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International Diving School
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Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka |
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From our
trip to Great Basses (Kirinda) - April 2008
 
 
01st
November 2005
We opened our newly built diving
centre today. Since most of our equipment was either lost or
damaged in the tsunami, almost all the diving gear had to be
replaced. We are thankful to all who donated equipment to us,
so we can resume our business in the coming season. 
 
26th June 2005
We dived in M/V Cordiality which was attacked and sunk by
LTTE guerillas on 09th September 1997 with a cargo of 27,000
tons of mineral sand, off the coast of Pulmudai. The ship
which sits upright is probably the only complete shipwreck
presently in the waters of Sri Lanka. Due to the magnitude
of the vessel, it is difficult to go around it in one dive.
One can penetrate inside the ship through the entrance to
the cabin.
 
We accessed this site after an arduous journey over land to
Podeikattu, a small village where fisher folk have
established temporarily till the end of the season, and
hired a fishing boat from there. It may take around 3 hours
to reach, if one wishes to travel by boat from Trincomalee.
27th June 2005
We explored a cave on the side of Swami Rock, which we found
only a few meters long. The beautiful corals in the Dutch
Bay are still there to be seen and admired, though, it was
reported that the tsunami had destroyed some of them. Only
about 4-5 meters deep, one can snorkel or even see them from
the boat itself.
 
29th & 30th May 2005 - Diving in Kalmune
Our diving trip to Kalmune was successful. We could dive
in 02 shipwrecks, located within a 5
minute boat ride to the shore, both around 12 meters
deep. There was excellent visibility and one could
clearly see the wrecks from the boat itself.
The first wreck we dived, we believe
is either HMS Hollyhock or RMS Athelstane, allied war
ships that were bombed and sunk by Japanese in 1942 off
the coast of Kalmune.
Our boatman said that the second
wreck was of a ship that developed engine trouble and
sank in late 1960s.
Diving in Kalmune, located in the
Eastern coast, can be done during the time of South West
monsoons mainly May to September. No local dive centers
are available, hence all equipment needs to be taken. A
local fishing boat can be hired. One needs to keep an
eye on the strong currents.
 
