JEDDAH, 30 November 2003 — Filipino scuba divers recovered Thursday afternoon the body of Victor Celeste who had gone missing two days earlier near Willy’s Point on the South Corniche.
Ernesto Diongon and his diving instructor scoured the area earlier but were unable to find the body. However, during a second attempt they spotted an object floating only meters away from where Celeste was reported to have disappeared. It turned out to be his body.
“Thirty minutes after we surfaced from our second search, people were telling us they saw something floating,” Diongon told Arab News. “We went to check it out and found it was Celeste’s body. We signaled to the coast guard, and they told us to drag the body toward the shore. The coast guard then loaded the body on their truck.”
Celeste and four other co-workers were casting their fishing nets when big waves and a strong current washed Celeste away toward the open sea. He disappeared in a lagoon at around 4 p.m. on Tuesday.
Celeste, 35, from Binan, Laguna, worked as a prime coater at SIDC Metal Coating Corporation. He leaves behind his wife Baby and two children.
Celeste and his co-workers planned to spend the Eid Al Fitr holidays swimming and fishing on the South Corniche.
Ogie Roncesvalles recalled: “After Celeste and four others set up the nets in the breakwater, they noticed that Celeste had become separated from the group. Rene saw that Celeste was having problems, so he tried to help him by holding out his hand.
“But because the waves were getting bigger and Rene was tiring, he told Celeste to swim back to shore when he had rested a little. As the waves and the current started to pull Rene toward the sea, he swam toward the shore. That was when Celeste disappeared.”
After Celeste went down into the water, his co-workers reported the incident to the Coast Guard and were told to contact divers to find Celeste.
Roncesvalles said the group made some calls but were unable to find a diver. As it was getting dark, the group decided to wait until the next day.
On Wednesday, the group met some Filipino divers who in turn contacted Diongon, a PADI divemaster who knows the area well.
Diongon enlisted the help of some others including his diving instructor, and they began their search.
It appears that Celeste and his group were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
They swam and fished in an area clearly marked “no swimming or diving” by the coast guard following earlier drownings. They also swam right after a heavy downpour, which usually results in bigger waves and strong currents.
Worse, they were insufficiently equipped. Celeste was reportedly wearing safety shoes and swimming goggles instead of a mask and fins. Although Celeste was barefoot when he was found, the safety shoes made it difficult for him to swim against the current. He probably took off his shoes when he was in trouble, but was overwhelmed by the waves and strong current.
