Annual Diving Report - Divers Alert Network

APPENDIX B. DIVE FATALITY CASE REPORTS
the surface swim the decedent’s dive buddy had to tow him and during that time the decedent lost
consciousness. An autopsy was performed but a cause of death was not conclusively
demonstrated. Significant findings included pulmonary emphysema and cardiomegaly. The
medical examiner postulated that a small air embolism may have caused the diver’s death and
the decedent did have pulmonary emphysema, a risk factor for AGE. The history appears to be
more consistent with a cardiac event, however.
04-07 Poorly conditioned diver with multiple medical problems and unknown experience,
had difficulty breathing at surface before dive, found unconscious on surface
Cause of Death: Coronary Atherosclerosis
This 55-year-old male had multiple medical problems including hypertension, coronary artery
disease, and obesity. He was reported to be a certified diver; his level of experience is unknown.
The diver made a shore entry with his son and within a short period of time complained of
difficulty breathing through his regulator. He began to head back to shore and his son submerged
for a couple of minutes. It is unclear if the diver ever submerged. He was found unconscious on
the surface and resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful. The autopsy demonstrated focally severe
coronary artery disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, toxicology positive for hydrocodone and
diphenhydramine (in urine only). The death was determined to be due to a cardiac event.
04-13 Experienced but obese diver with heart disease and tobacco abuse, spearfishing in
rough seas, separated from buddies at surface, body found one hour later
Cause of Death: Hypertensive Heart Disease
This 53-year-old male was a very experienced diver with basic open-water certification. The diver
was obese and smoked cigarettes. He was spearfishing with two dive buddies, making a dive
from a boat to 50 fsw (15 msw) in a rough sea state. After a seemingly uneventful but short dive,
the diver was seen drifting away from the boat and his dive buddies while they were all on the
surface. The body was recovered one hour later. The autopsy disclosed evidence of hypertensive
heart disease, mild pulmonary emphysema, and marked fatty change of the liver. The death was
determined to have been due to a cardiac event.
04-18 Experienced dive instructor was training student on rebreather, separated from
student at depth, body recovered later
Cause of Death: Myocardial Infarction due to Coronary Atherosclerosis
This 53 year-old, experienced, dive instructor was on a rebreather training dive with one student.
Approximately 8 minutes into the dive, at a depth of 160 fsw (49 msw), the student stopped to
clear his mask and the divers became separated. The student saw the instructor above him for a
moment and then he lost visual contact. The instructor’s body was recovered later. An autopsy
report was not made available but the cause of death was reported to be a myocardial infarction.
B.4 Proximate Cause: Drowning / Cardiac
04-08 Diver with moderate experience and heart disease, made several dives in several
days, surfaced out of air and could not inflate his BC, struggled and lost consciousness
Cause of Death: Drowning due to Cardiac Dysrhythmia
This 52-year-old male was a certified diver with a moderate amount of experience. He was
making the last planned dive in a series of 16 dives that took place over several days. He and his
buddy spent 25 minutes at 90 fsw (27 msw), completed a safety stop, and surfaced
76 Annual Diving Report: 2006 Edition