Report on Decompression Illness, Diving Fatalities and Project Dive

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Appendix B: Fatality Case <strong>Report</strong>s03-22 Inexperienced diver made his seconddive made with half-empty tank, surfacedin distress, removed equipment and sankbelow the surfaceCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirSince he became certified, this 51-year- o l dmale had open-water certification and hadcompleted approximately 10 dives during theyear. Without a buddy, he made a pair ofshore-entry dives to approximately 70 feet (21meters). According to investigative reports,the diver changed tanks between dives, but hedid not use a full tank for the second dive.During the second dive, observers saw thediver at the surface calling for help. He struggledon the surface and removed some of hisequipment before disappearing below the surface.The autopsy revealed changes consistentwith drowning, along with focal, moderatecoronary artery disease. The history was alsoindicative for an air embolism, which cannotbe excluded in this case even with the autopsyfindings.03-28 Inexperienced diver, made wreck divein cold water, unfamiliar with drysuit andequipment, ran out of air and drownedCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirThis 50-year-old male had advanced openwatercertification, with fewer than 20 lifetimedives. He had been a diver for six months. Thediver was making a wreck dive in cold waterwith a large group but no designated buddy.He wore a drysuit but had little experiencewith the equipment. Approximately 20 minutesinto the 90 fsw (27 msw) dive, the decedentpanicked. He had exhausted his air supply,and he possibly also had a regulator problem.Other divers on the trip reported thattheir first stages "froze up." The decedentgrabbed first the octopus of a student diver onthe trip, and then grabbed the student’s primary.The student broke away from the distresseddiver. The decedent was found on thebottom, unconscious, and with his regulatorout of his mouth. Resuscitation efforts wereunsuccessful.03-55 Infrequent diver made night dive forgame collection, regulator free-flow, ran outof air, never surfacedCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirThis 40-year-old male was a certified diverwho had not made a dive in at least a year. Insearch of lobster, he made a night dive to 65fsw (20 msw) for 45 minutes. The diver had afree-flow problem with his regulator and rapidlyexhausted his air supply. When he wasdown to 300 psi, he signaled to his dive buddythat he wanted to ascend. During the ascent,the buddy last saw the diver at approximately10 fsw (3 msw), but he could not locate him atthe surface. The decedent’s body was recoveredthe next day. In addition to changes consistentwith drowning, the autopsy disclosedmild coronary atherosclerosis and hypertrophyof the left ventricle of the heart. When hisbody was recovered, a catch bag with 20pounds (9 kilograms) of lobster re m a i n e dattached to the diver. The additional dragfrom the catch bag and the free-flowing regulatorwould have contributed to the rapid useof the diver’s air supply.03-67 Cave diver with little experience, inpoor condition, ran out of gas in cave andseparated from buddiesCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirThis 50-year-old male was an experienceddiver with tech / cave diving certification butmodest cave diving experience. He had noknown medical problems except for obesity.To explore a cave system, the diver made ashore-entry, mixed gas dive with two divebuddies. The dive was to a maximum depth of140 feet (43 meters), and the decedent wasDAN’s <strong>Report</strong> on Decompression Illness, Diving Fatalities and Project Dive Exploration: 2004 Edition 115
Appendix B: Fatality Case <strong>Report</strong>susing a scooter for the first time. The decedentmay have experienced a drysuit problem, butin any event his gas supply (primary andreserves) became exhausted, and he needed toshare breathing gas with one of his buddies.The diver and his buddies became separatedduring ascent, and his body was recoveredapproximately an hour later. In addition tochanges consistent with drowning, the autopsyshowed left ventricular hypertrophy.03-69 Advanced open water course diver,started dive low on air, ran out of air onascent, lost consciousness before reachingsurfaceCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirThis 54-year-old male, a student in anadvanced course, had received his initialopen-water certification three years earlier. Hewas making a shore-entry training dive in alake, and he descended to 82 feet (25 meters).He complained of being cold on the bottomand signaled that he desired to ascend. Thedecedent began the dive with less than 1,000psi, and he quickly exhausted his air supply.The dive instructor released the decedent’sweight belt during the ascent, and the diverlost consciousness before reaching the surface.Resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful. Theautopsy demonstrated changes consistentwith drowning as well as moderate coronaryartery disease and evidence of pre v i o u sischemic injury to the heart. Toxicology studiesalso demonstrated cannabinoids (any ofvarious chemical constituents of cannabis ormarijuana) in the blood. The medical examinerruled the death a drowning, but a cardiacevent certainly may have been contributory.03-75 Diver with uncertain dive certificationand experience, tobacco and alcohol abuse,made wreck dive on nitrox, ran out of gas,separated from buddy, found two days laterCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirThis 28-year-old male was reported to havetechnical diving certification, but the samereport indicated that he had completed fewerthan 20 lifetime dives. He was a smoker andhad consumed alcoholic beverages the nightbefore making a dive to a wreck at 67 fsw (20msw) using nitrox. The diver ran out ofbreathing gas and was making his way back tothe boat using the surface line when he washanded his buddy’s buoyancy compensatorbecause his could not be inflated (no gasremained). His buddy had also been low ongas, and the decedent slipped below the surface.The body was recovered two days later.The autopsy revealed mild coronary arterydisease and changes associated with drowning.03-82 Infrequent diver performed personaltask dive, separated from buddy, bodyrecovered two days laterCause of Death: Drowning due toInsufficient AirThis 45-year-old male had received his openwatercertification five years previously buthad not been diving in more than a year. Heand a buddy were trying to recover a sunkenoutboard motor from the bottom of a lake.Visibility was poor, and the divers becameseparated. The buddy surfaced, but the decedentdid not. His body was recovered twodays later at a depth of 90 feet (27 meters). Thediver’s tank was empty.116DAN’s <strong>Report</strong> on Decompression Illness, Diving Fatalities and Project Dive Exploration: 2004 Edition
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1. INTRODUCTIONDivers Alert Network
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Section 1. Introduction1.3 Diving F
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2.2 PDE 2003This report includes da
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Figure 2.4-2 describes the breathin
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Figures 2.5-2 and 2.5-3 indicate th
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Case #2The diver was a 29-year-old
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3. Dive InjuriesSection 3 - Dive In
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Section 3 - Dive InjuriesFigure 3.1
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Section 3 - Dive Injuriesmost sever
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Section 3 - Dive Injuries3.3 Physic
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