Fourth Diver this year dies at Gilboa

[OWSI176288]

How hard would it be to put a false bottom on the deep mudhole parts of a quarry? Like a big net, that you can't get tangled in, so people don't get down in the muck and kick it all up?

Wouldn't it be better, and easier, just to get Instructor's to start actually teaching good buoyancy and trim skills? But wait......can't do that in a weekend open water class and the "dive today" practices that most SCUBA training has gone too.

 

[Hank49]

Wouldn't it be better, and easier, just to get Instructor's to start actually teaching good buoyancy and trim skills? But wait......can't do that in a weekend open water class and the "dive today" practices that most SCUBA training has gone too.

What would be easier and what is realistic are not the same. I hope Mike Ferrera's heart won't give out fretting over this, he's a good man....but the dive industry isn't likely to change. $$$$$$$ talks and always will.

 

[Steve R]

What would be easier and what is realistic are not the same. I hope Mike Ferrera's heart won't give out fretting over this, he's a good man....but the dive industry isn't likely to change. $$$$$$$ talks and always will.

How hard would it be to put a false bottom on the deep mudhole parts of a quarry? Like a big net, that you can't get tangled in, so people don't get down in the muck and kick it all up?

lol, yah buddy, and your 'fix' is very realistic, of course now these 'fish-net' divers can only dive in quarrys with 'fish-nets' installed.

I guess in the ocean these divers can always leap from dead coral head to dead coral head too, huh?

get a grip dude, which is to say I am with Doug here.

 

[Kingpatzer]

Maybe????... quarries need to be looked into then........I know where I dive, the stats are much lower......

There will always be outliers.

 

[MikeFerrara]

How hard would it be to put a false bottom on the deep mudhole parts of a quarry? Like a big net, that you can't get tangled in, so people don't get down in the muck and kick it all up?

Silt contnues to accumulate. When these rock quarries first flood, there is no silt (or very little). In a few months, your net would be covered with rotting leaves/vegitation/algea and wind blown dust...in other words, silt.

 

[MikeFerrara]

lol, yah buddy, and your 'fix' is very realistic, of course now these 'fish-net' divers can only dive in quarrys with 'fish-nets' installed.

I guess in the ocean these divers can always leap from dead coral head to dead coral head too, huh?

get a grip dude, which is to say I am with Doug here.

I have the answer!

You've seen those computer controlled down-riggers? We just strap a line to everybodies butt, toss them in and let the computer copletely control their profile. Just reel em up when the dive is over.

 

[hollywood703]

here is something to chew on......You rent a car from enterprise (just the first one i thought of) you take it on a trip and either by your fault or the other drivers you collide with another vehicle.....Is enterprise responsible (short of a vehicle malfunction)? They just gave you the tool, they expect YOU to know how to use it, as well as the rest of the people on the road not to hit YOU in their car.

for anyone who says the site is responsible.......Would you be willing to make a check off dive with one of the staff instructors? and/or only go with an instructor of their choice, but at your cost?

Who is responsible if you dive in a public lake and perish? the state?

None of these divers from what I have read in this post, were entangled with objects provided by the site, die from equipment rented by the site, or any other neglect of which the site could be responsible for.

These deaths, were either diver error, lack of diver training, and possibly medical issues. Nothing more!

 

[Hank49]

lol, yah buddy, and your 'fix' is very realistic, of course now these 'fish-net' divers can only dive in quarrys with 'fish-nets' installed.

I guess in the ocean these divers can always leap from dead coral head to dead coral head too, huh?

get a grip dude, which is to say I am with Doug here.

Now hold on a minute....most quarries (I'm from southwestern Ohio, years ago.... west of Cincinnati....quarry land nowadays) are steep sided and have a relatively small "bottom" where the true muck accummulates. Inevitably, there will be divers "falling" to the bottom and kicking it up.....even if training standards DO improve, it only takes one flailing around..... I'm just thinking of a way so when they do, they don't ruin vis for everyone else. Perhaps not applicable in all quarries. But isn't this what the platforms are built for? Think of a bigger platform. Or don't.
It's harder to ruin the vis in the ocean so coral head hopping isn't necessary.

 

[jakoop]

I was there diving with my 2 children. I don't know much more detail than what has been posted. We were just exiting the water when the diver went missing. The conditions were typical for Gilboa. The vis was good, probably at least 30 feet or more. The temps were typical for this time of year at Gilboa.

I would only like to give my support for the Gilboa operation. I feel there is not much more the owners could have done. I just completed Rescue class in June and I feel the rescue effort was textbook. All EMS services were activated and lifeflight was there immediately.

Until there are more facts availiable, no one should speculate. I too have a desire to know more. I think we all need to learn from these type of accidents. This is the first accident I have witnessed and it stays heavy on my mind. My condolonces to all involved.

 

[Steve R]

.......It's harder to ruin the vis in the ocean so coral head hopping isn't necessary.

But that's what your proposed quarry divers would have to do, since it is of course as you say, "not realisitic" to expect buoyancy control.

Most educators would see a benefit in teaching a diver the basic skills with which they could use in all environments, I hope.

Don't get me wrong, I once watched a BSAC diver leap from coral head to coral head in Cuba a few years ago, so I understand vis isn't the issue there.

He did make me laugh my **** off when I saw his bloody knees when we got back on the boat. Now that could have been dangerous had I been standing too close to the entry/exit area and fallen over.

In Gilboa, there's more than enough platforms and "furniture" for divers to fall on instead of the bottom.

The problem is they're raining in from everywhere, to the point where it's hardly worth going anymore. I can get zero vis with an e-coli-twist at a quarry closer to us and not spend near as much to get there.

I'm not sure that in the last 4-5 years that I've ever been there on a weekend where I didn't see the meat wagon show up for some train-wreck.

I'm actually getting worried that the State is going to shut him down. If this was Canada........well, I digress,...if this was Canada he would have never gotten it off the ground in the first place.