Big news, and cautious optimism

 So those who have been following our tale know that the two owners of Key Largo Scuba Shack - Christopher Jones and Alison Gracey, have been on the run for almost 10 years now. TWICE they've been arrested, twice they've been set free on bond, and twice they're gone on the run again.

Last fall I was approached by the producers of the show America's Most Wanted. The show had been off the air some some time, but they wanted to revive it, and they wanted to feature Aimee's case. I, along with Aimee's family agreed, and several of us participated in interviews leading up to the episode. 

That episode, which can be seen here, aired on Monday, March 29.

And a whole 3 days later, Jones and Gracey were arrested in Madrid, Spain! 

Now, I'd like to be excited that after almost 10 years, these two SOBs are in custody. But we've seen this play out before, haven't we? First in St. Maarten, and then again in France, these two have been picked up, freed on bond, and then fled again. 

I'm holding out hope that the authorities in Spain know better this time. The time for Jones and Gracey to face their day in court is long overdue.

An arrest has been made. Now what?

So on Monday I found out that those MOST responsible for Aimee's tragic death were arrested on the island of St. Maarten. After the initial euphoria wore off, I started to consider the next logical question: now what?

First off, I never expected this day to come. As British citizens who were outside the U.S. at the time of the incident, and who were in a member of the British Commonwealth (Bahamas), there was little to no chance of them being arrested or extradited. I had accepted this reality, and decided that I needed to move on with my life with the likelihood that we would never see justice done to these people.

But now that they've been arrested, here's what I surmise what happens next, using my best educated guess:

1. The U.S. Attorney in Florida will seek extradition of Chris Jones and Alison Gracey to the U.S.
2. Given that they're no longer in a British Commonwealth country (St. Maarten is Dutch), my hunch is that extradition will be granted, and Jones and Gracey will be turned over to U.S. authorities.
3. I think formal charges have already been filed, so I think the next step would be the beginning of the standard judicial process: arraignment, bail hearings, etc.
   (My hope is that they are not granted bail. First, they'd been living in the Caribbean for the last few years on the run, so I feel like they've used up their 'hall pass' so to speak. Two, I believe them to be a flight risk. And while they may not easily leave the U.S. without their passports, it's a big country to hide in, and people do manage to sneak out of the country from time to time.)
4. Then we'll either have a trial, or they may plea bargain to avoid a trial. 
5. If there's any justice at all, they'll do time in prison.

I can guarantee you this: if there's a trial, I'm going. Another guarantee I can make? No matter how much time they do, it won't be enough to make up for Aimee's loss. But I don't plan to dwell on that. While I do hope for justice, that is part of their life's path, not mine. Whether or not they go to jail impacts them, not me. 

As developments continue, I'll keep everyone posted.

Aimee's killers arrested!

If you're new to this tragic story, here's a very brief recap (a fuller narrative can be found in the paragraph above, just below the "Missing Aimee" title): My first wife (and mother to my daughter) Aimee was killed in December 2011 when the scuba dive boat she was on capsized and sank, trapping her inside. In a post from December 2013, I describe all the parties responsible for her death, including the primary owners of Key Largo Scuba Shack, Chris Jones and Alison Gracey. In that post, I mention that those two were British citizens, that they were out of the U.S.l at the time of the incident, and that they'd basically gone into hiding.

They are hiding no more!!!

According to a news report, forwarded to me by my attorney in Florida, Interpol arrested these two scumbags this past Friday, June 5 on the island of St. Maarten. The US Attorney's office in Florida is now seeking extradition.

Here's a link to the article, though it doesn't actually contain a lot of information.

As anyone who has suffered loss at the hands of someone else will probably tell you: nothing brings back the loved one, but justice for those responsible helps bring closure. This is an incredibly important step toward that justice being served.

Part 3: What I'd like to see for the future

So, now we know how Aimee died, and who was responsible. Now, what would I wish for in regards to the future, as a result of all of this?

