Settlement imminent in Wavedancer case

The luxurious live-aboard dive boat capsized on the night of October eighth, 2001, as Hurricane Iris lashed the southern port of Big Creek. By the time the wind subsided, the Wavedancer’s dead numbered twenty, including two Belizean crewmembers: Brenda Wade and Eloisa Johnson. Tonight word from Miami is that a lawsuit filed by the twenty surviving families against the boat’s owners, Peter Hughes Diving Incorporated, is on the verge of a settlement. Legal sources tell News 5 that while the proposed deal calls for damages of around seventeen million U.S. dollars, the actual money to be paid out will total somewhere between four and five million, which is the limit of the company’s insurance coverage. A U.S. judge has been appointed as mediator in the case and it is up to him to determine how much each plaintiff will receive, based on such factors as the age of the victim and number of dependents, if any, they left behind. While a decision is expected in the near future, the attorneys involved have pointed out that at this point no agreement has been finalised and will not be until all parties have signed off on the settlement. Peter Hughes Diving has consistently denied any negligence in the incident and several months ago resumed its operations in Belize with a new vessel, the Sundancer.