Unknown Magnuson Park diver critical - Lake Washington, Washington state

[DandyDon]

Scuba diver in critical condition after being rescued from Lake Washington

A scuba diver is in critical condition after they were rescued from Lake Washington near Magnuson Park Friday afternoon.

komonews.com

SEATTLE — A scuba driver is in critical condition after they were rescued from Lake Washington near Magnuson Park Friday afternoon.

According to the Seattle Fire Department (SFD), just before 2 p.m., dispatch received a call reporting a scuba diver who was potentially in distress. When crews arrived at the scene, they were told two scuba divers were in the water doing exercises. During the exercises, SFD said one of the divers didn't return to the surface.

Shortly after, Seattle fire crews responded with two fire boats, two watercraft, and also had rescue swimmers and divers ready to enter the water if needed.

Officials said while crews were checking the parts of the water where the divers were exercising, a civilian boat called them to report they pulled the diver out of the water and brought him to shore.

"We do respond to a fair number of water rescues," said Kaila Lafferty, a spokesperson for the SFD. "They don't always end up with this big of a response. Typically it'll be for a paddleboarder who falls in the water and just needs help getting out. Oftentimes, they don't even need assistance, but we'll dispatch units there just incase something goes wrong. So this sort of response isn't as common, but it does happen and that's why crews like Rescue 1 spend so much time training for these exact incidents.
When the diver was brought to shore, crews attempted life-saving efforts before taking them to Virginia Mason Hospital, where they were reported to be in critical condition."

The SFD said the other diver was reportedly uninjured.

Seattle fire said these types of incidents become increasingly common as temperatures begin to rise around this time of year.

"It's starting to warm up, so our crews are ready at a moment's notice to get out there and help the community in any way they can, especially out on the water," Lafferty continued. "There are a lot of dangers, especially at this time of year. It's getting warmer, the water is still really cold, and people's bodies may not be necessarily prepared for that. So, we're ready to respond, but it's also something to keep in mind if you're going to be doing anything on the water."

 

[Litefoot]

Good gravy. The SFD spokesperson sounds like a robot issuing preprogrammed statements. Would like to have known a little more about what happened. I guess it’s too early in the investigation. Hope the diver recovers.(praying hands).

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

I was actually at the UW Oceanography dock when an SPD boat flew by with sirens and lights flew by. Wonder if it was for this.

 

[White Chocolate]

Sadly the diver has passed away. I don’t know any details of what happened but that area is frequently used by the GUE crowd for skills practice, and the victim was likely diving on either a rebreather or an open circuit technical kit. He was also a talented photog and according to a mutual friend a pretty nice guy. RIP

 

[whynot]

This loss is tragic for the Seattle diving community and the diving community at large.

I don’t know any details of what happened but that area is frequently used by the GUE crowd for skills practice

Too err on the side of clarity: The diver was not a member of the GUE Seattle crowd. And, the location (Magnuson Park) is *not* at all often used by us (GUE Seattle divers) for skills dives; Magnuson Park however is a general launching point for technical dives to “the bomber” and the “harpoon” (amongst others).

 

[whynot]

**double post**

 

[Matt McCauley]

Good gravy. The SFD spokesperson sounds like a robot issuing preprogrammed statements. Would like to have known a little more about what happened. I guess it’s too early in the investigation. Hope the diver recovers.(praying hands).

Indeed. Her admonition that people need to be careful in the lake this time of year because the water is still cold suggests she does not have the faintest clue as to what happened here to a diver likely wearing a drysuit, at minimum a wetsuit.

 

[Matt McCauley]

This loss is tragic for the Seattle diving community and the diving community at large.


Too err on the side of clarity: The diver was not a member of the GUE Seattle crowd. And, the location (Magnuson Park) is *not* at all often used by us (GUE Seattle divers) for skills dives; Magnuson Park however is a general launching point for technical dives to “the bomber” and the “harpoon” (amongst others).

Right.

Also, just FYI, Q-13 is saying the incident occurred off Matthews Beach in Pontiac Bay, so Sand Point/Magnuson is just a general reference. The video shows the emergency vehicles at the Matthews Beach Park. That rules out them diving on the PB4Y-2 and probably the PV-2 as well, which is obviously easier to reach via scooter from the old Navy pier turned hand launch/small boat put in at the north end of Magnuson Park, by the brewery.

 

[DorffMeister]

Indeed. Her admonition that people need to be careful in the lake this time of year because the water is still cold suggests she does not have the faintest clue as to what happened here to a diver likely wearing a drysuit, at minimum a wetsuit.

While what she said isn't false, this is kind of an insensitive statement to a community that knows the risks far better than she does. This dive wasn't a couple yocals who found some gear in grandpa's garage.

I'm a diver myself and I personally knew, and had dove with, the diver that died. I'm deeply saddened at this loss. While I have zero insight into the specific accident, I know he was a knowledgeable tech diver with a ton of experience in drysuit, deep, rebreather, scooters, etc. Every time I dove with him or we discussed diving, I felt he had his head thoroughly screwed on straight. This accident is a tragedy and shows little more than tech diving, rather all diving, is unforgiving. Whether it was equipment failure or operator error makes zero difference. He loved few things more than diving and he knew how unforgiving the sport is. He will be deeply missed by many.

 

[joebob24]

It looks like he was possibly diving a revo back in 2021 based on the MAV visible in this video. (the guy who says it is his birthday a few seconds into the video)
Has anyone confirmed that he was diving a rebreather, or just open circuit?