Scapa wreck diver named

The scuba diver who went missing in Scapa Flow, Orkney in late September has been named, nine days after his body was found.

Seventy-year-old Paul Smith from Greater Manchester failed to return to the boat from which he had been wreck-diving, although the circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear.

Also read: Multi-agency search for Scapa diver called off

The Coastguard had been alerted that Smith was missing on the morning of 28 September, as reported on Divernet. Its helicopters and rescue teams were joined by lifeboats and local vessels to look for the diver but the search had been stood down that evening, leaving the police to investigate the fatality.

Also read: Body found in search for Orkney diver

A body was recovered near the island of Cava by a Royal Navy dive-team on 16 October, and the diver’s family were informed pending formal identification. He was named yesterday (25 October).

Also read: Diver searches continue in Wales & Orkney

It is now known that Smith had been diving the wreck of the 175m German battleship SMS Markgraf, scuttled in 1919 half a mile north-east of Cava. Bigger and, at 45m, deeper than many of the Scapa Flow WW1 wrecks, it is regarded as one of its more technical dives.

Also on Divernet: Iconic Scapa Flow wrecks go cheap