Assuming I couldn't undo what's been done and bring Aimee back to life, there are three big things I wish I could make happen in the aftermath of Aimee's death:

I took this photo on my and Aimee's
honeymoon, ironically, off the
coast of Florida. Aimee's own sun set
there five and a half years later

1. All scuba dive shops in the U.S. would be required to carry insurance. Seriously, at least in Florida, they aren't. Key Largo Scuba Shack had no insurance, so after Aimee died and the owners decided to stay in another country, there was no way we could go after them to compensate us for the tremendous loss we'd suffered (Aimee's income, a myriad of increased expenses, not to mention the huge emotional toll). I think it's criminal - literally - that businesses can operate in an industry that contains a great deal of personal risk (especially when not done correctly), and not be required to carry insurance.
2. Any vessel that took passengers out onto the ocean commercially would be required to pass annual Coast Guard inspections, even if they only took out a few people. That may be unrealistic, but it's horrible that a business can sidestep the rules to put innocent people at risk on a boat as bad as the Get Wet. Even if a boat is going to be used as a "6 pack" (six or fewer passengers), it should be required to at least once pass a Coast Guard inspection before it can be used commercially. Or maybe once every five years. 
3. Jones and Gracey would be brought back to the U.S. to face whatever legal consequences there might be as a result of their horrific management of Key Largo Scuba Shack. They knowingly and willfully cut corners in ways that made their operation unsafe for their passengers AND crew. They put people's well-being at risk, and as a result killed one person and nearly killed another. They ought to face the consequences of their actions.*

Of these three, they're all either long shots or practically impossible. But that doesn't mean some how, in some way, I won't try. Aimee's story, and her legacy, are from over, I'll tell you that.

Part 1: Here's what really happened on December 18, 2011
Part 2: Who was involved in Aimee's death, and how

________________________________________________

*A note on why #3 isn't going to happen: Apparently, countries almost never extradite their own citizens to other countries to face charges. Among those is the U.K., where Jones and Gracey are from. From what I was told by someone in the Florida Attorney General's office, countries that are part of the British Commonwealth of nations will typically never arrest and extradite British citizens to countries that are not part of that Commonwealth, and from the last I heard these two are living in the British Virgin Islands or some such similar place. In other words, they're probably never going to face the music for what they did.

Part 2 - Who was involved in Aimee's death, and how

When we lose someone tragically or unexpectedly, it's natural to want to know the answer to one simple question:

Whose fault is this?

In  the case of Aimee, her death was the result of a series of actions, inactions, and decisions, where any single one of them being different probably means that Aimee doesn't die on that boat.

Here are the people who I feel are responsible for Aimee's death, and why or how. Except for the last one, which is the party I hold most responsible, these are not necessarily in a particular order:

Who: The boat captain, John (yes, I am intentionally leaving out most people's last names).
Why: John was about 19 years old at the time of the accident, and seems to me probably wasn't terribly experienced. Which may be why he seemed to think that instead of getting people OFF of a sinking ship, he thought to have them move further up into the cabin, under the hard top, to try and bring the front of the boat down to counterbalance the sinking back end. From all accounts, there's no way in hell that boat had a chance to get back to port, and he should have known that and gotten people off the boat. He didn't do that.

Who: Kara, the dive master.
Why: While the boat began taking on water at a dangerous rate, she stood by and waited for the boat captain to do something (I got this directly from her own statements during one of her depositions). She was older (albeit not by a lot) and had more boating experience, and I don't think it would have been unreasonable for her to make decisions to protect the safety of her students. But that's not the only thing I think makes her partially responsible for Aimee's death.

When the boat capsized and people got to the surface, it was clear two people were missing. The ones who'd gotten out were able to grab the raft floating in the water, and another boat was nearby and approaching to rescue them. The boat captain grabbed scuba gear and went after the missing people. Why didn't Kara? The two people missing were both HER beginning students, and she was a licensed and experienced dive master. Why the hell did she not try to help rescue both people? If she'd gone down in the water with John, they might have gotten them BOTH up in time to save them.

Who: PADI (http://www.padi.com/scuba/), which stands for Professional Association of Diving Instructors. Why: They are an organization that trains and licenses scuba instructors, and they allow dive shops to post their logo and propaganda to lend them a sense of legitimacy. In fact, my lawyer showed me some literature that indicated that PADI does some sort of "quality inspection" of a dive shop as part of the certification process. Well, maybe they do, but apparently they're not especially thorough. The boat they inspected wasn't the one Key Largo Scuba Shack actually used, and PADI had no idea. Didn't PADI check to see if this was the only boat KLSS owned and planned to use? They also had no idea that the boat Key Largo Scuba Shack WAS using was a piece of crap, repeatedly breaking down and having to be towed in. Yet they were content to list KLSS on their site as an implied endorsement. Sadly, that's exactly how Aimee ended up on that boat. Her brother and sister-in-law had done some diving, and found Key Largo Scuba Shack on the PADI web site. Assuming that meant it was a reputable dive shop, they went diving with them that week, and suggested it to Aimee as well.

