Bad year for women divers?

[piikki]

Is it me or has the beginning season been more fatal for female divers? Again I read about an accident, and again it was a female diver who perished. What is going on? I am not superstitious but it seems like 2010 has been particularly bad year for girls. Reports have been scant, so it’s hard to see much pattern for the fatalities. Some that report details for the deaths have been for the very same reasons that the majority of males die from.

I have not dived for 5 years yet, so I have not followed accident reports so long but it sure seems there has been dozen reports this far where at least one woman diver died. Have you noticed it? Does it affect you in any way as a woman? And I do not mean that deaths of men do not affect me just that it seems like there is a change.

 

[Cave Diver]

I hadn't really noticed an increase in female fatalities. It seems things tend to run in cycles, but that may just be that we are more aware of certain things based on our biases. For example, one year it seemed like I noticed a lot of CCR deaths. One year it seems there were a lot of cave diving fatalities. After I bought my new truck I seemed to notice more silver Chevy Avalanches...

It may also mean that more women are getting into, or staying active in the sport, so there's a corresponding rise in incidents.

 

[piikki]

Bias thing is very true. That's why I was checking if anyone else has noticed this or am I somehow sensitized and/or feeling worried. I am not RB diver but there sure was a bad string when nearly every death was RB death and I noticed that too

 

[princessaprilia]

Piikki, I know what you are talking about. Not only does there seem to be a huge amount of women dying... they are all 50 - 55.

 

[Sas]

I haven't noticed any trends. Actually the deaths locally to me have been men. There are often reports released by DAN, BSAC and other organisations you can read to see what accidents have occured.

 

[piikki]

I certainly did not mean that I have proof of any statistical kind that anything is happening. Just a feel that there seems to be more women in the topics than usual. "Usual" to me is that victims mainly are men with occasional woman thrown in.

Not trying to claim anything but look at last 10 threads on deadly incidents on SB (includes 1 snorkeler and one freediver but I got tired on the first page):

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ac...an-dies-during-scuba-dive-off-wilmington.html
A 50-year-old woman

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ac...-two-divers-dead-one-hospitalized-norway.html
One man and two women at 33, 35 and 36 years old

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/334092-diving-fatality-guam.html
A 53-year-old female scuba diver

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/331412-diver-dies-islamorada.html
A 51-year-old Arizona woman

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/324025-seal-dies-training-key-west.html
Petty Officer Ron Woodle

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/334418-snorkeler-fatality-andaman-islands.html
Apparently a young woman was snorkeling

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ac...4-29-ft-ross-california-ab-diver-missing.html
Male abalone diver

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/333537-diver-dies-off-nj-coast.html
A 30-year-old woman

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/227228-diver-dies-hood-canal.html
54-year-old male

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/332894-2010-04-25-pt-lobos-california.html
Frances McCormick

If Frances is woman (usually is fem name but I know names like these are often misspelled) then 7/10 of these involve women. To me that appears high and all these incidents are from last month.

 

[rafter_]

That's bizzare!

 

[LadyAyla]

My opinions on these matters are moot, but what I noted beyond the frequency of these deaths being women is the utter lack of information pertaining to them. To me, it is closing off information to other divers, instructors, and the like so as to aid in preventing these types of situations from happening again. It almost seems to negate the point in them having died- how can you turn an enigma into a positive?

I mean, what killed most of them? We obviously do not know. Well, aside from the crocodile one...I don't know, but personally I never would have snorkeled in such waters. Maybe that is just me. I say that but others might say the same about swimming in waters inundated with Bull Sharks.

Heck, I am just learning about SCUBA, and you would think information like this would be beneficial.

My condolences to all who have lost their lives, or have lost loved ones to these unfortunate incidents.

 

[princessaprilia]

Unfortunately we see that in many SCUBA deaths, the results aren't released until many months (or even years) afterwards.

 

[tddfleming]

Was just recently talking to a funeral home owner, I had asked if he was staying busy. As we both have small businesses in the area, and the subject just comes up. Anyway, he had told me that summers are slow for the funeral business. And when people die it happens in threes- he said he gets either 3 women or 3 men at the same time. I would have never thought that there was a slow time in that business.

It could also just be that you are paying more attention to it now. Since my 12 yr old daughter and I just became certified, I have been paying more attention to the recent scuba deaths. Combined with what Cave Diver mentioned.