Unknown Woman dies after diving Homestead Crater - Utah

[DandyDon]

Woman dies in 'tragic' scuba diving accident at Homestead Crater

A woman scuba diving in the Homestead Crater experienced difficulty after surfacing and died Tuesday night in a

www.ksl.com

MIDWAY — A woman scuba diving in the Homestead Crater experienced difficulty after surfacing and died Tuesday night in a "tragic incident," according to the Wasatch County Sheriff's Office.

The 43-year-old woman received immediate CPR about 6:30 p.m. and was then transported by medical helicopter to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.

"Our thoughts are with the family and friends affected by this tragedy," the sheriff's office said.

The State Medical Examiner's Office will determine the official cause of death.

 

[boulderjohn]

A diver died after diving at Homestead Crater in Utah.

https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/nation-world/national/article288527450.html

Homestead Crater is a thermal pool near Park City, Utah. It has an annual average water temperature of about 95° F. It has a natural dome, so it is very dark inside. It is illuminated (barely) with lights. It is a very popular site for instruction for dive shops within hundreds of miles because there is really not much else available. It is a high altitude site (over 6,000 feet) about 65 feet deep.

 

[-JD-]

Dup: Unknown - Woman dies after diving Homestead Crater - Utah

Looks like @DandyDon beat you to it.

Shame to lose someone. Especially so young and so shallow. It will be interesting to see if the ME finds anything pertinent.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

Threads merged.

 

[DiveProKoko]

This is a local dive for me/us. I have taught a bunch of OW classes here. Here is what the Park City Record quoted, "According to Wasatch County Fire District Battalion Chief R.L. Duke, the woman was taking a class when she began experiencing difficulty. Though she was able to surface, her troubles persisted, leading to cardiac arrest."

The first thing I did was check our shop schedule to see if it was one of our classes or anyone we know. It wasn't, but if there's anything to learn from this, the dive community here is definitely going to be interested to know the cause. The dive is very straight forward. A big 60 foot deep round hole, about 40 feet across with a platform on the side at 20 feet and a hanging PVC safety stop bar at 15 feet. Water temp right now is about 94 degrees (geothermal). DCS on one or two shallow OW dives is very unlikely, but an embolism, etc. wouldn't be. Of course, it could just be a medical issue as well.

 

[DandyDon]

Family mourns loss of woman who died after scuba diving incident

This was supposed to be an exciting time for Heather Dumas' family. Instead, they are now feeling the indescribable pain of the loss of their mother.

www.fox13now.com

 

[wnissen]

Having dived there, it’s hard to imagine a more bathtub environment. Literally impossible to get lost, plenty of vis, very warm. Would only take a few seconds to grab someone off the surface and get them to a stable platform for CPR. Sounds like plain bad luck.

 

[John the Pom]

A diver died after diving at Homestead Crater in Utah.

https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/nation-world/national/article288527450.html

Homestead Crater is a thermal pool near Park City, Utah. It has an annual average water temperature of about 95° F. It has a natural dome, so it is very dark inside. It is illuminated (barely) with lights. It is a very popular site for instruction for dive shops within hundreds of miles because there is really not much else available. It is a high altitude site (over 6,000 feet) about 65 feet deep.

95° F = 35C for those of us who don't commonly use Fahrenheit.

How much does the temperature vary? IDK, but diving in a warm-to-hot bath sounds quite unpleasant. Once you get above body temperature, couldn't it become hazardous, say, if there was any exertion involved?

 

[boulderjohn]

95° F = 35C for those of us who don't commonly use Fahrenheit.

How much does the temperature vary? IDK, but diving in a warm-to-hot bath sounds quite unpleasant. Once you get above body temperature, couldn't it become hazardous, say, if there was any exertion involved?

You aren't in it long enough for things to get bad. You definitely do not want to wear a wetsuit.

During the winter, people skiing at nearby Park City regularly come for a dip. They don life preservers and bob motionless in the water until their time is up.

I described that to my brother-in-law, a microbiologist, and he said, "Mmmmmm! Amoebas loved that sort of environment!"

 

[pauldw]

You aren't in it long enough for things to get bad. You definitely do not want to wear a wetsuit.

During the winter, people skiing at nearby Park City regularly come for a dip. They don life preservers and bob motionless in the water until their time is up.

I described that to my brother-in-law, a microbiologist, and he said, "Mmmmmm! Amoebas loved that sort of environment!"

I know there are a lot of people who like it, but the last time I was in there I found the heat very unpleasant.