Cave accident article

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08-30-2009 07:45 AM
Johnny Bailey

Cave accident article

In the Oct. 2009 "Scuba Diving" magazine, there is an article titled "Death in the Dark". It gives sketchy details of an accident, but no location of the spring is given. Has anybody else seen this story? I couldn't find any similar accidents in the accident reports. Some of the details just do not make sense to me, like "He would regularly check his air supply on his illuminated dive computer and could see it slowly dropping toward zero." ...And details like "He shed his gear...hoping the flow of water leaving the spring would bring his body to the surface in time for his friends to revive him." The story is too weird for me. BTW, I'm a new poster, although I've been lurking here for three years. Hope I'm doing this right.
08-30-2009 08:47 AM
sskasser

Yep, you're doing it right ;) Welcome to the forum, good post. I saw the magazine cover at the dive shop, but didn't read the story. Someone will be along shortly to enlighten us.

Shirley
08-30-2009 09:23 AM
FW

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Bailey

"He would regularly check his air supply on his illuminated dive computer and could see it slowly dropping toward zero."

Doesn't sound like a trained cave diver, if he was using an air integrated computer. Did the article say he left a message? If not, how would anyone know he actually was even looking at his pressure, or why he took his gear off?
08-30-2009 09:44 AM
amphipod06

Quote:

Originally Posted by FW

Doesn't sound like a trained cave diver, if he was using an air integrated computer. Did the article say he left a message? If not, how would anyone know he actually was even looking at his pressure, or why he took his gear off?

Probably hearsay from buddies' on previous dives? (To established that the decedent did pay attention....:-) )

Consider the source, BTW...stuff reported by recreational scuba media tends to be highly edited and lots of details (to protect the guilty?) are left out or just based on speculation.YMMV.

Dive safe,

Celia
08-30-2009 11:25 AM
Johnny Bailey

Quote:

Originally Posted by FW

Doesn't sound like a trained cave diver, if he was using an air integrated computer. Did the article say he left a message? If not, how would anyone know he actually was even looking at his pressure, or why he took his gear off?

That's what surprised me. The article said he was a certified cave diver with hundreds of dives. The article didn't say anything about him leaving a message. It said he and his buddies staged bottles for a planned second dive. When his buddies went to get fills, he stayed behind to retrieve his backup primary he left by accident with his stage tanks. He didn't tell them of his plan. He went back in by himself with a single tank and only ONE small backup since he planned to be in the water "only a few minutes." They had staged their tanks off of the main line, and when he went looking for them, his light flooded and failed. He was lost and subsequently drowned.

The writer of the article stated "To prevent other divers from finding the additional cylinders, they decided to leave the cylinders off to the side of the permanent lines. They left nothing to chance in their dive plan."

The article said this is a true story, but I question this unless someone recognizes any of the circumstances. Thanks for your help from this questioning diver.
08-30-2009 11:34 AM
FW

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Bailey

The article said this is a true story, but I question this unless someone recognizes any of the circumstances. Thanks for your help from this questioning diver.

Somehow, I suspect we would have heard about this, unless it was in another country.
08-30-2009 04:12 PM
fghray1

I've read most of the reports and this don't sound like one. Of course this could be an old accident that was dug up and a little over dramatized to make it interesting to read.
08-30-2009 04:19 PM
stairman

I guess his lost line search was unsuccessful. Most cavers I know have several lights already connected to them so why would he enter a cave with backups removed off the line too far to get back on when his only light failed. If he was experienced he was also complacent and careless.
08-30-2009 07:07 PM
Howard

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Bailey

That's what surprised me. The article said he was a certified cave diver with hundreds of dives. The article didn't say anything about him leaving a message. It said he and his buddies staged bottles for a planned second dive. When his buddies went to get fills, he stayed behind to retrieve his backup primary he left by accident with his stage tanks. He didn't tell them of his plan. He went back in by himself with a single tank and only ONE small backup since he planned to be in the water "only a few minutes." They had staged their tanks off of the main line, and when he went looking for them, his light flooded and failed. He was lost and subsequently drowned.

The writer of the article stated "To prevent other divers from finding the additional cylinders, they decided to leave the cylinders off to the side of the permanent lines. They left nothing to chance in their dive plan."

The article said this is a true story, but I question this unless someone recognizes any of the circumstances. Thanks for your help from this questioning diver.

This sounds like, if I recall correctly an incident in Falmouth (I believe) about 5-6 years ago.
08-31-2009 12:30 PM
Hoska
Quote:

Originally Posted by FW

Doesn't sound like a trained cave diver, if he was using an air integrated computer. Did the article say he left a message? If not, how would anyone know he actually was even looking at his pressure, or why he took his gear off?

Just curious to know what issues people see with a cave diver in doubles using an air integrated computer? I used my Pro Plus 2 (in gauge mode) for a couple hundred deco and probably 50 cave dives with no issue until it died and I didn't feel like paying 700 bucks to replace it.

I always thought that the benefits outweighed the liabilities

Liabilities
- Larger = potential entrapment point and more to carry
- Difficult to get custom length hoses which limited routing options
- battery = another potential failure point
Benefits
- Precise display of pressure
- provides convenient secondary depth and timing device
- Much better logging than any of my wrist mounted computers (I can tell by run time and depth how much my SAC rate changed from one section of the cave to another)
- If you want you can set an alarm for thirds
08-31-2009 02:36 PM
BobK
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hoska

Just curious to know what issues people see with a cave diver in doubles using an air integrated computer? I used my Pro Plus 2 (in gauge mode) for a couple hundred deco and probably 50 cave dives with no issue until it died and I didn't feel like paying 700 bucks to replace it.

