Page 15 - AlertDiver_Winter2013
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remain greater threats that cannot be
solved by MPAs in and of themselves.
As I understand it, scientists who
have studied these threats believe
species adaptation is possible for ocean
warming but is unlikely for ocean
acidification. Under the circumstances,
all divers should be doing whatever they
can — individually and collectively — to
reduce climate change.
—Mickey Rosenau, Bellaire, Texas
I enjoyed reading about the “Texas
Caribbean” by Janene Fowler (“Our
National Marine Sanctuaries,” Fall
2012). The article included a great
picture of a blenny on platform HI
389. I can attest to the beauty of this
platform having dived it three times.
As you may know, HI 389 is no longer
in production and is scheduled to be
removed. It should be pointed out that
with the loss of the vertical structure
goes the loss of the many marine
species it supported. However divers
may feel about offshore drilling, the
aftermath (decommissioned platforms)
leaves unusual and beautiful marine
habitats that should be saved.
— Terry Migaud
secretary/treasurer, Louisiana
Council of Underwater Dive Clubs
Thanks for your interest in this
important topic, Terry. Check out this
issue’s Water Planet article on Page 104.
The Big C
I brought your magazine with me to the
Bahamas while getting cancer treatment,
and your article about cancer (Member
to Member, Fall 2012) caught my eye.
I have been diving for 46 years and
fighting cancer for more than five years.
I resumed diving about six months after
prostate surgery with a father-daughter
trip to the Florida Keys. Neutral
buoyancy and floating free in the warm
water allowed me to forget about the
pelvic pain and focus on enjoying the
sea life and the dives. Diving became a
therapeutic break from thinking about
my advancing cancer and the continuing
pain from the surgery.
— Stephan Johnson, via email
Back in August I asked my primary-care
physician about a small dark patch on
my right cheek. He said it might be just
a discoloration, but he referred me to a
dermatologist. My dermatologist looked
at it with a bright light, said she didn’t
like the look of it and took a biopsy.
The biopsy came back as lentigo
maligna melanoma, a type of melanoma
that spreads laterally before spreading
to other parts of the body. Last
Thursday she removed a large patch of
skin from my cheek. I will need to have
plastic surgery to repair the wound. In
the past 25 years, I have been careful
to wear a hat and a protective shirt and
use sunscreen. I also regularly inspect
moles for changes. But I have had some
very bad sunburns over the years. I’ve
been a diver since 1971, and I am a
snow skier and backpacker as well. All
these activities result in sun exposure.
We divers have to be careful to
wear sunscreen, cover up and wear
sunglasses when we are out of the
water. This is especially true when we
dive in tropical destinations.
— Robert Bynum, Fremont, Calif.
Many other readers shared stories of
how cancer affected their lives in and
out of the water. Watch future issues for
additional coverage of cancer and diving.
Good Reading, Safe Diving
You’ve done a great job of bringing the
dive culture of safety and the beauty of
the depths together in the magazine.
Your pictures and highly informative
articles are easy to read and reread!
—Kevin Frillman, via Facebook
I love Alert Diver and always have copies
around when I teach open-water courses
to plant the seeds of dive safety.
—Avi Ratica, via Facebook
WRITE US
Tell us what’s on your mind by
writing us at:
MAIL
Alert Diver
6 West Colony Place
Durham, NC 27705
ONLINE
Send email to:
All letters included in this column are
subject to editing for length and content.
TheMagazineofDivers alerTneTwork
AlertDiver.com / FALL 2012
Pete Zuccarini:
From Blue Sea to Silver Screen
Celebrating Our
national marine SanctuarieS
+
BahamaS
big, blue and bOld
the art oF
ShiPwreck hunting
unCOvering
MaritiMe HistOry
DiagnoSing Dci
WHat Will tHe
dOCtOr dO?
Cover1_gold.indd 1
10/16/12 10:03AM
CORRECTIONS
The Advanced Diving article in the Fall 2012 issue (“Ice Diving”) failed to
include proper attribution to the following important source:
Mastro, J., J. Bozanic, and R. Robbins. 1998. Antarctic Scientific Diving
Manual, 2nd edition. United States Antarctic Program. National Science
Foundation, NSF 99-22 (Rep. 94-148).
We regret the omission.
