A former US councilman was forced to abandon his attempt to set a new scuba diving record less than half way through after suffering through illness.
Allen Sherrod, from Orlando, was aiming for the longest scuba dive in open fresh water without resurfacing – with a target of staying underwater for at least seven days.
But after spending three days 10 feet below the surface of Lake David in south Lake County, Florida, he gave up on the bid saying he had come down with the flu which got progressively worse while he was submerged.
Mr Sherrod’s safety divers helped him resurface and he is now said to be recovering at home.
While underwater, Mr Sherrod sustained himself on a diet of hard boiled eggs, cherry tomatoes, grapes and candy bars. He also joined fellow divers in cleaning up the lake bottom.
Jerry Hall holds the current five-day record for the dive, set in 2004 in a lake in Tennessee.