I always thought that the benefits outweighed the liabilities

Liabilities
Larger = potential entrapment point and more to carry

Difficult to get custom length hoses which limited routing options

battery = another potential failure point

Benefits
Precise display of pressure

provides convenient secondary depth and timing device

Much better logging than any of my wrist mounted computers (I can tell by run time and depth how much my SAC rate changed from one section of the cave to another)

If you want you can set an alarm for thirds
I used to use one until it died also. Hmmm, yours died. Mine died. Pressure gauge rarely dies. Hmmm.
08-31-2009 03:01 PM
Jay

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobK

I used to use one until it died also. Hmmm, yours died. Mine died. Pressure gauge rarely dies. Hmmm.

:)

I used one (hoseless) in addition to my pressure gage til it died. :) It was good for establishing SAC rates!
08-31-2009 03:18 PM
Sludge

I used one in cave diving until I started staging most dives. Now I only use it when open water diving. The only problem I ever had was once (first dive of the year) when I didn't bother to see if the transmitter battery was any good. It wasn't.
08-31-2009 03:24 PM
TommyB

Well call me a gadget freak, but I dive with the Aries T3 Hoseless, the Oceanic Datamask, and a LiquidVision X1. + I have 3 transmitters I can hook onto stage bottles.
Yea, and I have a SPG..
08-31-2009 07:32 PM
sskasser

Quote:

Originally Posted by TommyB

Well call me a gadget freak, but I dive with the Aries T3 Hoseless, the Oceanic Datamask, and a LiquidVision X1. + I have 3 transmitters I can hook onto stage bottles.
Yea, and I have a SPG..

Gadget freak!

:smt036
08-31-2009 08:22 PM
fno

Gadget Freak Twice. Thats' way too much crap to keep track of.....
08-31-2009 08:59 PM
Johnny Bailey

Quote:

Originally Posted by fno

Gadget Freak Twice. Thats' way too much crap to keep track of.....

Amen! I have enough trouble keeping track of my Navy tables!
09-09-2009 10:54 AM
Walter Pickel

Quote:

Originally Posted by FW

Somehow, I suspect we would have heard about this, unless it was in another country.

That is exactly what we thought when we read it in the airport last week...

As an aside, SD Mag is only two people (believe it or not) -- a man and a woman. Also, only one is a certified diver. Caveat emptor
09-09-2009 11:21 AM
Arctic Mike

Quote:

Originally Posted by TommyB

Well call me a gadget freak, but I dive with the Aries T3 Hoseless, the Oceanic Datamask, and a LiquidVision X1. + I have 3 transmitters I can hook onto stage bottles.
Yea, and I have a SPG..

Hey Gadget Freak, how's Switzerland?
09-09-2009 05:32 PM
cavedivingwoman

dive accident article?

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSea

That is exactly what we thought when we read it in the airport last week...

As an aside, SD Mag is only two people (believe it or not) -- a man and a woman. Also, only one is a certified diver. Caveat emptor

I will look for it; a number of dive pubs arrive here unsolicited. It could be that the author created a fictional scenario---it's done in teaching publications frequently. The scenario should, however, bear some semblance to reality.
Barbara
09-09-2009 10:21 PM
allen

Cave accident article

I am dumbfounded! A diver took only 1 light into a cave! I thought all of us carry at least 3. If you include the Mini-Q40's on my masks, I carry 5. Even in an open water, most night divers carry 2 or 3. In the real event, he may have experienced 3 light failures; I did on my third open water night dive.
09-10-2009 06:25 AM
deanme

less failure points

I am a minimalist and prefer to keep it simple. I don’t take any pressure gages. I prefer to measure pressure by weight of the tank. Without the pressure gages, I reduce failure points and am more streamlined. I also don’t carry two backup lights. My primary light is guaranteed for one year. :roll:
09-10-2009 01:43 PM
Oceanus

First, please know that SDM is a competitor to my interests. That said...

It is my understanding that SDM under the new publisher, Bonnier Corp, no longer has the budget to run investigations and may even use fictitious scenarios in order to illustrate a point. I don't think this is so bad if it helps safe a life.

If anyone is interested the original/previous author of Lessons for Life, Mike Ange, and I have recently created a new online site for the Lessons franchise and other Scuba articles.

http://www.Seaduction.com

I do not wish to highjack the thread so please PM me with any issues related to the site. Thanks, Bill
09-10-2009 02:10 PM
deepdiverbob

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oceanus

First, please know that SDM is a competitor to my interests. That said...

It is my understanding that SDM under the new publisher, Bonnier Corp, no longer has the budget to run investigations and may even use fictitious scenarios in order to illustrate a point. I don't think this is so bad if it helps safe a life.

Thanks, Bill

I agree, but I think it should also be noted if it is not a factual story, or even if some names of actions have changed slightly.
09-14-2009 05:59 PM
Sludge

I just read this piece of garbage. My guess is it is a piece of fiction written by someone who knows virtually nothing about cave diving, but once spent some time at Ginnie listening to some cave divers sitting around a picnic table talking.