633 divers in Florida set record for world's largest underwater trash cleanup

Trash doesn't stand a chance near Florida's Deerfield Beach International Fishing Pier.

For 15 years, scuba divers have been meeting at the beach for an annual cleanup event, donning their masks and picking up trash from the ocean floor. Organizers decided it was time to break the Guinness World Record for the largest underwater cleanup, and 633 divers came out on Saturday to participate.

Guinness' Michael Empric counted as each diver entered the water, and for their time to count, they had to stay submerged for at least 15 minutes. Divers of all ages took part in the cleanup, with some coming from other states. They picked up signs, bottles, fishing weights, and other pieces of trash, and cheered when Empric let them know they shattered the previous record, set in Egypt in 2015. "Obviously, trash was collected, but the beauty of it is with 633 divers, we were able to do a very thorough cleaning," diver and environmentalist R.J. Harper told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. "I have 600 new friends just as a result of this." Catherine Garcia

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up