Ginnie is the BENDER. How many DCI cases this year? 5? 6? More? There appears to be far more incidents than other caves of similar depths, but other factors could be influencing these numbers.
However, like LiteHeadded said, there are some real issues with the cave profile/ way people dive it that could contribute to the prevalence of DCI.
5 last month that I can name.
4 other cave diving related DCI last month according to the chamber operator at Shands Hospital when we were there. A few more OW incidents were sent there as well. Enough people were bent that they were running out of chamber operators.
As you and I have discussed, with as much as the models vary (VPM, Buhl with GF, Computers that "bend and mend", etc), I wonder how much deco really matters in the scheme of things. I know 3 of the divers bent last month think dehydration was the reason.
One of the incidents was certainly a saturation dive, however the diver did almost 20minutes of extra deco over the entire deco schedule according to our conversation we had, and STILL got bent. This is one who thinks dehydration is it.
I've been starting my deco now at 75% depth with short pauses every 10ft, gradually getting longer to until I get to the 30 or 40ft stop where the tables begin, with my end goal being smoothing my ascent compared to the tables...fatigue post-dive seems to be lower, but I'm curious to see if it's a placebo effect, or if I continue to notice it over time.
GUE's decompression sickness dvd
The Mysterious Malady: Toward an Understanding of Decompression Injuries | Global Underwater Explorers interviews several experts about decompression. Hearing people who are doing dives that last over 20 hours, at depths of 300ft admit that it's all a mystery is a real eye opener.
Ginnie is also dove a LOT. It's never blown out (well, almost never)...I know I did 3 dives where I hit deco there this weekend, and several others do the same. Lots of people head there when they get off work due to the 24/7 access. I dive it every Friday that I go up for the weekend to cave dive, because it's the only thing open. I'm guessing this distorts the numbers a little, but I'm still very anxious to see what conversation comes up when you post your theory.