NEWS & MOVIES ARCHIVE

Eco Action in Medulin

Diving Club “Geronimo” took part in second eco-action this year, this time in Medulin. This event was organised by Municipality of Medulin and diving centre “Shark”. About 40 divers from Istria, 15 from DC “Geronimo” and 5 guests from Slovenia were involved in cleaning the sea bottom. However, this event was special because four handicapped divers also participated, two from Croatia and two from Slovenia.

Unfortunately the weather was not on their side, it was cloudy and rainy with south wind that lifted all the sand from the sea bottom so the visibility underwater was minimal. Although there were few attempts, they were all unsuccessful. But as a reward, we will take these attempts in account as diving in extreme difficult conditions, partly because of the waves from south wind partly because of really poor visibility.

Sunday was a different story and the weather was clear. Because of the noon rest of the endemic Mediterranean seal (lat. Monachus monchus) that was taking nap in the caves on the cape “Kamenjak”, the most southern point of Istria, it was decided not to disturb the seal. Therefore the dive took place in the bay named Polje, little bit north-west from Kamenjak. Dive itself was beautiful as all dives in this area, but rather chilly on “comfortable” 13 degrees Celsius.
But on this dive happened something worth mentioning, something that has not been done before – this Tatjana Varga, first female handicapped diver from Croatia, made her first dive from the boat, on diver’s language “into the blue”. We all can remember how we felt when we dived into the blue for the first time, so Tatjana was not an exception. She was little bit nervous, but she did her dive “by the book”. Her first attempt assures that IAHD – Adriatic and DC “Geronimo” have another diver with disability that will dive equally with her club mates.

 
Text: Zoran Vlah - Fratar
Foto: Alenka Fidler (IAHD Adriatic), Mladen Kolenko (Glas Istre)

24. 04. 2010