CO Death Myth

[WSOPFAN]

Dear Wsopfan,

This conjecture is just like the idiocy that whet on about the Scubamau incident. There are a lot of people on the island that know, and especially about the shoddy autopsies, and they are among the mainstream Cozumel Medical establishment--I am not talking about paramedics, but prominent doctors. Yes, they tell us things that might get them very embarrassed or worse, and I am not about to name names. If you choose to call that beating around the bush then so be it...but it is the same bush that was in place for the Scubamau incident and the terrible downcurrents in Cozumle. You know how that went I presume.


Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

It appears to me that you and Christi and others are suggesting other opinions to this story. If so then 1 or more persons is lying about not only this particular case but others as well. I look forward to reading the truth but I won't be holding my breath. BTW I could see a coroner saying maybe a diver died from drowning, or heart attack, but to conclude it was from CO poisoning would most certainly cause problems so why not just lie about every cause of death? If they are as unprofessional as you say then you would think they would lie on every autopsy in favor of Cozumel? Right?

 

[Hatul]

Can we get details of the autopsy report, in particular, the COHb levels.

 

[WSOPFAN]

BTW I forgot to ask, what is a "homemade" rebreather? Are you suggesting you have knowledge this diver was using such equipment?

 

[Dave Dillehay]

Dear Dumpster Diver,

No, not all autopsy doctors in Cozumel are incompetent, nor are all compressor shops infallible. But some are and there is a tolerance of incompetence/laziness that would not fly in the US. Let me give you a direct example with names withheld.

This year a diver came to the surface in distress and died on the way to a chamber. The autopsy doc opened up the chest and immediately claimed drowning. The attending paramedic insisted that the doctor look at the lungs, which were dry! Then made to look at the heart saw that it was a mess. Out of that one the proper cause of death, heart attack, was only listed due to the diligence of a paramedic. That really happened this year according to direct statement of the paramedic.

My guess is that some of those doctors, and that is backed by other doctors in Cozumel, say "dead is dead" and just want to get it out of their hair and they latch on to the easiest and quickest answer.

This will be my last comment on this subject...maybe.

Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

 

[redacted]

My guess is that some of those doctors, and that is backed by other doctors in Cozumel, say "dead is dead" and just want to get it out of their hair and they latch on to the easiest and quickest answer.

When would a scuba death being attributed to CO poisoning ever be "the easiest and quickest answer."

What does a rebreather do with CO? Is the CO scrubbed like CO2, or is it concentrated, or???

 

[Dave Dillehay]

When asked by the island's cave professional, German of Yucateca, cited CO poisoning as ONE of the possible causes. That was when he was asked by the authorities and that got passed on to the medics...you know how rumors go.

The issue of the diver's rebreather being homemade is just what I heard from someone who should know. That is not a fact that I am positive about.


Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

PS It's Saturday night here and my wife insists that I have a life. Bye

 

[WSOPFAN]

This will be my last comment on this subject...maybe.

Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

Yea maybe Dive-aholic might want a few words with you......we'll see...........

 

[Thalassamania]

I had not thought about this until someone asked how a rebreather would handle CO, I think that given the high affinity for CO, the hemoglobin in the blood would scrub the CO out of the breathing loop as it passed through the lungs. Additional CO would only be added as diluent was added. That argues against CO poisoning.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

So first of all you are saying the article in Por Esto that claimed the coroner concluded on the autopsy that it was due to CO poisoning was a lie and you are saying the autopsy itself is a lie.
Second you are also suggesting that his dive buddies who have posted concerning this issue are also lying about the cause of death. Maybe you could explain how the Carboxyhemoglobin level was supposedly at a lethally elevated level if no test was done? So his "pink" or "red" skin indicated nothing right?

Pink or red skin can indicate a number of things, just as normal skin tones don't mean CO toxicity is ruled out.

You are now on record as being the 2nd shop owner who claims that autopsies on Cozumel are not only not done by professionals but routinely concluded with errors. If true that is very disconcerting.

You're shocked to hear that a small island in a poor country might not have access to the same testing as the FBI Forensics department?

 

[Thalassamania]

Postmortem lividity?

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

The image, below, has been included because it has educational value that is on-topic with the discussion in this thread. The image contains a graphic illustration of post-mortem body colouration. Viewer discretion is advised.

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