Diver Dies in Puget Sound - Blake Island

[ecrcks]

Heart attack, huh?

There were extremely large tidal exchanges that day ... a 12-foot ebb followed by a 14-foot flood ... and current can really kick on those kind of days. If there's a lesson to be learned it's that sometimes you have to look at the tidal exchanges and say "not today" ... or perhaps choose a site that's more sheltered. Problem with these big tides days is that you often don't really get a slack ... there's so much water moving that it just swirls around until it settles in a new direction. I've been out on days when I ended up swimming "upstream" both ways ... and that can really, REALLY make you work hard.

Gotta wonder if a short ling cod season might have played a role in their decision to dive on those tides ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I was wondering the same thing. I don't know anything about ling cod seasons but is it possible to have the season move to days with a lower tidal exchange? For next year maybe?

 

[VooDooGasMan]

Sat and sun morning had great dive slacks, the rest of the day had exchange. Had nothing to do with short season. If you dive at sites you learn how to dive them.

kinda like are ferry terminal worker, she went home and died, I don't think she is 50. she is my neighbor. thats why I ask how many people died on sat, the end of the world.

The divers had a bad day and one of them had nothing to do with spearfishing. They died what they enjoyed doing, thats all that matters to me for sad time like this happens.


Happy Diving

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Sat and sun morning had great dive slacks, the rest of the day had exchange. Had nothing to do with short season. If you dive at sites you learn how to dive them.

kinda like are ferry terminal worker, she went home and died, I don't think she is 50. she is my neighbor. thats why I ask how many people died on sat, the end of the world.

The divers had a bad day and one of them had nothing to do with spearfishing. They died what they enjoyed doing, thats all that matters to me for sad time like this happens.


Happy Diving

I didn't say it had anything to do with spearfishing ... I wondered if it had to do with a short season. That's not about the activity ... it's about a decision to do it based on limited availability, and despite the fact that conditions weren't optimal. People tend to push things if they know the opportunity to do it won't be there when the conditions are more optimal. That's a lesson to be drawn here ... there's ALWAYS another day to dive.

Both diver deaths were the result of heart attacks. Both were middle-aged men. And both occurred on a day with extremely large tidal exchanges, and at a time of year when the majority of people who dive in Puget Sound are just getting back in the water after taking six months or so off.

Coincidence? I tend to doubt it.

Some thoughts worth considering ...

- Pay attention to conditions ... if they're questionable, don't let outside influences cause you to push your limits.
- Make sure you're in shape for the dive ... particularly if you haven't been diving in a while, or if you know you're going to be diving in challenging conditions.

It'd be interesting to know what time of day these accidents occurred.

EDIT: This particular accident was called in at 10:25 AM ... roughly halfway through a 12-foot ebb. Currents at the closest measuring station ... Admiralty Inlet ... were running at just under three knots at the time.

The second accident occurred at roughly 12:30 PM ... near the bottom of that same ebb. Current at Admiralty Inlet was also running at around three knots at the time.

Granted the currents at these sites are not the same as they would be at the measuring station ... but they still would be running at about maximum flow for that particular tidal exchange. It wasn't a great time to be out there ... in fact, it was about the worst time on this particular day to be out there.

Both of these gentlemen would've been fighting the strongest current of the day ... on a day when that current was very strong.

So on that note, let's add a third thought ...

- Plan your dive around what the tides are doing ... particularly if you're diving in an area that's known for large tidal exchanges.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[omar]

I was out at 6:30 am just past high tide at Harper. The viz was 5 ft and surface conditions were cold and rainy, no wind or waves. We ended up calling off the diving though. I was a little surprised that folks were out diving during the exchange with the poor viz.

I would expect poor physical conditioning with high work rate in the cold and dark contributed to the outcome.