Who: Mike & Judy S.
Why: There was some dispute about their role in the management or ownership of the Key Largo Scuba Shack. I recall seeing a news report that listed Mike as the manager. I heard they were minority owners. They claimed that they held no ownership, but had simply loaned the primary owners money. Regardless their official role, it seems clear they were involved in a hands-on way, which means they could have had some say in the maintenance and care of the boat and other equipment. At the very least, I feel they had a moral obligation to intervene if the boat was unsafe and they knew it.

Who: The U.S. Coast Guard.
Why: In a way, it is quite unfair to list them here. They conducted a thorough investigation, as best as I can tell. And leading up to the events of December 18, they did what they were bound to do.

So why are they on this list?

Vessels used to carry passengers commercially, or at least dive boats in Florida, are subject to annual Coast Guard inspection. However, there are too many boats, and not nearly enough resources for the Coast Guard to inspect them all, so an exception is made for "6-packs" - boats that carry six or fewer passengers. This leads us to the sad history of the Get Wet (the boat Aimee died in). It was large enough to carry more a larger load of passengers; however, since it had apparently failed a number of Coast Guard inspections, KLSS decided to reclassify it as a 6-pack to avoid any further inspections.

Still, the boat was so bad that it broke down multiple times, and had to be towed in. The owners were supposed to file reports of this to the Coast Guard, but apparently never did. Again, not the Coast Guard's fault, but they also have nothing in place to monitor these types of incidents and follow up, which then puts the lives of innocent people like Aimee at risk.

I maintain that it should be enforceable policy that if a boat fails a Coast Guard inspection, it can't be used (at least not commercially) until it does.

All of this leads us to...

Who: Last but not least, Chris Jones and Alison Gracey. Yes, THEY get their last names used.

The Key Largo Scuba Shack logo,
taken from their Facebook page

Why: These two are the primary owners of what was once Key Largo Scuba Shack. These pieces of garbage were in the Bahamas opening a new Scuba Shack branch when Aimee was killed, and as British citizens, decided they'd be better off staying there and not returning to the U.S. to face what had happened.

And why wouldn't they want to?

Because, my good friends, they are the ones most directly responsible for Aimee being dead. And they know it.

They took shortcuts on the care and maintenance of the boat, which is why it was in such bad shape (hatches not fastened or properly sealed). The life jackets were nowhere to be seen. And the fire extinguisher had expired more than a year earlier. Every time that boat went out, they jeopardized people's lives, and they didn't give a shit.

From the Facebook page of Key Largo Scuba Shack on
December 8, 2011. It was the last post they made on  their page

As I already mentioned, the boat had broken down multiple times, yet they patched it up (as opposed to really fixing the boat's problems) and kept sending it out, and they failed to report these incidents to the Coast Guard. The huge hatch/storage bench wasn't properly sealed to keep water out of the hull, or fastened to the deck to keep it from coming loose. Which is why the boat sank, and when it did, that huge box broke loose and pinned Aimee to the window, trapping her in the boat and causing her to drown.

In summary, there were a number of "critical elements", of which if any single one of them had been different, Aimee likely wouldn't have died:

• Coast Guard inspected the boat and refused to allow it to be used any ANY commercial use until it passed
• Chris Jones and Alison Gracey had taken proper care of the boat, particularly making sure all hatches were sealed and secured
• Mike and Judy had intervened and either taken care of the boat or notified the Coast Guard of the boat's problems or breakdowns
• PADI had been less concerned with making money off of sales of their materials and classes and more concerned with making sure that the dive shops they implicitly endorsed were in fact reputable
• John hadn't had his passengers move up to the front under the hard top, but instead moved them near the back and had them put on life preservers
• Kara had intervened and had passengers do the above when John did not
• Kara had ensured the other passengers were above water and about to be rescued, then grabbed some scuba gear and joined John in the rescue efforts of the two missing people

Next: Part 3 - What I wish for the outcome of all of this
ICYMI: Part 1: Here's what happened on December 18, 2011

Part 1: Here's what happened on December 18, 2011

This post has been a long time coming...

I am going to tell you, as best as I can ascertain, what happened on December 18, 2011. The information here is culled from conversations with investigators, and my own reading of the accident reports and witness statements. I will not claim everything as absolute fact, because if you've ever been involved in any way with a disastrous incident, you know that things can be so chaotic that it's possible that no one will be able to determine the exact correctness of every detail. That being said, this account, I'm confident, is pretty right on.

