Woman drowns during training - Hidden Paradise Campground, Indiana

[yle]

Did he try to change her BCD while in the water? That seems like it would send up a huge red flag in something I would not do. "Hey you are not sinking due to a defective BC, so go ahead and swap me in water...".. Nah lets go to shore and figure it out.

To be fair... if it was her last dive of certification, a "remove and replace BCD at the surface" should be a simple skill to handle. It wouldn't be unrealistic for the instructor to assume they could both remove their BCDs, swap, and put them on at the surface.

If this was a case where she was wearing a weightbelt, removed her BCD and sank, then she was grossly overweighted. A diver + wetsuit + weightbelt should be pretty close to neutral if properly weighted. It'll be interesting to see if the details come to light.

 

[yle]

Perhaps her BC inflator was stuck on. The instructor figured he would just use it with the LP hose off and orally inflate.. so they switched BC's?

That is a complete guess on my part, but it was the first reason that popped into my head about why BC's would be switched.

That was my first impression also. Still just a guess, but this would be one of a short list of things that might prompt an instructor to switch BCDs with a student.

 

[yle]

It reads like there was something wrong with her gear, not just an inability to get down. Instructor gave her his BCD without adjusting the weighting (he's a big dude, she was a normal sized woman). Leading to drastic overweighting, panic, and this poor woman drowning while her family watched from shore.

Maybe. But even if the instructor's BCD had much more weight, it should have been buoyant at the surface. And upon descent, the student would have (should have?) slowly released air until she started to sink. Regardless of how much weight was in the BCD, the student would have still had complete control. Excess weight, by itself, would not have caused the accident.

 

[John the Pom]

SNIP

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.

SNIP

Some years ago in Sydney, a young tourist drowned while SCUBA diving at a very shallow, sheltered dive site at Cabbage Tree Bay on Sydney's Northern Beaches where we live. You would struggle to log 6m depth there, and at any time the shore or beach is an easy swim away on the surface. And yet, somehow, she became separated from her buddy and continued to swim around UW until she apparently ran out of air.

It was a strange, inexplicable case where a lovely young woman lost her life that affected me then and still does.

 

[Hppyfam]

To be fair... if it was her last dive of certification, a "remove and replace BCD at the surface" should be a simple skill to handle. It wouldn't be unrealistic for the instructor to assume they could both remove their BCDs, swap, and put them on at the surface.

If this was a case where she was wearing a weightbelt, removed her BCD and sank, then she was grossly overweighted. A diver + wetsuit + weightbelt should be pretty close to neutral if properly weighted. It'll be interesting to see if the details come to light.

Agreed which is where my confusion of this lies. Dive shop/ instructor seems to have a huge losing case.. however, if the Diver was not able to simply release her weight belt and swim to the surface if she got yanked under due to removing BCD and then only thing on was the weight belt.. was she ready to be on her final dive of certification?

Some years ago in Sydney, a young tourist drowned while SCUBA diving at a very shallow, sheltered dive site at Cabbage Tree Bay on Sydney's Northern Beaches where we live. You would struggle to log 6m depth there, and at any time the shore or beach is an easy swim away on the surface. And yet, somehow, she became separated from her buddy and continued to swim around UW until she apparently ran out of air.

It was a strange, inexplicable case where a lovely young woman lost her life that affected me then and still does.

Again.. I can't even comprehend that. Maybe its because I am new, but was beat into us but if you lose your buddy, go to the surface. Hell unless they had somehow been under at 6 meters for over an hour, just pop to the damn surface, your entire dive has been a safetystop. Why then could they not even swim to the surface from 19 feet.

 

[Centrals]

Some years ago in Sydney, a young tourist drowned while SCUBA diving at a very shallow, sheltered dive site at Cabbage Tree Bay on Sydney's Northern Beaches where we live. You would struggle to log 6m depth there, and at any time the shore or beach is an easy swim away on the surface. And yet, somehow, she became separated from her buddy and continued to swim around UW until she apparently ran out of air.

Doctor drowns during diving class
I remember this case! 3m of water!!!!
The instructor was eventually expelled by PADI.
Very very sad indeed.

 

[Raphus]

Doctor drowns during diving class
I remember this case! 3m of water!!!!
The instructor was eventually expelled by PADI.
Very very sad indeed.

Why did padu expell him? What did he wrong? The article reads like it was a medical event

 

[Centrals]

Why did padu expell him? What did he wrong? The article reads like it was a medical event

That article did not mention any medical issue whatsoever. Where did you get that impression from?
She is a healthy young female doctor.
Why did PADI expel its own diving professional? You have to ask PADI for the explanation. But I am pretty sure they will never answer your question. Violating the teaching standard, failure to take due care of the student etc etc etc.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

It reads like there was something wrong with her gear, not just an inability to get down. Instructor gave her his BCD without adjusting the weighting (he's a big dude, she was a normal sized woman). Leading to drastic overweighting, panic, and this poor woman drowning while her family watched from shore.

This is consistent with what I've heard third hand from a few others as well. I also noticed that the accident happened on a Monday. Weekday checkouts are very rare and typically it is to catch up on a student who missed past checkouts due to illness, ear issues, etc. I'm guessing ... purely guessing ... that this was just the instructor and student with the husband onshore. Hidden Paradise is a VERY quiet place midweek outside of the summer months. I've been there midweek many times and anytime outside of summer it is easy to be the only ones there. I've done many a solo dive there midweek when I was the only soul around apart from the person that checked me in.

 

[wmperry]

Maybe. But even if the instructor's BCD had much more weight, it should have been buoyant at the surface. And upon descent, the student would have (should have?) slowly released air until she started to sink. Regardless of how much weight was in the BCD, the student would have still had complete control. Excess weight, by itself, would not have caused the accident.

You are assuming the BCDs were exchanged at the surface. This time of year that instructor was probably in a drysuit, and he is a big dude. The 38+ pounds of weight he had in his BCD could very well have been more than a small woman in a wetsuit could keep at the surface. If she did a giant stride off the dock... ugh.