Woman drowns during training - Hidden Paradise Campground, Indiana
- Thread starter DandyDon
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Yikes! You sure about that? There's many dive shops in my town and they're all full of various logos between agencies and gear brands. I had no idea there was more than one certification agency until I handed a completed SSI medical waiver to the instructor at the NAUI shop and he told me. My point is that the divers could just be confused.
I guess with only one shop in town it might not be all that confusing...
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And an impressive college professor died in their training session. I guess her husband updated her page: Donna Kishbaugh
There still hasn't been any helpful information about this accident has there? A few commenters seem familiar with this location....how cold would that water have been? I noticed in the pic Don referenced that the deceased didn't appear to be wearing any kind of exposure protection. (The same goes for a couple of the folks in the pic)
jonhall
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Some background info on the location.
From Hidden Paradise Campground website:
"Certified Divers are required to present their c-card when registering. *All divers must be certified.* For your safety, all Divers are required to have a dive buddy. Divers must be out of the water by midnight. The Quarry is open 365 days per year. Experience our paradise from below. Dream lake is a 15 acre spring fed rock quarry with an average depth of 25 feet. The deepest point in Dream Lake is a sump hole 18 feet in diameter and drops to 35 feet in depth. The visibility will vary but generally you will see 7-10 foot visibility and occasionally up to 20-25 foot. There are a few small runabouts, a sail boat, a mini bus and a few articles left by the quarry company. If your lucky you will surprise a paddle fish during your dive along the south wall. The paddle fish were introduced into the quarry in October of 2001 and are now 4-5 feet long. You will also encounter rare fresh water Jelly fish between the months of July through September. Not to worry though, they are the size of a quarter and produce no venom. The quarry is teaming with life so each dive will be interesting."
From divebuddy.com: "The water temperature in the summer will vary, but generally runs between 80 to 85 degrees." Seems warm to me - the picture above with divers on the platform at Hidden Paradise are of DNR officers training in what would have been mid July. The picture of the the 2 divers at Hidden Paradise is from Bottoms Up Scuba FaceBook page - many of their FB pics are of divers in full gear which may just indicate a different time of year.
Seems like there should be more news by this this time.
From Hidden Paradise Campground website:
"Certified Divers are required to present their c-card when registering. *All divers must be certified.* For your safety, all Divers are required to have a dive buddy. Divers must be out of the water by midnight. The Quarry is open 365 days per year. Experience our paradise from below. Dream lake is a 15 acre spring fed rock quarry with an average depth of 25 feet. The deepest point in Dream Lake is a sump hole 18 feet in diameter and drops to 35 feet in depth. The visibility will vary but generally you will see 7-10 foot visibility and occasionally up to 20-25 foot. There are a few small runabouts, a sail boat, a mini bus and a few articles left by the quarry company. If your lucky you will surprise a paddle fish during your dive along the south wall. The paddle fish were introduced into the quarry in October of 2001 and are now 4-5 feet long. You will also encounter rare fresh water Jelly fish between the months of July through September. Not to worry though, they are the size of a quarter and produce no venom. The quarry is teaming with life so each dive will be interesting."
From divebuddy.com: "The water temperature in the summer will vary, but generally runs between 80 to 85 degrees." Seems warm to me - the picture above with divers on the platform at Hidden Paradise are of DNR officers training in what would have been mid July. The picture of the the 2 divers at Hidden Paradise is from Bottoms Up Scuba FaceBook page - many of their FB pics are of divers in full gear which may just indicate a different time of year.
Seems like there should be more news by this this time.
Wow. Just coming across this thread. I've logged many dives at this quarry including multiple as a divemaster. It was the closest quarry to where I lived after Blue Springs (in Waldron) closed. The viz is typically measured in inches and not feet. As @zider mentioned anything over 5' or so is a GOOD day for viz. It is a fantastic quarry to hone your compass navigation skills!
I'm finding it hard to figure out how someone could die there on scuba. The vast majority is less than 20' deep. If you have an issue you just surface. Your entire dive is a safety stop. It has one tiny pit that is maybe 30-35' deep but it's not large and is hard to find.
