Children die playing with scuba gear left in pool - Jensen Beach, Florida

[CuzzA]

It seems very unlikely that hypoxic mix really was the cause of death. But plausible I guess.

Why not? I'd bet it was a single stage tank for a deep gas switch bottom mix. I could foresee a mix up of two identical tanks, one being the hypoxic bottom tank and another being a deco tank. Grab the right one and none of this happens, grab the wrong one and well, here we are. Absolutely plausible. So plausible it even happens to divers while they are diving, with the same outcome.

 

[Marie13]

Why not? I'd bet it was a single stage tank for a deep gas switch bottom mix. I could foresee a mix up of two identical tanks, one being the hypoxic bottom tank and another being a deco tank. Grab the right one and none of this happens, grab the wrong one and well, here we are. Absolutely plausible. So plausible it even happens to divers while they are diving, with the same outcome.

Or Trimix bailout for a CCR diver?

 

[CuzzA]

Or Trimix bailout for a CCR diver?

That too.

 

[Johnoly]

That too.

10/50 mix? It's a standard mix. Tragic distracted accident.

 

[boulderjohn]

Sorry, but little of this makes sense to me.

I assume the tank had two regulators from which the two were breathing. There is no point in having a bottle with pure helium with any regulator on it, let alone two. There is no point in having a serious hypoxic mix, like 10/50, on a tank with two regulators. An hypoxic mix in the 15% or above will not kill you; it will be like breathing air on a mountain. If I input air into a computer at Denver's altitude, I get a warning of a mixture that will not support life, but I breathe it every day with no issues.

 

[Marie13]

Sorry, but little of this makes sense to me.

I assume the tank had two regulators from which the two were breathing. There is no point in having a bottle with pure helium with any regulator on it, let alone two. There is no point in having a serious hypoxic mix, like 10/50, on a tank with two regulators. An hypoxic mix in the 15% or above will not kill you; it will be like breathing air on a mountain. If I input air into a computer at Denver's altitude, I get a warning of a mixture that will not support life, but I breathe it every day with no issues.

Maybe it goes like this: adult grabs a tank, which isn’t labeled. Thinks it’s air or perhaps nitrox. Throws a reg with two second stages on it for the kids and throws it in the pool.

 

[johndiver999]

A mis-labeled or mis-read tank mix. Not that hard to believe.

 

[OTF]

Why not? I'd bet it was a single stage tank for a deep gas switch bottom mix. I could foresee a mix up of two identical tanks, one being the hypoxic bottom tank and another being a deco tank. Grab the right one and none of this happens, grab the wrong one and well, here we are. Absolutely plausible. So plausible it even happens to divers while they are diving, with the same outcome.

True. It's just a chain of some really awful failures. The information we have from the articles is NOT enough to say conclusively what happened or even enough to speculate effectively. At least this incident will probably be more thoroughly investigated than other scuba deaths.

I suppose a kid playing in a pool (elevated activity / breathing rate) would be especially susceptible to the dangers of breathing a hypoxic mix shallow.

 

[CuzzA]

Maybe it goes like this: adult grabs a tank, which isn’t labeled. Thinks it’s air or perhaps nitrox. Throws a reg with two second stages on it for the kids and throws it in the pool.

Yep. Anyone doing serious diving with family and friends likely has a bunch of reg sets. I'm just a recreational trimix diver and somehow I've managed an excessive collection of reg sets.

Another possibility is he just tossed the tank in the pool with a single second typical of a stage, deco or bailout and said, "have some fun." They could have been buddy breathing off a single reg, maybe even holding their breath in between sharing breaths, which of course would compound the hypoxia faster.

This wasn't a scuba dive, per sé, just some pool fun with scuba gear. I'm sure I'm not alone in letting kids, albeit older than these two, breath off a reg in the bottom of the pool. But I was in the pool with them, explained they can't hold their breath going up and held them tight. My niece has since been certified, my nephew wasn't into it. My kids, 4 and 8 are still too young for this activity. I will wait until my oldest is 10 before exposing him to breathing underwater and if he likes it then I'll get him his junior certification.

 

[Bob DBF]

A mis-labeled or mis-read tank mix. Not that hard to believe.

And not tested, in an environment that could have any mix. A regrettable oversight.