The Louisiana couple – experienced scuba divers – had stopped in Queensland, Australia, joining 24 other passengers aboard the MV Outer Edge, a charter dive boat that took them to St. Crispin’s Reef, a stunning section of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef that’s known for its vibrant marine life.
‘Shark City’
Local fisherman Mick Bird, who was nearby that day, later revealed that shark activity in the area was unusually high. “Every time we threw a line, we’d pull in a shark,” he said. “They should rename that place Shark City,” Bird said, per the Daily Mail.
Last time seen alive
Meanwhile Bryan Brogdan, a British charter guest who dove alongside the Lonergans during the final dive, recalled admiring a giant clam embedded in the reef with the couple, bathed in sunlight piercing through the water.
Brogdan eventually returned to the boat, but Tom and Eileen remained below – staying longer than the dive crew had advised.
He was the last known person to see them alive.
