Teen diver dead - Catalina Island, California

[boulderjohn]

Sad news. I know that many on the board will disagree but if the 14 year old was at 90 ft then that is a deeper than I would want a 14 year old of mine to be at. Not so much the physiology but the consistent judgement and risk appreciation of that age group.

It said the weight pocket was at 94 feet of sea water. It does not say the diver was diving at 94 feet of sea water. The pocket could have been dropped while trying to take the weights out with the diver at the surface, or the diver could have sunk to a greater depth at some point during or after the incident.

 

[diver 85]

Very sad to hear this-------Q, @ this age, shouldn't his buddy have been an adult(over 18 YO)??--ie He was 'still' a Jr OW diver??,...Am I remembering that correctly, from when we had(back in the 1990's) 3 Jr divers from time to time in our household??....

 

[boulderjohn]

Very sad to hear this-------Q, @ this age, shouldn't his buddy have been an adult(over 18 YO)??--ie He was 'still' a Jr OW diver??,...Am I remembering that correctly, from when we had(back in the 1990's) 3 Jr divers from time to time in our household??....

If you are talking about PADI, there are some specific rules for that age, but the wording is slightly tricky and frequently confused. The key confusion is the difference in rules between the ones that govern certification training and the ones that govern diving after certification.

• For adults, rules about depths (etc.) only govern dives taken during training. There are no rules for your diving after certification.
• For youths age 10-11, there are rules for training and also rules for diving after being certified. After certification, the youth must be accompanied by a parent or dive professional, and the maximum depth is 40 feet.
• For youths age 12-14, training dives cannot exceed 6o feet for OW training and 70 feet for continuing education training dives. After certification, divers must be accompanied by a certified adult, but there is no depth limit.

I do not know the rules for other agencies.

 

[wgw04024]

Are they looking for the weight pocket for accident analysis, or some other reason?

 

[Shugrnutz]

I have told my 13 year old son that his depth limit is 60', and I stick to this myself. Some think that this is overbearing, and over cautious. I believe that at 60' there is a better chance of surviving if the crap hits the fan. Plus I could never live with myself, if he were to die under my supervision.

 

[glassbottom]

I have told my 13 year old son that his depth limit is 60', and I stick to this myself. Some think that this is overbearing, and over cautious. I believe that at 60' there is a better chance of surviving if the crap hits the fan. Plus I could never live with myself, if he were to die under my supervision.

I don't have children of diving age (yet) but I think this is a solid rule. Its deep enough to see cool stuff, but not so deep where you have issues with narcosis etc or where a child panicking is as life threatening as say 90 fsw. Basically you still have time to react in most scenarios (where they are hyperventilating etc), whereas deeper things are happening faster than some understand and a mistake can be fatal. One thing with teens, even ones that seem/are mature for their age is that their reactions and judgments can be less predictable.

I would say that is not overbearing at all, but rather a prudent call on your part.

 

[Steve_C]

It said the weight pocket was at 94 feet of sea water. It does not say the diver was diving at 94 feet of sea water. The pocket could have been dropped while trying to take the weights out with the diver at the surface, or the diver could have sunk to a greater depth at some point during or after the incident.

I agree. Note that I said IF. I am also aware that a dropped pocket does not sink straight down. Watched a diver lose one on the anchor line and the pocket went down at about 45 degrees.

 

[MikeMeagher]

I was not there on the boat the day of this tragic event, but I talked with someone who was.
Here are some data that I heard from that person about the tragic event this day earlier this week.
The accident did happen on the dive boat Great Escape.
It was a multiday trip at Catalina, they were diving the 3rd dive of the day at Eagle Reef at catalina.
The weather, dive conditions and water were near perfect. Great vis, calm, some of the best diving seen in years.
Three divers entered the water as a team. One was an instructor with credentials. Another was an adult male that was certified but had not been diving since certified. The 3rd was a younger person, I was told aged 15.
I was told that roomer has it that the youth was interested in spearing more fish.
At some time the adult male surfaced alone, screaming for help.
He was rescued by the DM and crew and put on O2.
After roll was taken it became appear ant that a diver was missing.
Coast guard had been notified and when the crew realized a diver was missing other divers were asked to locate the missing diver.
The missing diver was located and brought to the surface. Someone mentioned that the divers were seen at some point in over 100ft depth. The youth diver was recovered about 15 minutes time elapesed
Sherriff was on scene, and baywatch took both to the chamber at catalina which was not far way.
The youth did not recover.

This is so sad. I feel for the youth, the family, and for the grandfather that was on the boat that day.

 

[DandyDon]

Just saw this, quoting the Sheriff's log on Thecatalinaislander.com: Sheriff

On October 13, 2015 at 11:22 a.m., a 15-year-old resident of Utah was scuba diving off a chartered dive boat at Eagle Reef (just west of Isthmus Cove). He apparently ran out of air at depth, which was 94 feet. Other divers pulled him from the water in full arrest. First responders transported the teenager to the Hyperbaric Chamber at the USC Wrigley Marine Science Center. Attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful. Investigators from the Sheriff’s Department Emergency Services Detail will handle the investigation.
Editor’s Note: An adult companion was treated at a hospital and was reported in stable condition, according to Lydia Barillas, public information officer for Los Angeles County Lifeguards.

 

[Steve_C]

Three divers entered the water as a team. One was an instructor with credentials.

Another was an adult male that was certified but had not been diving since certified

The 3rd was a younger person, I was told aged 15.
I was told that roomer has it that the youth was interested in spearing more fish.

At some time the adult male surfaced alone, screaming for help.

After roll was taken it became appear ant that a diver was missing.

????? Where is first diver

divers were seen at some point in over 100ft depth.

Enough said