Diving in Great Basses Reef
16th April 2005
We dived in the "bottle ship" near Great Basses light
house. This has been a ship that was carrying soda
bottles to Sri Lanka in late 19th century. Fragments of
glass bottles still can be seen in the site. The two
anchors are clearly visible.
We did a drift dive along the reef afterwards, with the
help of the current. The highlight of the day, was a
shoal of over 10 dolphins that kept circling around our
boat.
17th April 2005
We could dive in the famous "coin ship" where Arthur
C.Clarke & Mike Wilson found bundles of silver coins in
1960's. Located on the south of the light house, the
site lies hidden, hence can be accessed only by diving
between the openings of the reef. The currents are quite
strong and one has to cling on to the rocks to prevent
himself being tossed up and about. A canon and the
anchor of the ship can be identified among the other
debris.
Great Basses Reef, located in the South East of the
island, off the coast of Kirinda, is famous for it's
shipwrecks. It's about half an hour boat ride from
Kirinda fisheries harbour. Due to strong currents and
rough sea conditions, diving can be done only in the
month of April, when the North East monsoons end and
South West monsoons are about to start.
03rd April 2005 - Hikkaduwa reef clean-up
International Diving School facilitated the reef cleanup
program initiated by Sri Lanka Sub Aqua Club and IUCN
(World Conservation Union) with the help of volunteers.
The main purpose was to remove the fishing nets
entangled on the reef. This exercise was rather
difficult due to the prevailing rough sea condition,
however Somey and Marten Meynell of IUCN, both past
commercial divers, managed to cut one fishing net and
float it using make-shift airbags, and snorkelers
removed it to the boat. The debris scattered in the
shallow water was also removed by volunteers, and
disposed.
It was highlighted by Somey that, further cleanup
programs need to be carried out, as when the monsoon
starts and sea becomes rough, the debris buried in the
sand will not be noticeable. Hence it was decided to
carry out further beach and reef cleanup in near future.
29th January 2005
We started back our operations today. The hotel is
re-building the diving center, so we were given a room
to operate for the time being. Filling the tanks is done
at Somey's home. Not having sufficient diving gear is
the problem, but we can manage. Some of our guests were
kind enough to donate some used equipment, and some left
their own diving gear for us to use for the time being.
Not many divers, but we need to keep things going.
We'd like to thank every one who helped us during these
days. So sorry if we could not write to any of you
individually, or respond to your e-mails, but we will
always remember how our dear customers and friends were
with us during the worst disaster our country had
experienced.
We appreciate the help and assistance given to the
people in Sri Lanka in the time of need.
05th January 2005
We dived in Godagala, Coral Garden Cave and Hikkaduwa
Gala. The tsunami has not caused any damage to any of
the dive sites.
02nd January 2005
Today, Somey snorkeled around the coral reef. No damage
done to the corals, except a lot of debris scattered in
the area. Fishing nets were entangled in corals, so they
need to be removed carefully.
30th December 2004
We started to salvage whatever was there at the diving
center, though not much was left.
28th December 2004
Today Somey managed to get down some diesel for his van through a friend, and took the remaining foreigners who stayed at his house to the airport. Additional flights had been deployed to evacuate foreign tourists out of the country.
Purchased food and vegetables from Colombo. We were sick
of eating rice and dhal for 3 days, as nothing was
available in Hikkaduwa.
27th December 2004
26th December 2004 - The day of the Tsunami
This was the day that disaster struck not only International
Diving School, but the whole country.
The day dawned just like any other Sunday, with a bright sky and
a calm and clear sea. Previous night’s Christmas celebrations
were still in the air. We had about 30 guests, both foreign and
local. The two asst. instructors, Dharshana and Ishan were
planning to take one group to Kirala Gala and the others to the
Conch wreck. By 9 o’clock, everybody started getting ready,
preparing their equipment, and were to set off by 9.30. By 9.15,
our boss, Somey noticed something unusual about the sea, as the
sea level seemed to have risen. There were some children playing
on the beach, and Somey shouted his boys to go and bring them
up. The sea level was actually rising, and waves were crashing
closer and closer towards the diving center. As the first wave
rolled inside the center, some started picking up the equipment
on the floor and keeping them on racks to prevent them being
washed away, but no way, the second wave came instantly, and
before anyone could recover themselves in the knee deep water,
the third wave crashed in pushing everyone further inside the
diving center. Whoever was there, had to swim out and run for
their lives, through the Hotel, across the road, and further
inside the village. The whole thing took less than a minute.
When the sea receded, the diving center crew and a few guests
who dared, returned to the scene. Luckily, no one among us was
missing, except for a few who were injured in the rush. The
diving center was in shambles, its roof collapsed in, and pieces
scattered everywhere, most equipment washed away and some buried
underneath the debris.
What was most astonishing, was the sea. It had retreated further away from the shore about half a kilometer, a sight no Sri Lankan had experienced earlier. The reef, which was about 30 meters away from the beach, was now fully visible. One could see a white smoke rising from the coral reef. Akim, one of our German guests, sensed that something was wrong, and climbed up the hotel balcony and gave us a warning, it might come back. His prediction was correct. In about a half an hour, we could see a thirty foot high, massive black wave rolling towards the shore. Again, everybody bolted. Once the waves receded after causing a bigger damage, the boats which were inside the Hikkaduwa fishing harbour were seen on top of the reef, in front of the hotel. By now, no one knew what to do exactly, except to flee at the sight of the next wave. The third and the final wave hit Hikkaduwa by around 11.30 a.m. causing the biggest damage. It took the fishing boats which were on the reef, further inside and most ended up in front of the hotels, some on the road, and a few were carried past the railway track, which is located some 50 meters away from the main road. As the day passed, both foreign tourists and residents in the area who lost their homes, still not recovered from the shock, gathered in the village temple or nearby houses to spend the night. Villagers brought food and clothing to the stranded people. Somay gave shelter to about 30 guests in his house. It is unlikely that anyone in Hikkaduwa had any sleep that night, as most were expecting another tsunami. Thus ended the day, which Sri Lanka faced her biggest natural disaster, that claimed more than 30,000 lives throughout the country, and left over a million homeless.
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