WAVE DANCER TIMELINE: A Chronology of Key EventsOct 4, 2001 Thursday 1700 - Tropical depression #11 forms over the windward islands 55 km (35 miles) east, southeast of St. Vincent. The depression is moving west, northwest at 18 mph. Heavy squalls expected over Lesser Antilles. Oct 5 Friday 1100 - Dominican Republic and Haiti issue tropical storm warnings. Oct 5 Friday 1700 - Tropical depression #11 becomes Tropical Storm Iris moving west, northwest at 15 miles per hour. National Hurricane Center (Miami) warns that Iris is expected to become hurricane on Saturday. Haiti, Dominican Republic issue hurricane warnings. Jamaica issues tropical storm watch. Oct 5 Friday 1700 - Cuba issues hurricane watch. Jamaica upgrades tropical storm watch to hurricane watch. Iris is moving west at 18 mph. National Hurricane Center (Miami) tracking models predict it will hit the Yucatan Peninsula/Belize. Three days before Wave Dancer finally pulls anchor and runs for shelter, National Hurricance Center tracking models predict Iris will hit Yucatan Peninsula/Belize... |
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Oct 6 Saturday 1100 - Jamaica and Cuba issue hurricane warnings, the Cayman Islands issues a hurricane watch. Storm surge is now predicted to be 4 to 5 feet above normal tide levels with dangerous battering waves. Richmond Dive Club members leave the US for Belize. Oct 6 Saturday 1700 - Iris becomes hurricane. Hurricane warnings remain in effect in Haiti, Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Cuba. A hurricane watch remains in effect for the Cayman Islands. Hurricane Iris is shifting direction, now moving west rather than west-northwest at 17 mph with maximum sustained winds increasing to 120 km/hr (75 mph). At about 1800, Wave Dancer and Belize Aggressor depart with Richmond Dive Club members for offshore reefs. Oct 6 Saturday 2300 - Maximum sustained winds increase to 140 km/hr (87.5 mph) with 175 190 km/hr (110-120 mph) winds forecast within one to two days. On Saturday before Wave Dancer sets sail for offshore reefs, Iris is designated a hurricane... |
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Oct 7 Sunday 1100 - NOAA's National Hurricane Center predicts that "IRIS COULD REACH EASTERN YUCATAN OR NORTHERN BELIZE AS A MAJOR HURRICANE WITHIN 36 TO 48 HOURS". Manta Resort at Glovers Reef, just south of Lighthouse Reef orders immediate evacuation of guests, staff. Wave Dancer remains anchored of Lighthouse Reef as guests dive and party. Oct 7 Sunday 1400 - Belize issues hurricane watch as resorts and hotels continue to evacuate guests to emergency shelters. Honduras issues hurricane watch. Wave Dancer remains offshore anchored at Lighthouse Reef. As the National Hurricane Center predicts Iris will become a major hurricane and hit Belize, hotels and resorts begin evacuating guests and staff. Wave Dancer remains anchored offshore at Lighthouse Reef as guests dive and party... |
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Oct 7 Sunday 2300 - National Hurricane Center tracking models predict Iris could move south of due west. Belize issues hurricane warning. Guatemala issues a hurricane watch. Evacuations continue in Belize. Wave Dancer remains offshore anchored at Lighthouse Reef. Oct 8 Monday 500 - Iris is strengthening rapidly and moving west at 20 mph towards Belize. Honduras and Guatemala issue hurricane warnings. The hurricane warning remains in effect in Belize as authorities evacuate people to emergency shelters. Maximum sustained winds increase to 170 km/hr (110 mph) with predicted storm surge at 10 feet above normal tide level. Guests are asleep aboard Wave Dancer, which is still anchored seven hours offshore at Lighthouse Reef. National Hurricane Center tracking models predict Iris could move south of due west. Honduras and Guatemala to the south of Belize issue hurricane warnings... |
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Oct 8 Monday 800 - Iris is now an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane, the most powerful of the season with maximum sustained winds of 225 km/hr (140 mph). National Hurricane Center predicts coastal Belize will experience storm surge 13 to 18 feet above normal tide levels with huge, dangerous battering waves. The National Hurricane Center warns that the hurricane is expected to turn south to southwest but Wave Dancer heads south, southwest at a speed of 8 knots after finally pulling the hook at Lighthouse Reef. Guests appear unconcerned about the threat of a Category 4 hurricane as they check out their underwater photos and paint each other's toenails. As Iris becomes an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane, Wave Dancer finally pulls the hook, but heads south directly into the path of predicted movement by the National Hurricane Center... |
