BERMAGUI, Australia (4 Dec 2007) — The effort to recover the body of a Sydney Project diver who disappeared more than a month ago off the coast of Bermagui is ongoing according to police officials. Sven Paepke, 42, went missing while leading a Sydney Project dive expedition to the Iron Knight shipwreck. Authorities told CDNN they believe the victim's scuba diving equipment malfunctioned as he descended to the wreck. Four other Sydney Project divers who were participating in the Iron Knight dive realized that their expedition leader was in trouble, but told the media rescuing him would have endangered their own lives. "We had to decide whether to go and grab (Paepke) and do a blue water ascent and risk our lives," Paul Garske told reporters. "It was a horrible decision but I was thinking about my (life) and buddies' lives." The Iron Knight is located 125 meters beneath the surface, more than three times deeper than the typical recreational scuba diving depth limit of 40 meters. Attempts to recover Paepke's body have been hampered by bad weather and equipment problems. © CDNN - CYBER DIVER NEWS NETWORK | 
