JOHN BEVAN, founder of the Historical Diving Society, the Diving Museum at Stokes Bay, and celebrated author of many diving publications, died earlier this week following a long battle with illness. We offer sincere condolences to his wife and family.
John was a great friend to Heritage Open Days, ensuring that both the Museum and the Bunker (archive store) offered visitors free access during the festival each year.
Some may not know that in 1970, he and a fellow Royal Naval Scientific Service diver, set a new world record when they dived to a simulated depth of 1,500 ft on behalf of the HMS VERNON-based Admiralty Experimental Diving Unit at the Royal Naval Physiological Laboratory’s Deep Trials Unit at Alverstoke. This feat was described by American colleagues at the time as the hyperbaric equivalent of a moon landing!
John’s funeral will be held on 21st February, 11:30am, at Holy Trinity Church.