Shaw’s Cove, Laguna Beach, CA Fatality

[catone]

I would say that's probably accurate for typical buddy pairings, but not for a properly trained and equipped team. In most cases, at least. A team of self reliant divers capable of doing the dive on their own but working together with a team mentality is going to be safer than going it alone most of the time.

That’s the key: “self reliant” and “capable of doing the dive on their own”. Meaning solo equipped and trained (or at least the solo approach and mind frame).

 

[Scuba Lawyer]

Nothing really to do with this sad event, but it got me to remembering that I believe it was Shaw's Cove where the medical contributor to Skin Diver Magazine and NAUI Medical Advisor Charlie Brown, M.D. met his untimely end late one evening nearly 40 years ago. Charlie had stopped in that afternoon to the dive travel agency where I worked here in Laguna Beach to say Hi and shoot the breeze as he occasionally did. I didn't think much about it at the time. After his body was recovered the next day off-shore from Shaw's Cove I was speaking to some friends in the dive industry and they said Charlie had stopped in to see them that afternoon as well. The circumstances were such that, in retrospect, it appeared he was saying goodby. I had a lot of great conversations with him, all medical, all decompression theory, barotrauma injuries, sea life injuries, etc... Really nice guy. Sorry for getting side-tracked (and I'm certainly not insinuating this unfortunate incident was is any way, shape or form similar to Dr. Brown' demise - just the location got me to remembering)....

cc: @Sam Miller III

 

[Hiszpan]

I was one of the divers involved in the rescue attempt

A few details:
- The deceased was from out of town and was diving alone
- He was in full rental gear from a local shop
- His SPG read 0
- His computer showed a surface interval of 1 hour 25 min when we got him to shore
- Swells were ~2ft and surge was heavier than normal for Shaw's Cove

I commend all who assisted with the rescue.

Few questions:

- is it a deep dive site?
- can you recall any details of the dive from the dive computer?

Many thanks for your contribution.

 

[Scuba Lawyer]

- is it a deep dive site?

At the outer end of the reef (which heads straight out from shore) you might get to 50 feet if you dug in the sand (give or take a few feet). Most of the dive is 25 to 35 feet (or shallower as you near shore).

 

[helodriver87]

That’s the key: “self reliant” and “capable of doing the dive on their own”. Meaning solo equipped and trained (or at least the solo approach and mind frame).

I don't think I'd say solo mindset. You need to think about things from a team perspective (shareable resources, contingencies, etc). Diving in a well oiled team isn't about just keeping track of your buddy. It's about knowing the status of the team as a whole and how best to use that to solve a problem. Most buddies don't do that and solo divers don't at all (for obvious reasons). My rule of thumb is to be capable and prepared enough to do the dive on my own safely, but go into it with a team focus. I expect the same from my buddies.

 

[Bob DBF]

But I do agree with your premise. Too often "buddies" are "Same Ocean/Same Dive."

Whereas actual Same Ocean Buddies are solo divers who are only buddies to appease an authority figure.

In other words they are suddenly diving solo while ill equipped to do so.

Instead of following their training and surfacing after a buddy seperation, they continue at depth in what I would say is a form of panic, or stupidity.

(or at least the solo approach and mind frame).

A solo approach would be the ability and gear one believes is proper to conduct a dive alone, if necessary. A solo mindset excludes a buddy completely, because there won't be one.


I normally dive solo because I enjoy it, along with other reasons. When I buddy dive, I am as serious about that as my solo diving. I haven't lost a buddy yet, underwater, but have had some decline to dive again because they are not actually interested in buddy diving.


Bob

 

[MaxBottomtime]

“It’s important to remember to always know your limitations and always scuba dive with a buddy,” Capt Bond said.

True to that. I have come to the conclusion recently, reading more and more of the Accidents and Incidents forum, that so many accidents descriptions contain phrases like:
- "they became separated"
- "they surfaces and noticed the other diver wasn't with them"
- "they've seen him going up to the surface and continued on with the dive"
One wonders if we paid much more attention to the basic rule (at least in some agencies training standard) of buddy diving, the outcomes of some of those situations might have been different.

The outcome may have been different had a buddy been there, but we need to look at the root cause with many of these accidents. Buddy separation or diving solo is not the cause of death. Running out of air usually is. In this case, the diver's spg read zero. There is no excuse for running out of air, especially in a shallow dive such as Shaw's Cove. You don't need a buddy to remind you to check your spg periodically. Even if you get low enough on air to feel like you are having to suck the air through the hose, a controlled emergency ascent should solve that problem. Of course, watching your spg would keep you out of those situations.

 

[Bob DBF]

The outcome may have been different had a buddy been there, but we need to look at the root cause with many of these accidents.

With that in mind, I would look at medical event, with the outcome being the same with or without a buddy. I would imagine that during a medical emergency, one would use the reg untill it no longer worked, as it is easier breathing with, than without. In addition, during the rescue I doubt if any cared or checked to see if the reg(s) were freeflowing, I wouldn't.


Bob

 

[SoFlaDiver954]

In this case, the diver's spg read zero. There is no excuse for running out of air, especially in a shallow dive such as Shaw's Cove.

Unless more details came out that I missed, it's also possible that the diver surfaced with air in the tanks. Bobbing around for over an hour in 2ft seas could have caused a free flow that drained the tank completely.

 

[Hiszpan]

All interesting points. To me (and I am not solo trained), no amount of training can help you better in a medical event (heart attacks/strokes of various severity, IPOs etc) than a buddy, especially when the lights go out. He's also there to kick your a** if you're running low on air and not heading back.