ajduplessis
Contributor
Silt or entanglement? I never understood the "urge" to do wreck penetrations on single cylinders. I understand the wreck is @35m (narcosis)?
Missing Diver in Cape Town, South Africa
- Thread starter WendyCayman
- Start date
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Jan Kruger
Contributor
I am sad to hear about this tragic loss of a diver's life. At the depth of 34m I assume it was relatively dark around & in the wreck. Did all of them penetrate? When did they realise that he was missing ? Only when they surfaced ? Did they use torches ? What was their diving plan ? Silting up the wreck could also be a problem. I would like to be sure my bud stays close to me if we dive to that depth on a wreck.
My deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased.
My deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased.
A little bit more info here - he was found in the engine room. The wreck is 65 metres long so it took a while to search. The one person I know for sure has penetrated the wreck said it was extremely tight and many places to get lost. Not much other information at this stage. I hope that the dive charter will consider releasing a bit more detail about the incident in the interest of letting others learn from what happened.
xyrandomyx
Contributor
I've never penetrated that (or any other) wreck, so I can't say anything about the inside, and I haven't dived on that wreck, but I have dived on a few others in Smitswinkel Bay. It's typically pretty dark. Even if vis is good at the bottom, there's often a murky layer near the surface which blocks out light. You can see alright, but your dive will be much better with a torch. I imagine it must be quite dark inside.
OP
I totally agree. The more information released, the better we can all be at preventing these things from happening.
---------- Post added January 6th, 2014 at 09:52 AM ----------
Missing Western Cape diver identified - Post | IOL.co.za
---------- Post added January 6th, 2014 at 09:52 AM ----------
Missing Western Cape diver identified - Post | IOL.co.za
Dive Bug Bit Me
Contributor
First off, I have not been to the engin room of this wreck. . . The entrance is rather uninviting.
It is unlikely that this diver just wondered in there. Most likely his plan was to visit the engine room while still sitting on the boat above the water. The immediate question is what equipment he was carrying for a solo trip to the engine room.
It is unlikely that this diver just wondered in there. Most likely his plan was to visit the engine room while still sitting on the boat above the water. The immediate question is what equipment he was carrying for a solo trip to the engine room.
Jan Kruger
Contributor
65 m Long ship is relatively large . I must have missed the part stating the diver did a solo dive . Serious dive to that depth and then to dive right to the end of the ship into the engine room. One would hope that the cut outs on ships would make it easier to get out of them.
OP
The way I have understood it, he, on OC, was doing a dive with 3 on rebreathers.
xyrandomyx
Contributor
Do you think it was planned as a solo dive? The (very brief, probably quite inaccurate) articles seemed to imply that he was with a buddy or buddies. Of course, that could easily mean he was just diving the same wreck as them on the same day and planned to meet them on the boat at the appointed time.
Jan Kruger
Contributor
Surely he would then be the first to leave from the site ...not last ...they discovered at the top that he was missing. That is not how it works . If you descend in a group especially at that depth , you keep an eye on the others in the group. He should have been noticed to be lost at the wreck already. If the others were on rebreathers they would have had enough time to look for him.
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