On the afternoon of December 18, the Key Largo Scuba Shack boat "Get Wet" was moored at Molasses Reef off the coast of the Florida Keys. There were six divers, three of them "discover" divers (beginners, who had gone through the training that morning in a pool), and three more experienced divers, one of whom was Aimee's sister-in-law Caroline. Aimee was one of the discover divers, going on her first-ever scuba dive excursion.

While the divers were out on the first of two planned dives, water started coming over the back (stern) of the boat as the waves picked up a bit. Since the transom (back wall) of the boat had a section cut out to allow divers on and off the boat (as opposed to a door that opened and closed, and might have had some seal around it to keep water out), the water came onto the deck. Normally, the water would roll back off, but the engine hatch, which also held a large bench and storage bin built into it, was not properly sealed, nor was it properly secured. Other hatches also appear to have been both improperly sealed or secured.

Since there were hatches that were not sealed, water began spilling down into the hull of the boat, and at an alarming rate. Further complicating matters, the bilge pump (which pumps water out of a boat's hull) stopped working. The boat captain, John, posted this on his Facebook page while the divers were in the water.

As the first dive was completed and the divers returned to the boat, the water situation was becoming worse. Apparently there was some discussion about whether or not the second dive would happen, and there seem to be conflicting reports on whether or not the boat was headed to the second dive or headed back to port. As best as I can tell, the boat captain was taking the boat back to shore.

As the boat continued to take on water, and the stern dragged deeper into the water, the captain had the divers move farther towards the front, under the hard top of the boat. Apparently, he was trying to counterbalance the dragging back end by putting more weight at the front. There seemed to be a brief and tense conversation between the dive instructor (Kara) and John. At some point, John apparently also sent out a distress call, which was overheard by a nearby boat. Then, moments later, the Get Wet rocked hard to the left (port) as the amount of water in the hull reached a critical level, and then the boat capsized, sinking stern first.

When the boat rolled, Aimee was thrown from the starboard (right) side to the other. The unsecured engine hatch (the huge bench/box in the photo below) broke loose from its place and pinned her to the front window of the boat. Caroline was pushed out a window by Kara, and most of the others found their way out as well. The exception was a young man from New Jersey by the name of Amit, who was also trapped in the boat (though in a different place).

This large bench is also the engine hatch. Although it's in
its proper place in this post-accident photo, this is what
apparently broke loose and pinned Aimee to the front
window of the boat. This photo was taken as part of the
 investigation after the boat was salvaged from the water 

As those who escaped the boat reached the surface, they found a raft that had been on the top of the Get Wet now floating in the water, and they made their way to that. At this time, is also became apparent that two people were missing. John, the boat captain, grabbed some scuba dive equipment that was floating in the water and headed down to the now sunken boat. Another scuba dive boat (The "Visibility") moored nearby, which had heard the distress call moments earlier, pulled anchor and headed over to rescue the people in the water.

After a short period of time, and after the people on the "Visibility" had rescued those in the water, John resurfaced with Amit, who was unconscious and not breathing. Amit was pulled onto the Visibility, and someone on the boat began CPR. John then re-submerged to find Aimee.

When John returned to the sunken boat, he first found one of Aimee's arms sticking out a window. When he pulled on it to try and free her, he was unsuccessful, so he went back into the boat and essentially through the engine hatch, under which Aimee was still pinned. Finding where she was stuck, he freed her, and then brought her to the surface. By this time, Amit had been revived and was receiving oxygen, though he was still unconscious. Aimee was pulled on board and people began to administer CPR. The Visibility then headed towards the shore.

Although CPR was administered to Aimee during the entire ride (roughly 25 minutes), she never resumed breathing. EMS met the boat as it arrived on shore, and EMTs took over the CPR. But apparently they stopped fairly quickly, recognizing the futility of their efforts. They pronounced her dead, and left Aimee's body on the boat until the Medical Examiner's Office arrived to take possession of her body.

Amit was taken to a local hospital, then flown to a hospital in Miami. From what information I have, he has made a complete recovery (at least physically).

At some point after the boat reached shore, Caroline called her husband (Aimee's brother) Justin and told him he needed to come to the marina immediately, that something had happened with the boat. Justin, frantic, asked me for the keys to my rental car, sharing only that there was a problem with the boat and he needed to go. He left, and did not return my texts or calls while he was gone. I don't recall how long that was, but it felt like an eternity.

