HITZ.FM DEEJAYS: This is the part of the sea where Erica and Cassy carried out their underwater broadcast.
AFTER collecting three tons of rubbish from 14 dive sites within 168 hours (7 days) in and around the Tunku Abdul Rahman Parks here recently, Malaysia won the right to be included in the Guinness World Records as having the Longest Underwater Clean Up.
The record bid was successfully attempted by Astro Kasih and involved 134 divers who collected rubbish on the seabed over the said duration, bringing up old clothes, plastic bottles and bags and a pile of other rubbish.
The eight-day campaign culminated in a ceremony where Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman congratulated Astro hitz.fm for taking the lead in yet another exemplary initiative under its CSR arm – Astro Kasih.
The Chief Minister was represented by Tourism and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun at the function.
For two participants, however, the event was a catalyst to soar to greater heights and fulfill their ambitions.
Erica Sham Szemia and Cassandra J Albanos – call us Erica and Cassy they say – are deejays with hitz.fm based in Sabah but during Astro’s bid, they were deejays broadcasting from underwater, speaking out to audience all over Kota Kinabalu from 15 feet, if not more, below the surface. The feat was made possible with the assistance of Royal Malaysian Navy who lent them the diving equipment with interface supply breathing apparatus.
According to their coach Lieutenant Commander Mohd Nizam Wan Chik, a Royal Malaysian Navy diver, the girls were trained for two weeks on how to use a diving gear more akin to the equipment used for underwater walking.
“This equipment uses surface air supply which makes it different from scuba diving. The breathing apparatus gets its air supply above the surface of the water, so there is no question of running out of air,” he explained.
Mohd Nizam said communications during the broadcast were made possible by sophisticated gadgets that, under normal circumstances, would enable the diver to speak with his comrades on board the Navy boat or ship.
“However this time, it was used for broadcasting,” he said, adding that in the Navy, during peacetime, the apparatus was used for underwater maintenance and repair of the vessel’s hull
“During wartime, we use it for backup and other purposes according to the needs at hand,” he shared.
Mohd Nizam who has been in the Navy for 26 years, said it was quite easy to teach the girls the mechanics of the apparatus and they did extremely well.
“They are, indeed, the first two women to use these gadgets and broadcast a message from under water in Malaysia,” he added.
Erica, bouyant about the whole adventure, said she was very happy she managed to do the underwater broadcast.
“It was exciting and challenging but I managed to do it. It was a whole new experience for me. To be able to talk from under the sea – it’s very hard to describe.” This young lady, attached to
hitz.fm for the last three years, had worked with various companies before but readily admits finding a “radio career” very exciting.
Meanwhile, Cassy said she was very happy to have taken part in the Astro Clean-up project, believing their underwater message would create awareness of the importance of keeping a clean environment, both on land and sea.
They both hope to do another interesting outdoor broadcast in the future and Erica looks forward to the invitation to broadcast on air outside. The two girls can be heard over the radio from 4pm to 8pm everyday.
INTERESTING ADVENTURE: Cassy and Erica with their posters