Diving Sabah? Dive Downbelow!

Barely a week after removing an illegally dumped fishing net, resident PADI Platinum Course Director Richard Swann together with the professional-level interns with Downbelow carried out another clean-up within the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park Borneo.

Even the morning rain did not deter the interns from volunteering, which showed their dedication and commitment to help the environment.

Following usual procedures, the activity started at our PADI 5 Star IDC Dive Centre beach house as Richard gave a detailed briefing that covered the removal techniques and safety aspects of the whole operation to those who volunteered.

Unlike the last one, this time the team removed a series of small nets on one of their favourite dive spots named “Ribbon Reef”. The nets may look small but still pose a big menace to the marine life.

A big thanks once again to Vui How for taking the pictures.

Richard & the Downbelow team had a great day showing the awesome film crew from Sky 1 Japan, Go Hayakata,Yuka Yuka Matsubara, Masayuki Kuritani, Mari Hatano, Natsu Mori and Gold medalist Freediving champion Hanako Hirose around the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, Borneo.

At the request of Sabah Tourism, Downbelow were excited to host the group for the day & do our best to show the highlights of the area for their upcoming film promoting Sabah’s underwater wonders.

Needless to say we look forward to seeing the footage on air :)

It was a beautiful day & TARP didn’t disappoint delivering stunning corals, Turtle, Matting Squid, schooling Barracuda & the list goes on.

Downbelow Managing Director and resident Platinum PADI Course Director Richard Swann, who is an underwater photographer himself even had the privilege to join in and captured a few nice images to pass to the crew.

We wish to thank our new friends from Japan for spending a fantastic day with us & we hope to welcome you back to “the land below the wind” soon.

Best of wishes Hanako with your next record attempt from all the team at Downbelow.

The Downbelow team of staff & professional diving interns both local & international proved that teamwork will prevail if enough effort is put in.

It all started when our dive guides stumbled across a discarded net on one of the best dive sites in Tunku Abdul Rahman Park however this one was a little different as it was quite simply a MONSTER!

We certainly believe it is one of if not the longest we have had the difficult task of removing but our awesome Downbelow specialist team were up to the job.

After a detailed briefing from Downbelow’s Managing Director and resident PADI Course Director Richard Swann, our team set off to do battle with the monster net & WE WON!

Sadly as expected many marine life had already perished but we did rescue many critters that had miraculously survived entanglement but most importantly the timeless marine animal trapping machine has now been completely removed & the corals can breathe again.

This is particularly an important experience for our new Divemaster trainees & PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) candidates as they will take this knowledge along with them on their professional careers sharing the techniques required to stay safe whilst removing nets.

A big thanks to our fantastic team for once again letting their knives do the talking, when we join forces we can make a difference :)

If you are diving & discover a net report it to your dive operator in the hope they will act as we do.

Check out the rest of the pictures in our gallery page.

The above picture of coral reefs were taken in Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, Kota Kinabalu by our resident PADI Course Director Richard.

The vibrant colors can leave you speechless and even this was taken on a bad visibility day!

It is hard to believe that these corals are located just minutes away from a busy and bustling city of Kota Kinabalu, Borneo Malaysia.

And even closer to these corals is our PADI 5-Star Dive & Adventure Centre where we launch our daily scuba diving trips from.

Captured scenery like the one above however does not compare to being there yourself and being surrounded by colourful corals and beautiful marine life.

Talk to our friendly travel consultants today and find out how we can help you get closer to beautiful underwater nature.

Over the weekend our resident PADI Course Director Richard decided to check out an old dive site that he has not visited for more than five years.

Accompanied by PADI IDC Staff Instructor Bob, the two descended, only to find a huge net entangled on the reef.

Downbelow is passionate about conservation, so immediately the boys got to work. After releasing a large stonefish and a grouper they returned to the Downbelow PADI 5 Star IDC Dive Centre on Gaya island to gather a team to return and remove the menace for good.

By chance, 4 Sabah Parks staff were participating in a PADI Rescue Diver course with Downbelow, so they were only too happy to give their time and join the mission.

Within moments Richard has rustle up Downbelow staff and international & Local Go Pro Interns to also assist with the 100+ metre long net.

After Richard thorough briefed the team on safety and net removal techniques, they set off on the illegally dumped net crusade. The rest, plus the net, is history.

The reef can breathe once more !