Death on Molokini Backwall, March 11 2005

[Charlie99]

Very sketchy info. The Maui New website didn't have the article, so the key bits from the Saturday March 12 Maui News article are below:



"A visitor who had been scuba diving off Molokini died after he reportedly had trouble breathing Friday morning, police said."

"Police and paramedics responded to the 8AM call.
Witnesses said 48 year old Japanese man was on a private dive tour that was on the back side of Molokini when he motioned that he was having trouble breathing". "The man was brought to the surface, where he lost consciousness" "Efforts to revive him continued while the man was transported to an ambulance waiting at the Kihei boat ramp .... pronounced dead at Maui Memorial Medical Center".

 

[Charlie99]

A reliable source has told me that the boat operator was Aloha Kai. They are a small 6 pack that has mostly Japanese dive customers.

The only other thing I've heard is that the diver was in constant visual contact with other divers when he started having some sort of problem at depth, and that other divers went to assist him before he either significantly descended or ascended.

 

[ladycute1]

My sources were in direct contact with the dive operator... and the sense was that this was an out of shape, smoker, tourist diver... and that this was a cardiac incident -- not a diving accident.

 

[Flamebug818]

ur probaly right
still stinks

 

[H2Andy]

this was a cardiac incident -- not a diving accident.

that's what it sounded like to me from the first, but i'm not an EMT or doctor
or nothing

 

[paolov]

would there be any symptoms to watch out for these type of divers?

would there be some indicators that can be checked like say a pre-dive cardiac test?

 

[scubanimal]

I noticed on the last medical form I had to filll out a line to the effect of:
Can you walk a mile in 12 minutes with out being winded? if not the implication was you required a doctors eval and signature to take the class. That's the first time I've seen anything like that. Not perfect, but At least its a start.

Although % body fat is no longer considered a DCS risk, I think its an indicator of physical conditioning, and a heads up to a possible condition risk. Though I know many people who are waist line challenged, and dive very well, its another indicator. And lastly, how many dives recently. Again not an absolute, but not being in dive shape may raise a flag to investigate further.

Its a shame, and someday I may reach that point, but I do enjoy the freedom of it being my choice. Should something ever happen to me, I've told my family, unless the operator was completely incompentent, I assumed the risks, and could have said no. So they are not to persue any legal action.