Accident at Alki Cove 1 today -- PLEASE read the links [Links are fixed]

[alcina]

Vertigoh - I assume from the posts here you were an integral part of the rescue attempt.

Thank you for helping a fellow diver! And thank you for being here on ScubaBoard

My best thoughts are winging their way to you to help you cope with the aftermath of this.

They are also on their way to the diver in distress and his family & friends...I hope for good news!

 

[Peter Guy]

TSandM (Lynne) should NOT have written that the diver did "not...survive" for her source for that information is not someone with direct knowledge and no one seems to be able to get any solid information.

That written, it is still nigh on to inexcusable for someone to run out of gas while doing a deepish dive -- especially in the area where it happened. The links (the correct one for the 2nd article is GM) are very good articles on gas supply and how to be a "good buddy."

I believe Lynne was particularly upset by this incident because I was DM'ing a class when it happened (I was in the water when it happened) and she thought it could have been me she saw being worked on at the site. (Obviously it was not and my class was being run in a different spot several hundred yards away.)

I hope the diver did survive but being found unresponsive on the bottom is NOT a good beginning sympton.

 

[danclem]

Hi All:

This being the weekend and news media all slashing staff, there is very little information about the incident. KING TV posted the following last night a bit before 7:00 PM.

Dan

Diver nearly drowns in Elliot Bay

[SIZE=-1]06:43 PM PDT on Saturday, November 1, 2008

[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]By KING5.com Staff[/SIZE]

KING
Rescuers gather near Seacrest Park in Seattle, where an unconscious diver was pulled from the water.



SEATTLE – A diver was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries Saturday after rescuers pulled him from Elliot Bay.

The diver, who was unconscious, was found about 100 feet from shore and 100 feet underwater near Seacrest Park. Rescue crews got the emergency call at about 11 a.m.
They administered CPR and rushed him to Harborview.

The diver is said to be in his mid-20s.

The two divers who rescued him were transported to the hospital as a precautionary measure.
Witnesses reported hearing screams. They said they saw two divers emerge holding another diver, who was on his back. A boat helped carry him to shore.

"We could hear people yelling out in Elliott Bay screaming 'help, help,'" Witness Carol Henning said. "And we looked out and said 'oh my god, someone is drowning or someone needs help.'"

 

[I Dive]

Love the media. They are so in tune with the facts......

In general, the media refuses to be confused by facts...

 

[JackConnick]

Congratulations to the divers involved for a rescue. Most of the time these events are only a body recovery.

The area there is silty, pretty dark and fairly flat. It is not always apparent which way the shore is. And it is easy to get separated. An open water ascent from depth is never fun, but should be a practiced skill we are all comfortable with.

Can the original poster/mod change the title to diver "injured" or something though?

Jack

 

[TSandM]

I am very sorry if I posted misinformation. I was told yesterday afternoon by someone at Cove 2 that the diver had died; this was one of the things that got me so upset that I posted the thread. The purpose was not to discuss the accident, but to put up the links again so that people can have access to information which can help to PREVENT incidents like this.

Gas management is not taught ANYWHERE in the PADI recreational curriculum, and at least some instructors feel that it shouldn't be. I don't think it's too difficult for a diver to understand the concept of safety reserves, or apportioning gas for a dive. I think most people can pretty easily learn to do the quick calculations that estimate whether the tank they're carrying has enough gas in it to do the dive they're contemplating. I know someone who has had great difficulty doing the math, but he kept at it, and now he can do it in his head.

This information can save lives. Even if I made a mistake in the headline of the thread, the information is valuable.

 

[Vertigoh]

I wish the media would do their job and cover this story. They are so far behind it's ridiculous.

Please go to king5.com/topstories/stories/NW_110108WAB_alki_rescue_KS.16e463f6a.html

and "recommend" this story by clicking the link maybe that will help push it up in priority.

 

[kadleck]

Clickable version of above link: Diver nearly drowns in Elliott Bay | Top Stories | KING5.com | News for Seattle, Washington

 

[wsb]

Hi, all. I signed up for this board last January so I could post an update while we were covering the tragic death of a diver in the area at that time, and given that you all have concerns about media coverage, I want to share the same kind of update in this case:

Since this is West Seattle news, we will continue to cover this as information becomes available. I worked for conventional media for 30 years and it's just the way it works - they drop into a story, present the first round of information, then move on. Not saying that's right, just the way it works. That is why neighborhood-level news organizations like ours have been launched - we are here to continue coverage even after the citywide media leave.

That said, here is our story from Saturday, which includes as many details as we could find, including video of police divers going back into the water to investigate afterward (the other media crews were long gone by then):

westseattleblog.com/blog/?p=11621
(*your system tells me I cannot post URLs till I have made 5 posts, so sorry that's not a hotlink)

The Harbor Police are handling the investigation. There has been no official update from SPD (with whom we work as credentialed local news media) so far today. I expect to be able to get some more information tomorrow morning, if not sooner, and we will post a new report whenever that is available.

I promise to drop back out now so that you don't consider this a commercial intrusion. Thank you and be safe.

Tracy Record
editor/co-publisher, West Seattle Blog
West Seattle's only daily news source

 

[ronbeau]

I arrived at Cove 2 today by passing a slew of emergency vehicles. As it turns out, a diver was rescued from deep water, but underwent CPR and was listed in critical condition on arrival to the hospital.

The information I have is that he was separated from his group, and found out of gas. This may or may not be accurate; it doesn't matter.

PLEASE read the following links. There is no reason why anyone should end up out of gas underwater, absent a rare and catastrophic equipment failure. And in that event, a diver and his buddy (or his pony bottle) should be able to make it to the surface alive and whole.

Calculating a safety reserve

General gas management

Avoiding buddy separation

Lynn, the first two links in your posting point to the same page. I don't think that was your intent.