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Puget Sound Fatality
- Thread starter DandyDon
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Ayisha
Contributor
Woman dies while scuba diving in Puget Sound:
Woman dies while scuba diving in Puget Sound:
Hopefully the Puget Sound crew will be along shortly to help us. I find the two statements above particularly disturbing if they are correct. The first because it seems the buddy was unable to help provide air and/or support the victim to/at the surface. The second because the cause of the accident may have been something as preventable as running out of air.
elmer fudd
Contributor
I don't know anything more than what the news has reported here at this time, but the site in question is often used for classes.
I've dove it three times over the last decade. It's not particularly challenging, but it does get fairly deep and there are some currents that can pop up there. It's one of those sites where people have been dumping "interesting stuff" for years.
I've dove it three times over the last decade. It's not particularly challenging, but it does get fairly deep and there are some currents that can pop up there. It's one of those sites where people have been dumping "interesting stuff" for years.
No details available yet. Viz locally has been very good, but the big exchanges we are having right now are a setup for the "Redondo River" which is a fairly powerful downcurrent. The time listed is in the middle of a big ebb tide, which is when that current is most likely to occur. It can be intimidating, especially if the divers are unfamiliar with the site or novices.
ADeadlierSnake
Contributor
Another link: SCUBA Diving Accident at Redondo Pier in Des Moines Results in Fatality | The Waterland Blog for Des Moines, WA
Our local dive forum is currently down, so this is the first many of us are hearing about this (or from posts on Facebook). Sad news...
Our local dive forum is currently down, so this is the first many of us are hearing about this (or from posts on Facebook). Sad news...
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I was just coming out of the water this afternoon when I was approached by a local TV crew asking me if I knew anything about the accident. I'd done two dives there yesterday, and three today ... this site is my "local mudhole" and I know it very well. I told the TV guy I hadn't heard about the accident, as it must have happened after I left yesterday, and he confirmed that it occurred around 4 PM.
The only thing I can add to what has already been reported is that yesterday we had a very large ebb, starting around 2 PM. By 4 PM water would've been rushing down the dropoff like a waterfall ... creating a current we know as the "Redondo River" that would sweep north and down (west). Any diver caught in that would be working very hard to make it up the slope to the entry/exit area.
I could speculate what happened next ... it's happened there before ... but that probably wouldn't be very helpful. Given the timing, and the conditions I've experienced when the Redondo River rolls in, I would be hesitant to blame the buddy ... if these were inexperienced divers it was probably all he could do to manage to surface, and would have been hard-put to do so while rendering assistance. A more experienced diver would probably have handled it ... but with some difficulty, as the current's trying to pull you down. A diver experienced with Redondo conditions would've probably known better than to be in that place at that time, given the large ebb. There's a reason I was out of there earlier in the day, and chose another dive site for the afternoon.
Most times a diver at any skill level can handle this site ... we train a lot of new divers there. But the Redondo River is not real predictable, and the middle of a large ebb isn't a good time to be diving there.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
The only thing I can add to what has already been reported is that yesterday we had a very large ebb, starting around 2 PM. By 4 PM water would've been rushing down the dropoff like a waterfall ... creating a current we know as the "Redondo River" that would sweep north and down (west). Any diver caught in that would be working very hard to make it up the slope to the entry/exit area.
I could speculate what happened next ... it's happened there before ... but that probably wouldn't be very helpful. Given the timing, and the conditions I've experienced when the Redondo River rolls in, I would be hesitant to blame the buddy ... if these were inexperienced divers it was probably all he could do to manage to surface, and would have been hard-put to do so while rendering assistance. A more experienced diver would probably have handled it ... but with some difficulty, as the current's trying to pull you down. A diver experienced with Redondo conditions would've probably known better than to be in that place at that time, given the large ebb. There's a reason I was out of there earlier in the day, and chose another dive site for the afternoon.
Most times a diver at any skill level can handle this site ... we train a lot of new divers there. But the Redondo River is not real predictable, and the middle of a large ebb isn't a good time to be diving there.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
I can't comment on this fatality, but I do find the comments about current interesting. We have an incredibly docile site here that has very predictable and relatively mild currents. Dive classes brave them every weekend with hardly any fatalities. Yet, a few months back, I found myself dragging a panicking, self proclaimed public safety diver back to shore. The current, mild enough that I was able to pull the diver, albeit slowly, on the surface, was enough to induce a flailing ball of panic in under 2 minutes and in 10 feet of water.
I could very easily see how certain divers, who over estimate their abilities, could struggle against currents.
Just one of many great reasons to research sites on Scubaboard before you go diving. Better to learn from the mistakes of others than through the school of hard knocks.
Hopefully well learn if the currents really did cause the fatality and as always, I feel terrible for the loss.
I could very easily see how certain divers, who over estimate their abilities, could struggle against currents.
Just one of many great reasons to research sites on Scubaboard before you go diving. Better to learn from the mistakes of others than through the school of hard knocks.
Hopefully well learn if the currents really did cause the fatality and as always, I feel terrible for the loss.
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The Redondo River is unpredictable, and usually transient. It can be too strong to swim against at times ... I've seen tech divers wrapped like pencil-monkeys around pilings waiting for it to move on ... and in fact, I mentioned it in this post just the other day. When it gets too much I usually just grab ahold of something and wait. Usually after a few minutes it slackens up a bit and you can go on about your business. But a diver who's not familiar with it might not think to do that. And trying to surface when a current is pulling you down can be freaky. It's not hard to imagine them running out of air fighting it ... that's happened there before.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Describing Redondo Beach as a "local mudhole" seems a little over the top and might give people the wrong idea. When the tide was changing and we were there the viz did get down to maybe 15 feet until you went "over the edge" and it starts to get a little deeper where the viz seemed pretty good even during tide going out. When we think of a "local mudhole" around here the viz is more like a foot or two. I guess the site may be lots different than I realize but I can't imagine it being too bad.
Edit: This is right next to a Salty's right?
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