Annual Diving Report - Divers Alert Network

4. DIVE FATALITIES
On descent or early in dive. Problems began on descent or at an early stage of the dive in four
cases.
● A 15-year-old novice diver on medication for attention deficit disorder entered shallow
water off the beach, had a flooded mask at 8 fsw (2 msw), panicked, and drowned.
● A diver with a history of seizures and cocaine use was found entangled in an anchor line
immediately after descent.
● A 55-year-old female diver experienced problems with her regulator immediately upon
descent to 117 fsw (36 msw) and drowned. Examination of the regulator revealed a
missing diaphragm seal.
● A 40-year-old diver spearfishing on a wreck at 196 fsw (60 msw) made a rapid ascent to
80 fsw (25 msw), and found convulsing at 150 fsw (46 msw) where he drowned.
At the bottom. Problems started on the bottom in 42 percent of cases (n=37). Twenty-seven
divers (31 percent) lost consciousness at the bottom, eight divers were trapped, three were
entangled, two may have had heart problems, and four lost consciousness for unknown cause.
Ascent. Problems started during ascent in 15 percent of cases (n=13), sometimes even after
completing a 10-foot safety stop. In one case, a diver was lost in shallow water after his safety
stop. Inspection of his rebreather indicated malfunctions due to poor maintenance and assembly.
Surface post-dive. Twenty-two divers lost consciousness after surfacing. The longer a diver is at
the surface without symptoms, the less likely it is that death was due to injury on the bottom or
during ascent.
Post-dive, out of water. Two deaths occurred after dives without obvious problems.
● A 63- year-old experienced diver with a history of heart disease collapsed on the boat
after exiting the water.
● A 51-year-old experienced diver completed a 100 fsw (30 msw) dive and collapsed
minutes later in the locker room. He was transferred to a hospital and treated for AGE but
died of hypoxic brain injury a few days later.
4.4.2 Cause of Death
Figure 4.4.2-1 shows the distribution of COD in the judgment of the DAN pathologist who
reviewed each case. Fifty-six cases (64 percent) were designated as drowning; acute heart
condition was cited in 10 cases (8 cardiac dysrhythmia, one myocardial infarction, and one
severe atherosclerosis). Arterial gas embolism was judged as COD in 9 cases (10 percent). COD
was unknown in 10 percent (n=9) because the body was not found (n=4), or COD was not
specified by the medical examiner.
Annual Diving Report: 2006 Edition 53