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Oct 8 Monday 1100 - Hotels and resorts in Belize shut down as guests are evacuated inland to emergency shelters. Wave Dancer crawls along at 8 knots towards Big Creek. Wave Dancer crew want to move inshore to emergency shelters but Captain Martin threatens to fire anyone who leaves the vessel. Only Angela Luk goes ashore... |
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Oct 8 Monday 1500 - Oct 8 Monday 1500 Wave Dancer finally arrives at Big Creek. Hurricane Iris is expected to hit the coast within hours as an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane. Wave Dancer crew request permission to move inland to emergency shelters but Captain Philip Martin threatens to fire any crew who refuses to remain onboard during the hurricane. One crew, Angela Luk, decides to give up her job for an emergency shelter and survives the hurricane. Local Belizean mayor advises Aggressor/Wave Dancer party to evacuate boats and move to shelter of new concrete home but the warnings are ignored... |
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Oct 8 Monday 1600 - Local Belizean mayor advises Aggressor/Wave Dancer party to evacuate boats and move immediately to shelter of a new concrete home. Bus transportartion is offered for all. The warnings are ignored and the offer declined as preparations aboard Wave Dancer and Aggressor continue for a "Hurricane" dinner party. Iris slams into Wave Dancer just as guests finish dinner. Twenty people are killed including 17 Richmond Dive Club members and three crew... |
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Oct 8 Monday 1930 - Hurricane Iris, packing lethal 230 km/hr (140 mph) maximum sustained winds, slams into Big Creek soon after Wave Dancer guests finish their "Hurricane" dinner and drinks. The destructive fury of the eye wall of Iris rips Wave Dancer from the dock and capsizes her, killing 17 guests and 3 crew. Three guests and five crew survived, including Angela Luk, the only Belizean Wave Dancer crew member willing to sacrifice her job to get to an emergency shelter. Peter Hughes Diving Inc. issues statement that guests were not evacuated because hotels were closed... |
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Oct 9 Tuesday - Peter Hughes Diving Inc issues statement that guests were forced to remain onboard because no hotels were available. The company tells CDNN they did not know where hotel guests were sheltered and had no emergency contingency plans to evacuate passengers. Peter Hughes Diving Inc. issues statement about hurricane movement that contradicts warnings issued by the National Hurricane Center... |
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Oct 10 Wednesday - Peter Hughes Diving Inc issues statement that the hurricane was expected to hit the northern part of Belize and suddenly veered south, but National Hurricane Center warnings predicted movement to the south, southwest as early as Sunday. Oct 11 Thursday - Peter Hughes Diving Inc and its attorneys issue gag order forbidding staff from answering questions about what actually happened at Big Creek. Wayne Hasson of the Aggressor Fleet angers Belizeans by stating on Belize television that people are safer on boats than in concrete emergency evacuation centers... |
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Oct 12 Friday - Wayne Hasson, Aggressor Fleet Operations Manager, states on a Belize television news program that when Category 4 hurricanes hit coastal areas, guests are safer staying on dive boats than evacuating to inland emergency shelters. Oct 13 Saturday - Belizeans and the diving public express shock and anger after learning that Peter Hughes Diving threatened to fire Belizean crew if they went ashore to emergency evacuation shelters. Peter Hughes Diving Inc. angers its own customers by refusing to make full cash refunds to those who booked trips aboard Wave Dancer... |
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Oct 15 Monday - Amid increasing allegations of negligence, Peter Hughes Diving angers its own customers by refusing to make full cash refunds to those who booked trips aboard Wave Dancer. The company refuses to comment on the 'NO REFUNDS' policy. Oct 16 Tuesday - Maritime Safety officials dispute Aggressor Fleet Operations Manager Wayne Hasson's comments that passengers are safer remaining aboard a vessel than evacuating to an emergency shelter during a Category 4 hurricane. One official states that live-aboard dive boats should never depart port when hurricanes are in the region and moving in the general direction of offshore dive sites. Oct 17 Wednesday - A leading naval architect raises concerns about inadequate passenger vessel certification procedures around the world, specifically VCG (Vertical Center of Gravity) calculations that allow for top-heavy, converted crew boats of the type common to the Peter Hughes Diving fleet. Oct 20 Saturday - The family of a crew member who died aboard Wave Dancer dive boat files a $10 million lawsuit against Peter Hughes, alleging that the boat's captain ignored weather warnings and failed to properly safeguard passengers and crew. (Peter Hughes and Captain Philip Martin) "arrogantly and illegally ignored" government orders to evacuate the boat causing the deaths of 17 divers and 3 crew... |