I know absolutely nothing of this dive shop in Greenwood. I was affiliated with Divers Supply Indy which has been around for decades. This shop in Greenwood must be new since I moved away. I'd never heard of them.
The quarry can be a bit creepy even though it's shallow. There are cliffs surrounding 80% of it and with the low viz it is dark and if you are in the shadows of the cliffs, REALLY dark. But with that said, it's quite shallow.
It was a challenging quarry to DM a class because of the low viz. You really wanted to have multiple instructors or DMs to help keep everyone together.
I'm finding it hard to figure out how someone could die there on scuba. The vast majority is less than 20' deep. If you have an issue you just surface. Your entire dive is a safety stop. It has one tiny pit that is maybe 30-35' deep but it's not large and is hard to find.
I know absolutely nothing of this dive shop in Greenwood. I was affiliated with Divers Supply Indy which has been around for decades. This shop in Greenwood must be new since I moved away. I'd never heard of them.
The quarry can be a bit creepy even though it's shallow. There are cliffs surrounding 80% of it and with the low viz it is dark and if you are in the shadows of the cliffs, REALLY dark. But with that said, it's quite shallow.
It was a challenging quarry to DM a class because of the low viz. You really wanted to have multiple instructors or DMs to help keep everyone together.
As an aside, in late summer this quarry often gets a bloom of freshwater jellyfish. I had a magical solo dive there late one summer just mesmerized by the little 1" or so jellyfish. It's super cool to see!
Now back to the discussion of the accident...
Now back to the discussion of the accident...
Depends upon the time of year, how much rain, etc. It gets really warm in the summer and crazy cold in the winter. I've had temps ranging from lows 40s to low 80s. Looking at my log book from past dives there this time of year the temps are typically in the low to mid 50s at best and possibly upper 40s already. Because it is so shallow it cools off quickly as Fall sets in.
@JimBlay: Thanks for the info. Folks can probably guess where my thoughts were headed...wondering if the deceased became hypothermic, had a lapse of attention, lost the group and got into trouble. Of course, that still would have required several lapses on the part of any dive leaders, but Jim's comments about vis could come into play there.
Either way, this has the feel of something that should have been preventable/survivable. (OK, OK, technically ALL SCUBA accidents are preventable at some level...but you know what I meant)
Either way, this has the feel of something that should have been preventable/survivable. (OK, OK, technically ALL SCUBA accidents are preventable at some level...but you know what I meant)
A lawsuit has been filed in this case. Therefore, details are now coming to light.
Here is the heart of the complaint:
13. The diver-training incident that forms the basis 0f this action occurred in St. Paul, Indiana, in Decatur County, in the “Dream Lake” water-filled quarry located 0n the premises of Hidden Paradise Campground.
14. On Monday, October 12, 2020, Donna Kishbaugh was at the lake to complete the final skills test in order to obtain her scuba diving certification.
15. On said date, Donna paid the required $20 diving fee to Hidden Paradise and then went into the water for training with her instructor from Bottoms Up, Clay St. John.
16. During the training process, and while in the water, Donna mentioned having difficulty descending in the water, at Which point Clay St. John negligently switched his buoyancy control device “BCD” and gave it to Donna so she could use his.
17. Due to Clay St. John’s negligence, Donna descended under the water and was unable to ascend causing her tragic drowning death.
Here is the heart of the complaint:
13. The diver-training incident that forms the basis 0f this action occurred in St. Paul, Indiana, in Decatur County, in the “Dream Lake” water-filled quarry located 0n the premises of Hidden Paradise Campground.
14. On Monday, October 12, 2020, Donna Kishbaugh was at the lake to complete the final skills test in order to obtain her scuba diving certification.
15. On said date, Donna paid the required $20 diving fee to Hidden Paradise and then went into the water for training with her instructor from Bottoms Up, Clay St. John.
16. During the training process, and while in the water, Donna mentioned having difficulty descending in the water, at Which point Clay St. John negligently switched his buoyancy control device “BCD” and gave it to Donna so she could use his.
17. Due to Clay St. John’s negligence, Donna descended under the water and was unable to ascend causing her tragic drowning death.
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