Scuba diving or hookah rigs carry equal risks, experts say

Of the seven divers who have perished in Florida's early lobster season, at least three shared a similar misfortune.

A Miami man, a Brandon father and a St. Petersburg mother died using a hookah rig, an underwater breathing device that requires no certification and is commonly used by tourists or first-time divers.

"I've lived here for 20 years, and I've never heard of these hookah things," said CeCe Ingle, whose sister-in-law Louann Greene, disappeared Saturday while diving near Big Pine Key. "If people are putting their lives on the line, there need to be some kinds of precautions in place. Who regulates them, if anybody?"

No one regulates hookah rigs, which essentially do the same job as scuba diving tanks. Most diving experts agree that hookahs are no more dangerous than scuba gear, and that there is nothing illegal or wrong about hookah rigs...[Link]