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Oct 22 Tuesday - Rodale's, Skin Diver and other ad-driven magazines publish the Peter Hughes "freak tornado" theory in which Hughes states that a phantom tornado, not human error, caused the Wave Dancer deaths. The press release states "that on October 8...Warnings were issued that stated Hurricane Iris would make landfall in Belize City" as justification for the decision that would put Wave Dancer much farther south and directly in the path of the hurricane. In fact, the National Hurricane Center predicted as early as Sunday evening that Hurricane Iris could turn south, and by Monday morning at 0800 before Wave Dancer pulled the hook, warned that it had developed into an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane and was expected to move south to southwest. Nov 16 Friday - Families of three more Wave Dancer victims file wrongful death lawsuits against Peter Hughes Inc owner, Peter Hughes, and Wave Dancer captain, Philip Martin, alleging that they "arrogantly and illegally ignored" government orders to evacuate the boat as Hurricane Iris blew into Belize, causing the deaths of 17 divers and three crew members. Nov 19 Monday - Investigation authorities in Belize dismiss Peter Hughes Inc's 'tornado spin' stating there is no evidence to support the claim. Instead, authorities point to the top-heavy profile of Wave Dancer and improper mooring of the vessel. Authorities in Belize dismiss Peter Hughes 'tornado spin' stating there is no evidence to support the claim... |
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Jan 11 Friday, 2002 - Despite ongoing investigations by maritime safety agency authorities, lawsuits and public allegations of criminal negligence, Peter Hughes Diving Inc issues a press release published in Rodale's, Skin Diver and other ad-driven US scuba magazines in which Hughes announces that he is "pleased" and "extremely delighted" to resume business-as-usual operations in Belize. Mar 16 Saturday, 2002 - CDNN publishes Tom Stark interview in which Stark blames Peter Hughes and Peter Hughes Diving Inc for the deaths of his son Aaron and 19 other guests and crew. Mar 17 Sunday, 2002 - On behalf of Tom Stark, Teresa Mars and other family members of Wave Dancer victims, CDNN launches ACT NOW campaign demanding justice and accountability for the worst accident in the history of recreational diving. May 20 Monday, 2002 - Peter Hughes Diving Inc and PADI Sport Diver launch a joint "Track the Sun Dancer II Global Crossing" campaign to promote business-as-usual in Belize with the Sun Dancer II. In a full-page photo spread, Sport Diver announces that "Captain Raymond is transmitting almost daily reports on their progress and their travel adventures." July 23 Tuesday, 2002 - As Sun Dancer II arrives in Belize, Captain Raymond files his final promotional log entry on behalf of Peter Hughes Diving Inc, "Are you still reading this garbage?" Raymond asks. Sept 21 Saturday, 2002 - CDNN publishes Teresa Mars interview in which Mars blasts Wave Dancer owner Peter Hughes, the Richmond Dive Club, Dave DeBarger of the Richmond Dive Club, DAN, DAN president Peter Bennett, PADI and industry-controlled dive magazines for a business-as-usual response to the death of Ray Mars and 19 others who were drowned when Wave Dancer capsized in Belize. Sept 8 Monday, 2003 - CDNN publishes "Into Harm's Way" in which National Geographic blames the deceased passengers for remaining aboard the Wave Dancer. ...it will take a lot more than that for Peter Hughes to buy my silence... |
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Sept 25 Saturday, 2003 - CDNN publishes "Letter to National Geographic: The Wave Dancer Deaths" in which Heather Johnston, daughter of Wave Dancer victims Byron and Shirley Johnston, rebutts National Geographic's article asserting that those who died were somehow responsible for their own deaths. January, 2005 - Over three years after the Peter Hughes Wave Dancer capsized in Belize killing 20 passengers and crew, IMMARBE - the International Marine Registry of Belize - has finally released its investigation into the causes of the accident Have your say about the Wave Dancer tragedy at Scuba Forum | 
