Woman dies during scuba dive off Wilmington

[Lone Wolf]

the coast guard unit that was station there was on another call along with the helo the next closes crew was dispatched as per protocol.

yes some things went wrong but doubt very seriously would changed anything .
suit has excessive air and there was some water in suit not enough. personally the valve may have became stuck , who knows all I know we lost a diver and for that I am sorry.
know for some info the coast guard crew just went through a entire first aid course , including diving emergencies , AED and oxygen therapy .

Mistakes!! How do you know there was water in the suit??? Were you there?? Interesting that they just went through the entire first aid course, and yet didn't know how to hook up the regulator to the O2 bottle. And, I wonder if they were competent, how did they end up with an empty O2 bottle?? Perhaps the glaring mistakes and lapses in protocal would not have made a difference. Would you bet your wifes life on that!! Perhaps in this situation, the mistakes would not have made a difference, but in a different scenario they could have made the difference in life and death!! The people there did not know there actions were as you put it, irrelevant. Every person who is a 1st responder, must treat every situation as if every action is a life and death decision. The O2 bottle was empty, The defibrilators battery was dead!! What if either of these cost her her life??? Maybe in this circumstance it did not matter.. How did they know this, and how do you know when it is safe to perform below standards????

 

[Scubamedicjoe]

Mistakes!! How do you know there was water in the suit??? Were you there?? Interesting that they just went through the entire first aid course, and yet didn't know how to hook up the regulator to the O2 bottle. And, I wonder if they were competent, how did they end up with an empty O2 bottle?? Perhaps the glaring mistakes and lapses in protocal would not have made a difference. Would you bet your wifes life on that!! Perhaps in this situation, the mistakes would not have made a difference, but in a different scenario they could have made the difference in life and death!! The people there did not know there actions were as you put it, irrelevant. Every person who is a 1st responder, must treat every situation as if every action is a life and death decision. The O2 bottle was empty, The defibrilators battery was dead!! What if either of these cost her her life??? Maybe in this circumstance it did not matter.. How did they know this, and how do you know when it is safe to perform below standards????

they just finished the course this week , CPR was performed before and during the arrival of the coast guard boat , this thread is for others to learn the internal audits will take care if the other mistakes ,

 

[Scubamedicjoe]

Look people a diver Died lets learn from it.
Facts death , suit over inflated rapid accent , small amount water not enough to make a big concern unless panic or something else happened under water , CPR performed EMT from Fire rescue , concerns working on solid or possible fix ,

future recommendations is certified EMT on board Dive operators ,
Not all boats carry AED something also recommending for change
First let me say Not all coast guard station are rescue stations many have other duties ie law enforcement and maritime safety and inspections.
the station that responded has complete initial training: basic diving emergencies and AED and first AID .
I am not going to keep going on about this out of respect for family lets give them peace .

 

[JayJudge]

Medic13, I have been keeping my peace on this, and will continue to, with the following exceptions:
LoneWolf is the family- again Joe, anything we can do....
2 the information that would help divers is not what the CG response was, but the incidents leading up to the accident.
I am not sure if you are willing to post it Joe, but if you are (and I know you understand why this info would be valuable), would you post:
number of dives to date
number of ocean dives
number of drysuit dives
number of dives in that region
gear config and number of dives on that
any info gleaned from computers/plan
I am not asking for you speculations, I don't think that would be appropriate, but the info that you feel may help prevent accidents would be appreciated.
-J

 

[Scubamedicjoe]

OK Lone wolf hear its is I am sorry if it seems I am attacking you I am not.
I am Pissed because last two years I been fighting to stop this very thing that happening , I think the dive operators should have EMT's and should have oxygen and a AED, but I am getting resistance form local government and Higher.
I have numerous rumors divers talking how it was dive operators fault this again angers me .

I am very sorry it happened and cannot change this but trying to Improve the current standards.
JayJudge that be up to Lone wolf other that I say she was experence diver.

 

[DandyDon]

...I think the dive operators should have EMT's and should have oxygen and a AED, but I am getting resistance form local government and Higher.

Sounds like good ideas that divers could request without government requirements...

Oxygen is required isn't it? Divers should inspect those kits on boarding, but I've never seen one bother.

How much does a medic cost per day?

How much would an Aed cost, maintained?​

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Putting EMT's on all boats would be a logistical nightmare and drive many ops under. It is a noble idea and a good one but simply not feasible. What is more than feasible is to have at least two EMT's on every Coast Guard vessel. On every shift. And procedures in place to verify O2 and AED status. Perhaps in this instance it would not have made a difference. That is totally immaterial. That a vessel of the US Coast Guard could not respond to a distress call of any kind because they had to wait for an EMT from the local vfd is unforgiveable.

I have today started the process of getting contact info for those in the USCG Chain of Command for that particular district. My boss is a boating safety instructor and conducts boating safety inspections. He as such has a very close working relationship with the USCG. In PA we are landlocked and the PA Fish and Game commission have much of the jurisdiction over boats. Not long ago he asked to conduct a safety inspection of some of their boats for training purposes. They agreed. Bad move on their part. Every one that he checked failed for one reason or another.

It would seem that a USCG vessel with a dead AED, empty O2, and no one who could even hook up the O2 if it was full, would also fail and has no business doing any kind of response. That is sheer and utter incompetence and absolutley indefensible on any level. I have a rep at times of being a troublemaker and not using much tact. Too bad in this case for them. If I have to and have Lonewolf's permission I will write a letter and send a copy to every USCG station commander as well as Admiral Papp the new USCG Commandant.

This is a matter that should raise the hackles of every diver and boater who believes, perhaps falsely now, that if they get in trouble the USCG will be able to assist. Had they not been 2 hours out but say 20 minutes or 30 minutes with a diver having chest pains and in need of an AED. That diver might not make it even with the CG on scene and he/she crashes. Why? Because some incompetent crewmember did not check the battery on the AED. That is not my definition of a professional operation.

 

[msg]

LoneWolf,

I am so sorry to hear of your wife's death. I know that there is nothing that can be said that would assuage your loss. I hope that through this tragedy, everyone will be able to learn from any mistakes or failures so that this may not happen again.

Thoughts and prayers to you and your family.

 

[Rick Murchison]

... who believes, perhaps falsely now, that if they get in trouble the USCG will be able to assist...

I've never had any illusions about confusing the Coast Guard with "Life Guards" or the various "Rescue" services. The USCG's rescue mission has always been subordinate to its other duties of guarding the coast (imagine that!) and law enforcement. This isn't a slam at the CG... they really do have other things they are required to do first, and on a tight budget. Therefore, my guidance when dealing with the Coast Guard as a rescue agency is: "By all means give 'em a call; don't expect anything out of 'em and press on with your best efforts without their help. If they do respond don't be surprised that later on, when the bean counters get hold of the report, you get a bill for services."

Rick
@Jim - you may stir the pot, cause some heads to roll and maybe even cause more inspections - and hopefully better maintenance - of gear, but the bottom line answer you'll get is that the CG isn't an ambulance service at sea.

 

[DenaliX]

It would seem that a USCG vessel with a dead AED, empty O2, and no one who could even hook up the O2 if it was full, would also fail and has no business doing any kind of response. That is sheer and utter incompetence and absolutley indefensible on any level.

Agreed. Absolutely 100% incompetent. Indefensible. PERIOD.

First let me say Not all coast guard station are rescue stations many have other duties ie law enforcement and maritime safety and inspections.

But whats really disturbing is that the USCG are the ones out there doing the safety inspections on the boats. I would imagine that the USCG would come down pretty hard on a commercial operation with such lackluster safety standards.