A DOCTOR drowned on his first sea water night dive - because his safety flotation equipment was not hooked up to his air supply, it was revealed yesterday.
Father-of-two Dr Graham Allwright, from Formby, Merseyside, died while diving with friends in Loch Linnhe, near Fort William in northern Scotland, in December 2001.
An inquiry into the tragedy found neither the 48-year-old GP or his "buddy" noticed his buoyancy device was not properly connected during routine safety checks.
The investigation, carried out in July by the Fort William Sheriff Ian Ingles, released a determination that Dr Allwright died of accidental causes.
Last night Dr Allwright's wife Jane, 47, of Elson Road, paid tribute to "a very kind and loving family man, who always went out of his way to care for his patients, and is still very much missed by everyone".
But she told the Daily Post the real reason behind why her husband's equipment was not connected would remain a mystery.
Dr Allwright, who was a GP in Formby for 18 years, had taken up diving just 18 months earlier.
The trip, to explore a sunken wreck, was his first holiday without his family in 20 years of marriage.
The accident happened just as a rescue boat was about to reach the doctor and pull him to safety.
Mr Allwright was 'buddied' with Michael Baker, 53, an ex-Merseyside police chief inspector, and the pair were supposed to check each other's equipment before diving.
The inquiry heard how the pair ran into difficulties when Mr Baker's torch stopped working.
They decided to return using Dr Allwright's torch, but couldn't pick out the white guiding cable, and surfaced to avoid getting lost.
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