Michigan Solo Diver Drowns

[mislav]

I don't think there are really that much more divers dying than their have been in year past. I think the big difference is that we hear about more of them due to the prevalance of discussion boards and more and more news outlets being on line.

While I agree training standards aren't up to what they used to be, the deaths seem to be pretty evenly distributed between new and old divers.

I second that. Seems that every diver dying gets it to the news which in the end makes diving look like a very dangerous activity that only a few manage to survive.

I also play tennis. I'm pretty sure that during summer there are more divers from all over the world diving here than there are tennis players. Yet, last summer I've heard of more people dying on the tennis court than while diving. They didn't make it to the news though...

Condolences to the family and friends of a Traverse City diver.

 

[Greg_MacMaster]

If you want to study the trend, enter the information here:

Diver Accident and Fatality Study
or view the collected data entered thus far here.

This diver was diving alone.

Granted diving is dangerous if not practiced safely... Try comparing it to hunting, biking, driving a car, swimming, fishing..... Scuba diving is very low in statistics.

 

[shoupart]

Was there ever any more news on this incident?

 

[MeiLing]

I agree with mislav, folks die all the time doing a myriad of things and it's not newsworthy. When someone dies while SCUBA diving, all of the sudden there is this sensationalism that the media can spin based on the misguided premise that it is an extreme sport fraught with all kind of dangers!

Condolences to the friends and family.

 

[Tigerman]

I would love to know more about this incident, but the nature of a solo dive is the lack of witnesses, so unless we get the autopsy report we probably will never know. Given the age alone, this diver could (as one at Gilboa earlier this year i think?) have died due to heart attack and not directly related to diving.
Condolences to his his family.

I dont think there is an actual increase in the fatalities, I think its just getting more transparent and the number of divers increasing.
Why is diving so frequently in the news when it goes wrong while other things are not? Guess its just the inherent facination of exploring the 2/3rds of the planet thats NOT dry land?

 

[bfw]

I dont want to be morbid, but with the number of people getting certified every year, that puts more people in the water, just raising the odds I guess.

More certs don't necessarily mean more dives being made. Agency marketing research indicates the majority of OW certs never dive again.