July 2006
Translated from El Comercio

A Submarine without a Permit

Four foreign tourists were diving in a submarine in the Galapagos Marine Reserve on Thursday June 29.  This is not allowed in the protected area.

The tourists were from a group of 24 Russian visitors who came to the islands on the Constellation.  In the papers that they showed to the navy to gain permission to enter the archipelago there was no mention of underwater tourism. 

Edwin Naula, in charge of tourism for the Park), said that the permit given to Constellation stipulates that they can only use pangas (small boats with outboard engines) and scuba diving gear and that all other equipment is banned.

There were four underwater excursions close to Floreana, in the south of the archipelago. The submarine did not come to the islands with the Constellation, it came a few days later on the Panamanian boat, Cebaco Bay.

Jacobo Buckridge, the captain of Cebaco Bay, said that the company for which he worked was contracted to bring the submarine from Panamá to Galápagos.

Buckridge confirmed that on Thursday June 29 he met up with Constellation in Floreana, where four of Constellation's passengers took the submarine down into the Marine Reserve.   

His story is confirmed by Alan Whitfield, the British captain of the submarine.

According to the Park's itinerary, Constellation was indeed in Floreana.

On the other hand, Digmer, the local authority in charge of merchant shipping, said that Cebaco Bay; which brought in the submarine, did not comply with the regulations set by the Ministry of Defense to enter Ecuadorian waters.

For Carlos Flores, the local director of Digmer, this break all the rules set by the Marine Police of Ecuador.

Jorge Gross,a naval commander, let it be known that the coastguards stopped the Panamanian boat  on June 30 in Ecuadorian waters.   

Buckridge said he came to the country and then to Galapagos as the people in charge of the luxury yacht Constellaétion had assured him that they had all the necessary permits to visit the country and undertake tourists activities in the archipelago.  

“We only brought the submarine from Panamá to the islands, once the dive was over four of the tourists told us to return to Panamá”, said Buckridge, after a phone conversation with the boss of the boat.

For the moment Cebaco Bay and the submarine, which is stored on board, are anchored in the bay of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristóbal. under the custody of the marine authorities..

The Galápagos National Park and Digmer have opened investigations to determine the levels of responsibilty and involvement in these violations of Ecuadorian law.

The guides on board from June 24 to June 30 were Miguel Mosquera and Alexis Navia Mosquera.

The Park is awaiting further developmetns.  Digmer will take statements from these people. 

Jacobo Buckridge, the Panamanian captain of Cebaco Bay and Alan Whitfield, captain of the submarine, are very upset with the people in charge of Constelletion.

They say that they were assured that all the necessary papers were in order. 

They don't rule out the possibility that their employers might sue the directors of the luxury cruiser Constellation.

The Park had allocated two quallified guides to the Constellation. This is one of the requirements that any boat flying a foreign flag has to comply with before starting a cruise around the islands.  The naturalist guides are responsible for ensuring that the Park rules are respected.

An expensive service

Constellation met all the requirments for tourism in the archipelago.  She left Galapagos on June 30.

The submarine belongs to a British company Silver Crest Submarines. She was shipped from England to the US and from there to Panama by plane. She then arrived by sea in the archipélago.

Alan Whitfield, captain of the mini submarine said that the average cost of renting the vessel is 3,000 dollars per day.  

Contact: comments@galapagos.org