DATELINE: 11th March, 2002

DEATH OF BRITISH HOLIDAY DIVER CAUSED BY NEGLIGENCE
A divemaster at the Bondi Dive Centre on Sydney's Bondi Beach is facing the possibility of criminal charges after the Australian coroner ruled that the death of Nicola Sheen, 24, had been caused by negligence.
Sheen, an inexperienced diver, died in February 2000 while diving in a group of six. The instructor leading the dive had gone to the surface with two of the group who were low on air. He left Sheen with another inexperienced diver and a trainee instructor, who was judged to have been unable to cope when problems arose. The group were expected to make their way back to the shore.
Sheen's body was found in 20m. She was found to be overweighted, and her cylinder was empty. The Sydney coroner Elwyn Elms stated that he considered there to be enough evidence for prosecutors to file criminal charges against the divemaster.

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