A ninety-six-year-old WW2 veteran, who holds the World Guinness record for being the oldest diver in the world, dove at the Zenobia wreck breaking his previous record.
Ray Woolley, who celebrates his 96thbirthday, dove at a depth of 42.5 meters and stayed in the seabed for 48 minutes. Last year he dove at a depth of 40.6 meters and remained in the seabed for 45 minutes.
Another 57 divers from various diving schools in Cyprus and abroad made the dive with him.
His effort was supported by the Larnaca Tourism Development and Promotion Company, in the context of promoting the Zenobia wreck, which sunk in June 1980 and is considered to be among the best diving spots in the world.
In statements, Larnaca Deputy Mayor Iasonas Iasonides said that it was “an amazing dive from a 96 year-old person, who is also a Second World War veteran.”
On his part, Woolley thanked everyone for coming today “for this occasion, when on my 96th birthday I have managed to break my record again.”
“We went down to 42.4 meters right on the sea bed and the total dive time was 48 minutes,” he noted.
He thanked everyone and “especially the57 divers who were down with me today and this is unusual because when you dive you just have a dive buddy.” But, he added, “to have this number of people diving with me and sharing the experience comes once a year and I am over the moon by it.” He expressed the hope that next year he will be able “to do this again.”
Nicknamed ‘The Titanic of the Mediterranean’, the 165-metre ferry was carrying varied cargo on her many articulated lorries when she sank, including cars, military equipment, games, food and telecommunication systems. She now lies on her portside on a flat bed of sand and rocks, 1.5km from the shore. The seabed is at a depth of 42m, and the top of the wreck is 16m below the water surface. The water visibility is up to 50m, with the temperature ranging from 16oC in the winter to 27oC in summer.
The Zenobia wreck has now become a protected artificial reef, with many species of fish making it their home, including grouper, barracuda, kingfish, jacks and trigger fish, as well as moray eels, stingrays, turtles and octopus. Its ferry and much of the cargo are intact, making it fascinating to explore, and some of the one million hen eggs the Zenobia was carrying have even remained intact under water.