When he returned, he was with two law enforcement officers, a member of the local clergy, and a victim's advocate. Caroline was also with him, although she stayed in the car for some time before she came into the house.

That's when I received the terrible news: Aimee was dead.

There are a few things I have focused on in regards to this accident, some of which I'll expand more on in the next post. 1. Why were the hatches not properly sealed to prevent water from getting into the hull in such catastrophic amounts? 2. Why was the engine hatch not properly fastened to the deck, the failure to do so being the reason Aimee was pinned in the boat? 3. Instead of trying to save the boat by putting people toward the front of the boat and under the hard top, why weren't people put in life jackets and moved to a position where they could easily escape if necessary? And finally, 4. Why did the dive master, the person likely most responsible for the well-being of those beginning divers, not also attempt to help rescue the two people who were missing?

Like I said, I'll get more into these in the next post.

Part 2: The various players in this tragedy, and my determination of their role in Aimee's death
Part 3. What I'd like to see in the aftermath of Aimee's death

What's coming next on this blog

Last month, nearly two years after Aimee's death, I finally asked my lawyer for a copy of the official accident report. We'd had conversations with one of the accident investigators early on, and had an idea, at least unofficially, what had happened. But to date I had never read the official report.

Last week, I sat down and read the whole thing in one sitting.

Truth be told, there wasn't a lot there I didn't already know. I had incorrectly remembered exactly how the water started getting into the hull of the boat, but otherwise the particulars of the incident were pretty much already known to me. What was both informative but extremely difficult to read was the statement by the boat's captain, where he described finding Aimee and trying to get her out of the sunken boat. It gave me some insight as to why she might not have been able to escape the boat, but created a distinct and very disturbing visual of her predicament in her final moments.

So I am now in the process of putting together a three-part blog series about the incident, with those parts being:

1. My understanding of what happened that day
2. Who are the players, and what role did they have in Aimee's death
3. What I'd like to see, in the future, in a perfect world

The final week, as seen through Facebook posts

Initially, I planned to share the last week of Aimee's life by writing about each of those days and sharing what we were doing and feeling. But after spending too many hours way too late into the night going back and reading these Facebook posts from last year, I decided this is a better way to share. Not only will it be a LOT less for you to read, but I think it gives a clearer picture of how great that week was, seeing it how I felt at the time, and not viewed through a dark lens of grief like I do now. I'll still add some background to the ones that seem to need it.

These are some of my Facebook posts from Aimee's last week alive:

Early the morning of Monday, December 11, upon arrival in Miami.

We had a really nice dinner on the deck of a seafood restaurant not far from our vacation house. I recall that Aimee and Caroline enjoyed their delicious sangria.

I didn't have enough vacation time to take the whole week off, so I put in some work several of the days we were there.

This was a really fun night. To this day I really appreciate Justin for suggesting they take Rowan back and letting Aimee and I have this date night. Such a gift that was.

________________________________________________________

Aimee's last whole day alive...

The beach trip is a funny story. The Keys are really rocky, and there are very few real sandy beaches, We found one about 45 minutes south, but it took us almost an hour and a half by the time we also grabbed lunch plus bought some beach toys. When we got there, the 'beach' was only about 6 feet deep, there was no shade at all, and it was HOT. We only stayed for about 20 minutes, and then we headed back.

This dinner was really very special. Not just because it was our last one as a 'whole' family, or because the food was amazing. It was more than that, and it was because of Aimee. If you're interested, you can read about it on this post I wrote last January: Our last (family) supper 

________________________________________________________

This post was early afternoon of December 18. I posted this on Facebook just over an hour before Aimee died. That last line would haunt me: "...even more glad when she safely returns."

At approximately 3:15 pm ET (if I remember the time correctly), Key Largo Scuba Shack's boat, "Get Wet", capsized and sank at Molasses Reef in about 30 feet of water. There were eight people on board - 6 passengers, one dive master/instructor, and the boat captain. Aimee was one of the passengers, as was her sister-in-law, Caroline. Two passengers, one of them Aimee, were trapped in the boat as it went down. The other passenger who was trapped was rescued first, and was eventually revived. By the time Aimee was pulled from the water, it was too late.

Thankfully, Caroline was not hurt.

I heard the news from Justin later that evening. I don't remember what time it was, but I recall that it was starting to get dark, so probably around 5:30 in the evening.

