Fatality Horseshoe Bay May 21/10

[BradnerBoy]

I was at the sene, saw where they entered and surfaced, 1200-1300ft swim seems like a long way to go, you tell me? He surfaced cried for help, then drowned while waiting for assistance.

I'll assume when you say you were at the scene, you're referring to be there after the fact?

I guess if they didn't intend to turn around, they could have covered that distance underwater in a single dive, but I can't imagine why anyone would do so intentionally.

Getting lost in open water is one thing, but doing a wall dive with the wall on your right on the way out, doing a 180 and coming back with it on your left is beyond simple for anyone. The worst case is you over or undershoot your original entry point.

How they ended up where they did, assuming they entered at Ansell (did they???) is the great unknown in this sad story. With little current that night, we're left to assume they had a fundamental breakdown in their navigation or they didn't enter at Ansell.

You said he drowned, in which case he either couldn't or didn't inflate his BCD on the surface.

Buddy separation is one thing, but it typically isn't the direct cause of a death, but it is symptomatic of such. By that I mean, they got separated, something happened to him, then, because he and his buddy were separated, the buddy couldn't render assistance until it was too late.

I know you're coming here to search for answers, but I'm afraid you know more about the accident than any of us. All we can do is provide information on the location, conditions and provide idle speculation on what may have happened. Maybe in that speculation, along with information from the professionals that were one scene, you and your brother can piece together what happened that night.

 

[bighiller]

I'm really wondering why the coroner hasn't released any report at this time, which would give the rest of us divers a better idea of the proximate/utlimate causes of this accident.

 

[BradnerBoy]

I'm really wondering why the coroner hasn't released any report at this time, which would give the rest of us divers a better idea of the proximate/utlimate causes of this accident.

Mike,

Call them and see if they're writing one:

Chief Coroner's Office
Dr. Diane Rothon, Chief Coroner
Metrotower II Suite 800 - 4720 Kingsway
Burnaby, B.C. V5H 4N2

Phone: (604) 660-7745

 

[Slamfire]

The distance between the Porteau stairs and the Nakaya wreck is about 1000ft. Divers swim there and back all the time. I have to say it is a longish surface swim. It takes me about 20 mins to do in good conditions and more like 30 mins in choppy seas. Remember that it's not the same as swimming laps in a pool. You're carrying a lot of equipment and you don't want to be exhausted when you arrive. A 1200 to 1300 ft swim is probably longer than a lot of divers would care for, but I would not discard it out of the realm of reality. I've done swims in that range when I've gone past the Nakaya looking for a mystery Jeep that's supposedly around that area.

Just to clarify, when I say going to the Nakaya and coming back in, I am referring to a surface swim on the way out and an underwater dive on the way in.

 

[sschlesi]

I was at the sene, saw where they entered and surfaced, 1200-1300ft swim seems like a long way to go, you tell me? He surfaced cried for help, then drowned while waiting for assistance.

Swimming at an average of 1 ft. per second (~1km/h), which is an easy pace, it would take about 42min. to swim 1300ft out and back again. That is not an unreasonable dive time.

The group I previously mentioned that swam down past the first couple houses on Pasco Road included novice divers with only mediocre air consumption rates. They all had sufficient air from their aluminum 80s to return to near the entrance underwater. I'm sure the return leg was done quite shallow.

 

[Slamfire]

Swimming at an average of 1 ft. per second (~1km/h), which is an easy pace, it would take about 42min. to swim 1300ft out and back again. That is not an unreasonable dive time.

Most divers will agree that a straight line from the stairs to the Nakaya is a long surface swim, but then we don't think twice about doing a longer underwater distance when on the dive back in we deviate to go to the Granthall and the Centennial. I guess that's because we like being underwater and we don't see covering longer distances underwater as punishing as the surface swim. Obviously, this is assuming you have enough gas for the dive.

 

[mustang_5l]

retireddiver.

since you where there and where probably overseeing the dive could you please provide us with more detailed information?
Where they doing a fun dive or training or technical dive?
What type of equipment where they wearing? singles or doubles? size of tanks?
What type of training did they have?
Did the deceased have any known medical issues?
You must have some type of idea of their dive plan... please share.
You said that "he drown on the surface waiting for assistance". When they removed him did he have any air in his BC and weights still attached to himself? Who did the rescue on him? was it from shore or a boat?

Thank You for your understanding in providing us with the answers to our questions.

 

[bighiller]

Coroner's office told me the investigation could take a few months to complete and to call back then.

 

[Julian55]

reconfirms how important it is to be a good buddy, and to dive with good buddies. It's a 2 way street.

 

[Slamfire]

It is important to be a good buddy and it is important to dive with good buddies. In this particular case we have next to nothing in terms of information that would enable anybody to emit judgement on whether the people involved were good or bad buddies. And even if we had the information, the purpose of accident analysis is not to pass judgement, but to identify ways for avoiding this kind of accident to happen again.