Shannon Lewis - The True Story

[Randy g]

And as I also have said I don't do this anymore - I watch them exit the water to dry land.

I can confirm that. My dive buddy/wife had a sinus squeeze during our cavern class with Jim and could not descend. We all surfaced and waited till she was at the top of the stairs before heading back down.

After reading this entire thread and dealing with a similar dive buddies death a few years ago. I understand somewhat how Jim feels.

I researched instructors before taking my first steps towards full cave and I am honored to say that Jim is my Instructor and gave me an excellent base to work off of.

 

[boulderjohn]

The fact that the insurance company settled is evidence that they knew they were handed a losing case.

Nope.

The settlement in this case was very small, far less than it would have cost the insurance company to go to trial and win the case. To give you a comparison, a bicyclist ran into me while I was riding my bike a couple of years ago. I broke my collarbone and several ribs. The insurance company settled for several times more than the settlement in this case. Also in comparison, PADI was recently criticized for settling early in a case it is argued they would have won if they had stayed with it. PADI's settlement in a case they probably would have won was well over 10 times the settlement in this case.

If anything, it indicates the opposite. Remember that the the plaintiffs attorneys get nothing for all their work if they lose. The small amount they settled for indicated they did not have a solid case and bailed out with something rather than stay in and probably get nothing.

 

[Omisson]

Anyone who thinks a lawsuit settlement is anything other than an actuarial risk analysis is either willfully ignorant or a plaintiffs attorney.....

 

[dumpsterDiver]

As a diver, I have no control of my buddies should they decide to leave the group. Whether they wave me off or simply act as an SOB (same ocean buddy) and leaves, once that happens, I am no longer their buddy. Once they become my student, that dynamic changes drastically.

Which is the very definition of 'common practice'. Wave offs are 'what is'.

We'll never know in this case, will we? This is nothing but your conjecture based on nothing, nada and squat. In the end, Jim was not held responsible for her death and neither should he have been.

Yet, it was obvious that we had anything but a HEALTHY young adult here. It is obvious to most, but maybe not to you, that she should not have been in the water. There's very little anyone can do to rescue another person from an underwater medical emergency. With or without a buddy, your chances of survival in such an event is pretty near zero.

You seem to be dancing around an issue. I never saw mention of a medical condition other than congestion in this thread. If people actually know why she died, what is it?

 

[TONY CHANEY]

This thread is so far off that it is not even funny. Shannon was only basic cave certified and this was her first dive after being certified. The Ear is not even close to OW nor an easy exit considering that it a very high flow spring with logs "for your diving pleasure." It was reported, I believe, that she got pinned between the logs.

If Wayne had any beef with Jim, then it would have been Wayne that brought this up again after seven years. In fact, Wayne has never post anything pertaining to the case on this site or other diving sites. A question Jim, what was her max depth, according to "her" computer or bottom timer? Please just post the transcrips and let everyone read them for themselves.

IMHO, it least some are learning not to leave a diver on their own when that clearly have stated / shown that they have a problem.

 

[KevinNM]

As it was stated that her dive computer was left in her car I doubt it shows anything pertinent to this. Other then a willingness to dive without equipment that most people consider kind of useful.

 

[TONY CHANEY]

As it was stated that her dive computer was left in her car I doubt it shows anything pertinent to this. Other then a willingness to dive without equipment that most people consider kind of useful.

Exactly! It is very pertinent to this situation. Would anyone care to let a newly certified basic cave diver, on their first dive outside of certification tag along in Ginnie without a computer, depth gauge, tables or bottom timer?

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

Shannon was only basic cave certified and this was her first dive after being certified.

This is the kind of information that goes around that has no basis in fact. Shannon had traveled to Mexico between the time she was certified and the accident and was cave diving in the cenotes. She signed my guestbook stating that she did so.

Exactly! It is very pertinent to this situation. Would anyone care to let a newly certified basic cave diver, on their first dive outside of certification tag along in Ginnie without a computer, depth gauge, tables or bottom timer?

Dave Flick and I had made two dives in the morning. The third dive is the one Shannon tagged along on. The standards for the Basic Cave class allow no decompression for any of these dives. The plan was for Dave NOT to go into decompression on this third dive. Since he would not be going into decompression after his third dive the thinking was that she would not either.

 

[Abdullah]

Nope.

The settlement in this case was very small, far less than it would have cost the insurance company to go to trial and win the case. To give you a comparison, a bicyclist ran into me while I was riding my bike a couple of years ago. I broke my collarbone and several ribs. The insurance company settled for several times more than the settlement in this case. Also in comparison, PADI was recently criticized for settling early in a case it is argued they would have won if they had stayed with it. PADI's settlement in a case they probably would have won was well over 10 times the settlement in this case.

If anything, it indicates the opposite. Remember that the the plaintiffs attorneys get nothing for all their work if they lose. The small amount they settled for indicated they did not have a solid case and bailed out with something rather than stay in and probably get nothing.

OT... you sued over two bicycles colliding?

 

[The Chairman]

You seem to be dancing around an issue. I never saw mention of a medical condition other than congestion in this thread. If people actually know why she died, what is it?

She had an ear infection of some sort and on medication. What's to dance about? She was sick.