A while later, I made some phone calls. I called my mother, and a couple of my closest friends. Then I called a couple of Aimee's closest friends.

(For a more detailed account of December 18, read the post, "Aimee's last day".)

The next day, I made the announcement to everyone I was connected to via Facebook with this post:

My next blog post will show the next week or so via Facebook posts, just like this. How we got through the last two days in Florida, the God-awful trip home, Christmas, and Aimee's memorial.

Back to Florida?

Someday, either I or Rowan may want
to revisit these waters off the coast
of Florida

Back in May, I was struggling with how I wanted to recognize the one year anniversary of Aimee's death, even though it was still about seven months away at the time. I wrote a post here (Dilemma - I'd like advice) asking what people thought of my idea, which was to go back to Florida, charter a boat to take me to the place where she died, and scatter flowers on the water there. This seemed to be how I felt led to recognize that event, but ultimately what I wanted or needed was a ceremonial act of closure. I felt like I needed to do something to 'finish this chapter' and begin the next one. And as of June and into July, I'd about 99% made up my mind that I was going to go.

Then in late July, as I was realizing how hard it would be and how incredibly powerful and symbolic it was going to feel to scatter Aimee's ashes (Letting go of Aimee... literally) it occurred to me that I would have that act of closure then, on that mountaintop. And the more I thought about how that was going to feel, the less I felt like I needed to go to Florida and recognize the anniversary of Aimee's death there.

To be certain, I will do something on December 18, and Rowan will be part of that. Others may be also. And I know that at some point in the future I may again feel the need to go back to Florida, or maybe when Rowan gets older she might want me to take her. I don't know. What I do know is that for now, I am no longer feeling the need to go there myself at this time (thankfully).

Dilemma - I'd like advice

OK, so I have this dilemma...

For whatever reason, I have been thinking a LOT about how I want to recognize the one-year anniversary of Aimee's death, even though it's still almost seven months away. I don't know why I have this preoccupation, but it's been going on for 5-6 weeks now. And I think I've settled on what I want to do, but I'm still having some doubts.

I think I want to go back to Florida, charter a boat to take me out to where Aimee died, and scatter some flowers out onto the water.

Now, the mere thought of setting foot in Florida makes me uncomfortable. Thinking of going back to The Keys makes me sick and nauseous beyond belief. And the idea of sitting in a boat in the water right where Aimee lost her life gives me a primal fear I can't even describe. And yet, this seems to be where my gut is leading me to go.

Initially I thought that if I took such a trip, I'd want to do it alone. But after thinking about it I realized that having family along (Aimee's and mine) wouldn't be a bad thing at all (if they wanted to be there). I sent everyone in the family an email a day or so ago, and a dialog on the subject has ensued (out of respect for their privacy I won't share what everyone's thoughts are, but the discussion has been VERY positive).

The bottom line is, I'm torn. I HATE the idea of going back there, but I have such a strong desire to do so. It's still a long ways away, so I know that no matter what I decide, I may very well feel very differently months from now. But since we're talking about mid-December, I'd rather make arrangements sooner rather than later before the costs of making the trip get too high.

Does anyone have any insight they'd like to offer?

Missing Aimee

Today is December 19, 2011. It's the one year anniversary of my father-in-law Terry's passing after a three year battle with cancer. But now it's something even more. It's the day after my wife died in a tragic accident.

Aimee, our daughter Rowan (3 1/2 years old), Aimee's mom Donna, her brother Justin and his wife Caroline and I all came down to the Florida Keys to have a celebration in honor of Terry's life. Part of what Aimee hoped to do was go scuba diving, something she's always wanted to do. Since Justin and Caroline had been diving for several months, they encouraged her to go, and yesterday Aimee took her beginning skills class. After she was finished, Caroline joined her and some other people and they went out for two ocean dives.

I don't know exactly what happened yet, but at some point after a dive, Aimee was back on the boat when it began to take on water and capsized. Aimee was trapped under the boat, and they were unable to rescue her in time.

Thankfully, Caroline was not hurt.

I don't know exacly what I'm going to do with this blog yet, but I was thinking that when I get filled up with emotion and anger and sadness and whatever, I'll post some of it here. I also want to ask others to post their thoughts and experiences here if they moved to do so. Blogger doesn't seem to easily let people log in our create profiles, but if you'll just sign your names to your comments, I'd love to hear from you.