Advice for diving Punta de Soldado in Puerto Rico

You should know that two divers have perished here at Soldier's Point—it offers unpredictable conditions. The experienced Linda Wieditz in 2003 had logged more than fifty dives when she went diving with Culebra Dive Shop. The divers in the water began to experience strong currents, and the instructor ordered them to return to the boat. Two took refuge on a coral head, the instructor and two others got back to the boat, but Wieditz never made it. Other divers with her told me that they thought she might have deflated to swim more easily below the surface; but this is unclear. However, her body was never recovered, despite the most extensive sea and air search in Puerto Rican history to date at the time. Another diver in 2011, diving with a buddy at Punta de Soldado, also disappeared. I dived this site as part of my certification the day before Wieditz's accident, and I was with two of the divers that went out with Wieditz. It is a pretty dive site, large coral heads in 30-40 feet. But I won't be going back there...

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