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Eleazar Portillo
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Belize boasts the second largest barrier reef in the
world. With its underwater beauty and amazing sites, it offers many
spectacular dive escapades for adventure seekers. Recreational diving
offers a wonderful escape from everyday life, but even though it is
considered a relatively safe sport, it poses certain risks to those who
choose to participate in it. Fortunately, aside from its wonderful
scenery, Belize also has the only recompression chamber in the region
(the next closest chambers are in Mexico and Honduras). Since the chamber
provides such a priceless service, keeping and maintaining it in
"top-notch" shape is of great importance. This week, The
San Pedro Sun is proud to introduce a man responsible
for "making Belize a safe dive destination" – Eleazar Portillo of
Subaquatics of Belize Limited.
Eleazar was born on July
15 th, 1973 to Inez
(deceased) and Victoriano Portillo in Flores, Guatemala. In search of
safety and tranquility, his family immigrated to Belize, relocating just
across the border in Santa Elena, Cayo, Belize.
Eleazar first attended Sacred Heart Elementary School
and later enrolled in Mount Carmel High School. After graduating in 1994,
Eleazar entered Muffles College where he acquired an Associate's Degree
in Business Science in 1996. "I chose to pursue this administrative
career because I always had an interest in management," he
mentioned.
Eleazar was first employed as an accounts
clerk at Owen Codd and Associates' accounting firm. He performed this job
to the best of his abilities and was soon promoted to the auditing
department where he held the position of senior auditor for three years.
Unfortunately, because of varied corporate interests, the firm began
restructuring and downsizing its staff and Eleazar found himself without
a job. Owen Codd and Associates was kind enough to seek other job
opportunities for its staff, and Eleazar was soon offered a management
position at Subaquatics of Belize Limited.
In early 2000, Eleazar made the move to San Pedro Town
where as manager of the Subaquatics of Belize Limited (recompression
chamber), he handles the books and overall day-to-day supervision of the
entire operation. A gratifying experience, Eleazar began interacting with
patients as well and discovered he had an interest in the medical and
technical aspects of the business. To increase his potential, he chose to
enroll in various international courses and conferences in hyperbaric
medicine offered by the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS)
Divers Alert Network (DAN).
Eleazar has participated in as many courses as the
chamber would allow, and is now a Diver Medic, certified by the
internationally recognized Diving Disease Research Center (DDRC) in the
United Kingdom. He is also preparing to undergo one of the most
prestigious certifications in the field – Hyperbaric Chamber Technologist
(HCT). As a Diver Medic, Eleazar has hands-on experience in operating the
chamber, and with patients - from admitting them to the ward to carrying
out neurological examinations. He is the official technical and safety
officer for the facility, and is trained to maintain and repair chamber
equipment. Eleazar has traveled to different parts of the world for
certification courses in the field and also travels for the company to
cross train staff in other parts of the world. Although he never thought
that he would someday take a dive course, today, Eleazar is a certified
Scuba Diving International (SDI) dive instructor. "It took me a while to
adapt to life here on the island, but always being on the move has made
the change a lot smoother," he commented.
In his free time, Eleazar enjoys recreational diving,
hiking and exploring, both under and above water. "I love being in touch
with nature and having traveled many places, I can tell you that Belize
sure has a lot to offer," he said.
Of all the things he has studied, Eleazar has learned
how important the recompression chamber is to Belize. "Because diving is
such an integral part of our tourism industry, Belize is most fortunate
to have a recompression chamber," he said. Providing an invaluable
service to Belize, he is indeed a key service provider. Ensuring that
there is always a reliable, efficient recompression chamber for divers on
"La Isla Bonita," Eleazar Portillo is helping people "under pressure" in
"Our Community."
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