Point Lobos fatality - California

[DandyDon]

Modesto diver dies after rescue by paramedics in training - MontereyHerald.com :

POINT LOBOS >> A diver pulled from the sea Wednesday by firefighters and lifeguards died later in a local hospital.
Melissa Cooley Quaresma, 26, a native of Modesto who lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, was pulled ashore by workers who happened to be undergoing ocean rescue training that day.
Quaresma was diving with her father, Walt Cooley of Modesto, near Point Lobos.
Paramedics at the scene and doctors at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula worked for hours trying to save her before she was taken off life support.
Jonathan Pangburn of Cal Fire, which first reported the rescue but did not state the diver's condition, said Friday he was unable to verify Quaresma's identity or death and referred reporters to the Monterey County Coroner's Office, which confirmed her death about 5:45 p.m. Friday.
Cal Fire officials said the lifesaving efforts took place around 10:40 a.m. as about 20 firefighters, lifeguards and U.S. Coast Guard officers took part in their quarterly training.
Rescuers from the Carmel Highlands Fire Protection District, the Coast Guard and California State Parks were in the water practicing simulated swimmer recovery and patient transfer when State Parks lifeguards noticed Quaresma in the surf at Monastery Beach.
According to Cal Fire, the lifeguards pulled the diver and her companion from the ocean and, aided by paramedics at the scene, treated her on the beach. She was taken to Community Hospital by ambulance.
Quaresma graduated from Davis High School in 2005 and Azusa Pacific University in 2009, according to an announcement in 2010 of her engagement to graphic designer John Quaresma of Modesto. She was an honors student and art major at Azusa Pacific.

 

[mdb]

This is a very sad.

 

[billt4sf]

Modesto diver dies after rescue by paramedics in training - MontereyHerald.com :

Despite the headline, this occurred at Monastery Beach, not at Point Lobos. The local nickname for Monastery Beach is (ahem) Mortuary Beach. It's not all that bad I guess, but from what I understand, you do have to go in and out a certain way.

I do wish we had good numbers of % deaths. Just deaths / fills would be excellent. (Now here come all the messages saying that it can't, or shouldn't, be done. Poppycock!)

- Bill

 

[raftingtigger]

Monastery Beach is the entry for some spectacular diving, but you have to pick you days very wisely. The beach in very steep so there is a very narrow but sometime VICIOUS surf that will trash the diver. To make matters worse the sand is very coarse and acts like ball bearings. There are specific areas to enter and others to avoid. If the surf comes up sometimes it is best to swim back out to sea and signal for help.

On a quiet day you don't see what the concern is. On a rough day you see a problem, but not how bad it can really be. For the most part I have given up diving there - except possibly on days the ocean looks like a lake - since crawling is the only way I can exit this beach. Too much energy for my old(er) body. Some younger (and stonger) divers can exit on a quiet day walking out, but I can't. On a rougher day loosing a fin or a mask isn't the worst thing to happen to all too many divers. This is an ADVANCED site only.

Don't know if the link will work but this was NOT a diving day at Monastery. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10202892672741678&set=o.290778220990301&type=3&theater

 

[diver 85]

That is sad......My wife's maiden name is Cooley......huh

 

[Keith.M]

This is just so sad. The only time I have dived at Monastery was from a boat. Absolutely beautiful, but it does look very dangerous at times while just around the corner, Point Lobos can be quite reasonable.

 

[Chuck Tribolet]

Wednesday's swell forecast was 4'-6' West, actuals at the offshore buoy were 5.5-6.5 WNW so Monastery would have had some protection from Pt. Lobos. Based on that, this wasn't necessarily a bad (or good) day to dive Monastery.

Chuck

 

[raftingtigger]

Very, very tragic. While we have NO idea of the circumstances this should be a reminder to ALL OF US that this sport has no sympathy for the careless, reckless, unobservant, or mentally, physically, or equipment unprepared. There have been too many deaths in the Monterey area over the last 2 years. If you ever see me doing something that you feel is dangerous or poorly thought out I would appreciate a polite, but firm, "knock upside my head".

 

[Shasta_man]

raftingtigger, I think you at least owe the victim a rephrasing of your last message. Your message says we have no idea what happened here but it must have been one of these reckless or clueless behaviors. You then follow it up with if I'm doing something stupid, stop me. That's a pretty clear inference that this person must have been stupid or clueless for this to happen. Yet, it's well known and even stated by you that this can be a dangerous and tough place to dive, and further, most importantly, that we know zero about what happened except they pulled this poor woman unconscious from the ocean. Your sentiment about being generally careful is a good thing but your automatic inference that this incident was based on some reckless behavior is based on no data and is a reckless leap on your part.

Separately, this is certainly a tragic situation. Even though the rescue squad was right there, they still couldn't save her. Shee, even when we're fiddling around in our lives, somewhere there is someone fighting for their life.

 

[raftingtigger]

raftingtigger, I think you at least owe the victim a rephrasing of your last message. ....but your automatic inference that this incident was based on some reckless behavior is based on no data and is a reckless leap on your part.

Absolutely no intended inference that my remarks on diving cautiously are a comment on why this tragic event happened. Please don't 'read between the lines' in my posts. There is no text there.