https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-67647402
'If Reginald Beckford had been told a few years ago that he would later make a
living as a scuba diving instructor, he would probably have laughed.
A long-held fear of sharks meant he preferred to keep his feet firmly on dry
land.
That is until he saw what lay beneath the ocean's surface.
Today, the 32-year-old is not just enabling others to experience the underwater
world; he is playing a key role in helping protect the planet's third-largest
barrier reef from the deadliest coral sickness ever recorded.
Reginald is part of a team of ardent reef protectors in the Turks and Caicos
Islands which, in 2019, became the seventh Caribbean country confirmed as being
affected by stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD).
Almost a decade after it first appeared off the coast of Florida, the malady
has spread like wildfire and is now known to be present in 28 nations across
the region.
It was while working as a night watchman on a dive boat that Reginald was
encouraged to venture into the water.
"The first time I went scuba diving it was surreal, it was like a different
world," he recalls. "Once I saw what we had down there, I wanted to help
preserve it in any way I could."'
Via Frederick Wilson II.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
