebook account of Abdelaziz Elfayafi, showing a photo of him smiling, young and carefree, has now been cancelled. Until then, on the wall was a message from his sister Farah of only three words, “Where are you?”

 

Source: www.digitaljournal.com

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Book Review: Fire on Monroe Bravo by Fred Lockwood

Published

6 hours ago

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July 26, 2024

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the ship beneath the ice

Fire on Monroe Bravo is the latest book in the Jack Collier series by Fred Lockwood.  Our story begins with our lead characters, Jack and Sandro, owners of Marine Salvage & Investigation Company, arriving on the Monroe Bravo Oil & Gas Platform in the North Sea.  Having secured a contract for their vessel the MV Stavanger to act as support ship to the platform for TransGlobal Oil, our protagonists are on a celebratory visit.

However almost as soon as they arrive a series of explosions rock the platform, causing huge damage, loss of life and the very real danger of a massive human, ecological and financial disaster.

As the danger mounts for both our heroes and the surviving workers, Jack and Sandro will have to escape the inferno, all while trying to save the platform and the men still trapped unable to help themselves.

The disaster sets the scene for the unfolding story lines following the fate of the platform and our main characters, the police investigation into a suspected terrorist act and the actions of TransGlobal Oil as they attempt to navigate the pubic outcry and financial repercussions.

In his eighth book, Fire on Monroe Bravo, Fred Lockwood delivers an explosive thriller, with plenty of above and in-water drama, and our heroes fighting for survival, what more can you ask for?  

We thoroughly recommend this read and look forward to the next in the series. For more information about his book series, you can check out the reviews of his previous books here on Scubaverse.

  • Title: Fire On Monroe Bravo
  • Author: Fred Lockwood
  • ISBN: 979-8325324536

Available in a paperback version and for Kindle from Amazon and book stores.

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Alonissos: The complete diving destination (Part 1)

Published

4 days ago

on

July 22, 2024

By

In June we were incredibly fortunate to be invited to dive in Alonissos, a small Greek Island in the Sporades island chain located in the North Aegean Sea.  While I have long been a big fan of the Greek Islands as a great holiday destination, I had not had the opportunity to do any diving on previous visits and Mike and I were extremely excited to see what Alonissos had to offer both above and below the surface!

The Sporades are easily accessible via the airport in Skiathos (the first island in the chain), which is served by Jet2 flights from all major UK airports from May through October.  Numerous ferries and charter boats make island hopping from Skiathos Town a breeze.  After an hour boat ride, the picturesque port of Patitiri was a wonderful introduction to Alonissos, where we were met by our gracious hosts Kostas of Albedo Travel and Dias of Alonissos Triton Dive Center.  Mike and I were delighted to be staying at the Paradise Hotel, aptly named for its stunning views over the sea and great location for walking to the waterfront.

Alonissos is beautifully situated in the National Marine Park of Alonissos and the Northern Sporades, the largest marine protected area in Europe.  The surrounding seas offer fabulous marine life, including incredibly rare species such as the Mediterranean monk seal.  They boast deep walls covered in gorgonians and sponges, stunning topography with caverns, swimthroughs and pinnacles, and the first accessible ancient shipwreck from 500BC!

In locations where historical sites have been reported, the waters are largely restricted, but with collaboration between government, underwater archeologists and dive centres, incredible underwater museums are being created for a truly unique diving experience.  Alonissos is home to the first of these, the Ancient Shipwreck of Peristera Accessible Underwater Archeological Site.  The chance to dive into history (along with reports of healthy reef life and amazing underwater topography) meant Mike and I were keen to get in the water.

Our introduction to the diving around Alonissos was at the Agios Georgios Pinnacles, in the channel between Alonissos and Skopelos.  This fantastic site was named “The Chimney,’ and proved to have a huge amount to see.  We got to a decent depth here (over 25m), and marvelled at a colourful reef wall with a wonderful swim through whose rocky walls were absolutely covered with life.  As well as brilliant topography there was no shortage of macro life here.  We saw numerous nudibranchs, five different species in total.  The second dive at Mourtias reef nearby was a shallower dive along a nice wall with lots of crevices. Several moray eels and grouper called this site home.  We enjoyed looking in the crevices for lobster and smaller benthic life, such as cup corals and tunicates.

Our itinerary allowed us two dives a day with afternoons left to explore the island with our hire car and evenings to enjoy the famous Greek hospitality.  This proved to be a lovely mix of in-water and land based diversions.  

The next days diving to the Gorgonian Gardens and Triton’s Cave was to be even better!  These two stunning sites are nothing short of fabulous.  The Gorgonian Gardens was a deep wall near to the Agios Georgios islands.  The ever-present currents in this deep channel meant that the sea life was amazing … the namesake Gorgonian sea fans dotted the wall at a depth of 30 to 50 meters, getting ever larger the deeper we went.  Above 30m was by no means less beautiful, with sponges, corals, scorpionfish, moray eels and some rare and colourful nudibranchs.

The second shallower dive of the day was to Triton’s Cave or the Cavern of Skopelos, on the east side of that island. The spectacular rock formations had wild striations both above and below the water making a truly epic topography.  The cavern entrance was at 14m, and big enough for a buddy pair, winding up to 6m and passing two beautiful windows out into the blue.  Emerging from the cavern, the light at the shallower depths and the incredible rock formations made for a fantastic gentle swimming safety stop and we all surfaced by the boat with massive grins. 

Check out our next blog :Alonissos: The complete diving destination (Part 2)” to hear about our amazing dive on the 2500 year old Peristera Wreck!

Thanks to:

Alonissos Triton Dive Center https://bestdivingingreece.com/

Albedo Travel https://alonissosholidays.com/activities/

Paradise Hotel https://paradise-hotel.gr/

Alonissos Municipality https://alonissos.gr/en/

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