THE ENCHANTED River in Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur. CATHERINE DUERO/CONTRIBUTOR
CEBU CITY, Philippines—An environmentalist who trained members of an anti-illegal fishing task force in scuba and cave diving died during a dive in an underwater cave in the Enchanted River in Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur.
Alfonso Amores, also a reconstructive surgeon and resident of Lapu-Lapu City, was preparing for a TV shoot with a group of professional divers when the accident happened.
He took a dive inside the cave, the size of two basketball courts, but failed to come out. His body was found eight hours later in an area of the cave about 40 meters deep, according to Andy Berame, of Lapu-Lapu City’s Task Force Kalikasan, the group that Amores trained.
Berame said diving in the Enchanted River cave is dangerous. “The water pulls you back to the cave,” he said. “You’d be lucky if the current is not strong,” he added.
Berame said Amores, a licensed scuba and cave diver who trained in the United States, was excited to dive in Enchanted River because it was a “challenge.”
“It’s never easy,” said Berame. “When you get out of there, it’s already a big accomplishment,” he said.