Cincinnati diver dead after Spiegel Grove - Key Largo, Florida

[DandyDon]

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/florida-keys/article238503848.html

A Cincinnati man died Tuesday morning while scuba diving off the Upper Florida Keys.

Carroll E. Demaris, Jr., 46, died at Mariners Hospital in Tavernier around 10:45 a.m. after being pulled from the water unconscious about an hour earlier near the Spiegel Grove shipwreck off Key Largo, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

Several other divers were in the water with Demaris and brought him back to the Tropical Legend dive boat, where crew performed CPR, Adam Linhardt, sheriff’s office spokesman, said.

The boat rushed back to shore where was met by medics and sheriff’s office deputies at Marina Avenue in Key Largo.

Linhardt said an autopsy will be performed, but no foul play is suspected.

 

[Catito]

Sad

 

[chillyinCanada]

Does anyone know more that they are willing to share?

 

[dewdropsonrosa]

I found a FB post from another passenger who assisted in performing CPR. He didn't have many more details to share than what the news has reported, so my guess is that it was an unsurvivable medical event, even with a prompt rescue and resuscitation.

 

[DandyDon]

my guess is that it was an unsurvivable medical event

What gives you that idea? It sounds to me that a 46 year old drowned for unknown possible reasons diving a wreck that sits on sand 150 feet deep. When I dived this wreck a decade ago, my chosen op insisted on AOW minimum, but I dived with other ops there then who would take anyone with a C-card. It was my boat pick buddy on one of those wrecks that made me decide to buy a pony rig and take it everywhere I dived. We just have no information on this diver really.

 

[wgw04024]

[QUOTE="so my guess is that it was an unsurvivable medical event, even with a prompt rescue and resuscitation.[/QUOTE]

This would be my $ as well. Even though the SG sits in 150' of water, if irc you start hitting it at like 70 or 80'. If there's current, sure it can be more challenging, but most of the time, it's not a terribly challenging dive. All the operations I've used down there in the last 5 years won't bring anyone without an AOW cert.

 

[auto]

What gives you that idea? It sounds to me that a 46 year old drowned for unknown possible reasons diving a wreck that sits on sand 150 feet deep. When I dived this wreck a decade ago, my chosen op insisted on AOW minimum, but I dived with other ops there then who would take anyone with a C-card. It was my boat pick buddy on one of those wrecks that made me decide to buy a pony rig and take it everywhere I dived. We just have no information on this diver really.

Last time I was in the Keys, tried to dive the Spigel, but currents were too bad. There were still a few outfits that did not care about AOW. RR definitely requires AOW on Spiegel and Duane. +1 on the pony/bailout.

 

[rddvet]

That dive is what helped push me into technical diving years ago. I was an AOW diver for 18years and did a dive when the currents were ripping. Our boat captain was over an hour late getting our boat underway because he was having issues with his personal rebreather and planned to do a dive while on the wreck and leave the mate in charge (that should have been my first warning). Because we were so late there were already many boats on the site and we had to attach to the wreck at the most upcurrent point. So the dive had to be started going with the current, meaning a swim in strong current to end the dive. I had no technical training, so I didn't really do any gas planning or think about deco other than watching my computer. My buddy and I misjudged how hard it would be to swim back upcurrent and both got back to the line with about 600psi. I also had 8 minutes of deco to do (with no deco cylinder since I had no training). My respiratory rate was so high that at the end of the 8 minutes I was very close to having to buddy breathe with my buddy who was also low on gas. I learned alot on that dive, particularly that almost 20 years of experience doesn't prepare you for a technically challenging dive. I think back on that dive from time to time and think how easily I could've killed myself.

Sad to hear about this tragedy.

 

[Sue J]

Sadly, the same dive op, Rainbow Reef, had another death at the Spiegel Grove in May of 2017. No foul play or negligence ever alleged AFAIK.

I was with a group of longtime instructors who dive the Spiegel when the news came in and one commented that the Spiegel can be dangerous for inexperienced divers because they can easily get into a room, silt it up, and lose their bearings. No evidence that this is what happened here, just a side comment.

 

[wgw04024]

From my experience, Rainbow Reef gives very clear dive briefings on what and how to dive these wrecks. Also, the last two trips we've made, you get a guide unless you refuse one. There are rooms you can find your way into if that's your intention, but people aren't accidentally finding themselves in a silty room all of a sudden. I would say that those large wrecks at that depth are extremely safe considering how many people dive them on a daily basis. Anyone have an annual number for those wrecks perhaps?