Eric Seibel

Scuba groups mourn diver

Instructor Eric Seibel died Sunday after exploring a shipwreck called the Lowrance, which lies under 210 feet of water near Hillsboro Inlet.

BY ASHLEY FANTZ AND REBECCA DELLAGLORIA

afantz@herald.com




The South Florida scuba community was stunned and saddened Sunday by the death of Eric Seibel, a popular dive instructor who founded a divers' website and bulletin board.

BSO detectives are investigating Seibel's death, which came one day after his 50th birthday, scuba diving in deep water near Pompano Beach.

He was exploring a shipwreck called the Lowrance, which rests under 210 feet of water near Hillsboro Inlet.

According to Broward Sheriff's spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright, Seibel was part of a diving expedition aboard the Miss Conduct, a 27-foot vessel based in Pompano Beach.

Seibel's friend and dive buddy, Dr. Christos Koutentis of West Palm Beach, noticed that Seibel was ''experiencing complications,'' and brought him to the surface around 11 a.m.

In his own boat in the inlet Sunday, John O'Conner watched at least six Pompano Beach paramedics try to revive Seibel.

He said Seibel was bleeding from his ears, nose and mouth. ''The guy was white from head to toe,'' O'Conner said.

Seibel was taken to North Broward Medical Center, where he died around 11:30 a.m.

Laura Fogel Seibel, Eric's wife, said her husband was a ''very experienced'' diver who had been diving for more than 25 years.

''He loved the water,'' she said. ``Scuba diving was his life.''

He had two children, 11 and 13 years old, as well as ''hundreds and hundreds of friends,'' she said.

Heartfelt postings flooded the website of edivers.org, which Seibel founded.

''I am sad beyond belief to report we have lost E-divers #1 today,'' wrote Brian Patrick.

More notes poured in, citing Seibel's helpfulness and dive expertise.

''I'm truly heartbroken. . . Eric was a mentor to me and I greatly appreciated his guidance which he gave without ever making me feel inferior,'' wrote one friend.

Laura Fogel Seibel said her husband was a certified scuba instructor who was also qualified as a technical diver. He always carried all the proper equipment, she said, and performed ''redundant'' safety checks.

In addition to edivers.org, Seibel started a local diving club, ScubaSpearos -- combining his love for scuba diving and spear fishing, she said.

Seibel and his wife worked together in an advertising business, Fogel Advertising, and he also was involved in computer-related businesses.

''He was a wonderful husband and a wonderful father,'' his wife said. ``You could always count on him.''

The Lowrance is a five-story, 420-foot ship that was deliberately sunk as an artificial reef in 1984. At 210 feet, it's not an outing for beginners.

In an Internet posting Sunday night, his dive partner, Koutentis, an anesthesiologist, wrote about what happened. He realized that Seibel was ``seizing once we hit the wreck, with the regulator hanging out of his mouth.''

''We are at a loss as to what actually caused this, and I will not venture to speculate in a public forum at this stage,'' Koutentis wrote.

``Luckily, I did not take a hit myself and am in pretty good shape considering.''

At least four people have died while scuba diving in South Florida this year.

The Miss Conduct charter takes two to six scuba divers to popular wrecks and reefs, according to its website. The boat's captain, Conrad Nix, refused to talk about the incident Sunday.


Herald staff writer Kevin Deutsch contributed to this report.