Diver dies on Hamilton horror movie shoot

[Tamas]

Aug. 22, 2005. 07:09 AM

Diver dies on Hamilton horror movie shoot


HAMILTON—A 43-year-old scuba diver died yesterday while working on a low-budget horror movie in the waters off the Royal Hamilton Yacht Club.

The victim, a professional diver, and his wife were working on Marina Monster, when tragedy struck. Filming a routine scene at 11 a.m. in water four metres deep, they were towing a shark-shaped prop, about four metres from the dock, when she surfaced alone.

Minutes later, the prop could be seen floating freely. Witnesses say the worried woman asked if anybody had seen her husband surface.

"She knew something was wrong right away. She noticed the bubbles and told us that was a sign that he wasn't breathing," said Jason Tennant, a sound technician with the film crew.

As she struggled to remove gear to dive back in and find her husband, Tennant threw off his shoes and dove in. " I just kept coming up and going back down, but the water was too murky. I couldn't see anything."

It's believed the man was under water eight to 12 minutes before he was found and brought to the surface by a pair of young lifeguards — Maggie Turnbull and Aaron Jarecki — hailed from the club's outdoor pool. It took Turnbull several minutes to find the victim. Together, they pulled the diver to the surface, hampered by the weights attached to his body. With no vital signs, he was rushed to Hamilton General Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Police have not released his name pending notification of kin. The coroner and labour ministry are investigating. A ministry diving specialist will help. No foul play is suspected. Hamilton coroner Dr. Jack Stanborough said there would be an autopsy today. "We're looking at it either being a natural death or an accident."

HAMILTON SPECTATOR

 

[SeanQ]

Condolences to all affected by this tragedy.


Although media sources are rarely reliable from a technical standpoint; there is some information worth considering.

...working on a low-budget horror movie... The victim, a professional diver...

That puts up a red flag.

She noticed the bubbles and told us that was a sign that he wasn't breathing

I'm not quite sure what to make of this. A constant stream could indicate a free flow but doesn't mean the diver wasn't breathing.

We'll have to wait for more information. I hope this doesn't turn out to be another case of untrained divers moonlighting as commercial divers.

 

[ven]

i'm thinking perhaps heart attack and or from over worked and tuckered out...

Where was the serface diver or rescue diver through all of this? or wasn't there one

 

[fairybasslet]

i'm thinking perhaps heart attack and or from over worked and tuckered out...

Where was the serface diver or rescue diver through all of this? or wasn't there one

It was low budget. Probably didn't have one. What a shame. My condolences to the family

 

[pt40fathoms]

I have a few friends who work as safety divers, stunt men, and construction crew on film sets, and can say with certainty that I don't think the budget of the movie had anything to do with this tragedy.

My deepest condolences go out to the family, friends, and all involved.

 

[caveseeker7]

I'm not quite sure what to make of this. A constant stream could indicate a free flow but doesn't mean the diver wasn't breathing.

It's a really bad sign if the diver wasn't using OC equipment.

 

[docjay]

I live in the Hamilton area. There are unconfirmed reports that there was a rebreather involved. Would seeing bubbles in the water indicate some kind of problem with the equipment?

Jay

 

[caveseeker7]

Yes, Jay, especially on a closed circuit system. As the name implies, the loop is closed and no gas should be expelled until you ascent. Only then the loop gets vented, much like a drysuit or BC.

On semi-closed circuit systems anywhere between 12% and 25% of gas gets vented and replaced with fresh gas. That happens either per breath (passive system) or after every 4th - 5th breath (active systems). Either way, considerably less gas is emitted than on OC.

So if you have a constant stream of gas bubbling up on the surface you have a leak somewhere.
If there are a lot, chances are the DSV (mouthpiece) is open and the diver not breathing from it.
The loop is flooding, and once the scrubber is flooded the unit is rendered useless.
In and by itself it shouldn't be a fatal problem as the diver should have bailout.

Unless the unit gets damaged UW (cutting breathing hose in a wreck for example) loop floods very rarely occur mid or late in the dive. Assembly mistakes and the like usually show at the beginning upon entering the water.

A mid/late dive flood is generally a not the cause of an emergency, but rather an effect.
The diver may well have been incapacitated and unable to shut off the DSV.
Toxiety of gases in the loop can lead to that. In which case, there's a fair chance
not only the loop is flooding, but the diver is drowning.

 

[Kriterian]

I just wanted to add my two cents.

I took the explanation of the prop coming to the surface to mean that he was either guiding it through the water, or was struck by it as they pulled it. Maybe his rebreather unit was struck, causing the bubbles, alerting every one to the problem.

As usual, information is sketchy, so it's hard to infer any more.

 

[derwoodwithasherwood]

Professional diver does not equate to commercial diver. A DM or instructor is a professional. An underwater welder is a commercial diver. Neither one is necessarily qualified to do the other's job.

BTW: He was a recruit firefighter with the City of Toronto. That means he was in pretty decent shape with recent physical exam and medical monitoring.