Missing Diver In Charlotte County, FL

[clydejr]

http://www.sunnewspapers.net/articles/bnStory.aspx?articleID=6267

Story From Sun Newspaper Port Charrlotte FL (Name Removed)

Coast Guard suspends search, releases name of missing diver
(Last Updated: 5/19/2008 11:31:02 AM)
ENGLEWOOD — The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its active search for a missing diver, and released his name to the public.

XXXX XXX, 67, of Arcadia, was reported missing to the Coast Guard by the captain of a 27-foot charter vessel from Legacy Dive Charters of Southwest Florida at approximately 11:35 a.m. Saturday. It was reported that XXXX had surfaced from a dive about five miles west of Gasparilla Pass, while the charter vessel was retrieving another diver. When the boat went to pick him up, he had disappeared.

Federal, state and local agencies searched the area since about 12:30 p.m. Saturday. The Coast Guard suspended the search at about 8 p.m. Sunday.

The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office anticipates continuing the search when the weather clears, said Sheriff's spokesman Bob Carpenter. The Sheriff's Office plans to use a helicopter and possibly a boat to search later today.

 

[Walter]

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/fl...g-diver-boca-grande-legacy-dive-charters.html

 

[ccso434]

From what I know and can say, the diver surfaced away from the boat. The boat finised loading a diver, turned the boat around to go and pick him up and he was gone.

 

[james croft]

Curious about the weather and sea conditions at the time. The search effort seems pretty puny if there was a possibility the diver drifted away and could not be spotted.

 

[deeper thoughts]

Any info on the sea conditions?

 

[ccso434]

Today I got first hand info. The diver and his buddy were being loaded onto the boat. The buddy was on the ladder and the diver was holding on to the platform and float line when he placed his face in the water as if to look at something and just went down under water. The dive location was Trembly Reef and it was a sunny day with 2 to 3 foot seas and there was a small current. No report on the viz.

I have been on this boat before and it does not have a big platform. It's only a 6 diver boat. The dive location is also the location of the record Hammerhead caught a couple of years ago, 14 feet long.

Best guess on what happened would be heart attack.

 

[james croft]

That explains why the CG scaled back a search. I hope he can be recovered.