Ohio Scuba Diver Dies After Gilboa Accident

[Davemohio]

From my understanding,... & this could be wrong (please correct me if I am), a lot of these accidents occur from divers that are not prepared for diving in deep & very cold waters of some of the quarries of the region. Gilboa is one of them. Although some of the accidents are medical related or somehing else, many of them are divers that likely experience regulator freeze- ups & freeflows at depth, freak out & then bolt to the surface. I have never dove this particular quarry, but frequently dive another that is very similar in KY. I have had a freeze- up & free flow myself (breathed off the regulator until I reached the surface) & have had to assist a buddy who had it happen to him. I had to slow his ascent when he panicked & bolted. Any more,.... I never go deep without wearing redundant air supplies (double cylinders & a bail- out bottle). I also teach my students how to breathe off a free flowing regulator, also telling them that if they dive the local quarries enough, it is a matter of not "if" it will happen, but "when" it will. If you plan to dive in these environments, get some training &/ or mentoring to do it safely & carry a redundant air supply with you,.... just in case. These colder waters can be dived in safely, but can not be taken lightly or for granted.

Tammy, good point on the free flow regs. Your information is largely what I have heard. My Instructor buds say the "deep" side is very cold/dark. I have dived Gilboa 20-25 times and always in the "shallow" end. I have a lot of respect for the deep side and when I do attempt it, I will be accompanied by VERY experienced parties and bring redundant air.

 

[DivingCRNA]

Tammy, good point on the free flow regs. Your information is largely what I have heard. My Instructor buds say the "deep" side is very cold/dark. I have dived Gilboa 20-25 times and always in the "shallow" end. I have a lot of respect for the deep side and when I do attempt it, I will be accompanied by VERY experienced parties and bring redundant air.

I have dove the deep end there. It is butt cold. But it is not dark.

My advice is to not be accompanied by very experienced divers, but to BE a very experienced diver if you dive the deep end. Redundant air is a good idea.

Again, it really does sound like most of the deaths are on the shallow side and are probably more due to volume of divers than the body of water. Maybe we could compare Dutch Springs, another busy northern quarry. Or Square Lake in Minnesota.

 

[spectrum]

People keep bringing up the depth. Most of the incidents seem to be on the shallow side. I have been there twice and there was a death on the shallow side the first time I was there and I dove the deep side that day.

I really think it is just the volume of divers. Oronogo, here Missouri is 200 feet deep, has caves to get lost in, and has had fewer deaths, but it is not as busy as Gilboa. Not even close.

It's a popular training venue too so it sees a lot of new divers and as may be in this case, returning divers. I think we see those 2 groups as high risk anyplace, especially where heavy suits and weights are involved. Add to that the unfortunate misfortune on the deep side and it becomes noticeable. If nobody dived there there wouldn't be any accidents. Since there is much activity in a concentrated location it's noticeable.

That place probably sees more divers on a good day than nearly any site around here sees in a year.

Pete

 

[DivingCRNA]

It's a popular training venue too so it sees a lot of new divers and as may be in this case, returning divers. I think we see those 2 groups as high risk anyplace, especially where heavy suits and weights are involved. Add to that the unfortunate misfortune on the deep side and it becomes noticeable. If nobody dived there there wouldn't be any accidents. Since there is much activity in a concentrated location it's noticeable.

That place probably sees more divers on a good day than nearly any site around here sees in a year.

Pete

I am trying to agree, with the added point that most of the fatalities seem to be occurring on the shallow side in water less than 40 feet deep. It seems to be the new and returning divers dying. With the exception of the instructor in the unusual Tec configuration that had the incident when I was there.

 

[CamG]

Thank you Rocketmahn for the report and I am certain that we all thank you for your efforts to revive the injured diver.
The official report will take some time to come out and some times is simply drowning with little facts.
We will see but thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends, especially his dive buddy it has to be devastating.
Please in our search for the reasons for this tragedy be respectful of the family and friends.

CamG Keep Diving....Keep Training....Keep Learning!

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Gilboa has the deepest water in the State of Ohio - it is 140' in the pumping hole.

I dove a deco dive on the deep side of Gilboa yesterday and my dive Buddy was one of the 3 EMT's that were present when this diver died and he tried to resuscitate him.

I was told that the diver was 64 years old, allegedly hadn't dove in 14 years - except he had used SCUBA in a pool in preparation for the Gilboa dive.
The diver was wearing a wetsuit (note: it was learned that it takes more than one pair of dive shears to cut off a wetsuit).
The diver was wearing a weight belt with about 24 lbs of weight.
He "may" have had more in his BCD pockets, my buddy was not sure.

The diver was on the shallow side of the quarry and had entered off of one of the training platforms.
I'm not sure which one, but the depths in that area are typically 20-40 feet.
He entered the water and went straight to the bottom.
His buddy followed him down but descended slower due to ear clearing etc. and immediately saw him on the bottom not moving.
His buddy tried to pull him to the surface.
He couldn't get his weight belt to release.
He got him almost to the surface and couldn't hang on and let go.
His buddy then surfaced and blew his whistle.

Three divers were nearby and went down and immediately brought the diver up and onto the platform and the EMT's started to work.

CPR was started and O2 given but he was never revived.

They estimate that it was maybe 4 minutes from when he entered until they had him back out.

I was told that the staff at Gilboa did an excellent job of prepping for the arrival of the rescue crews.
The Staff had cars moved, divers were directed to get out via other platforms, the staff assigned people to perform crowd control.

The sad thing was there were two large OW classes taking place (one down and one prepping to get in) and they saw the activity...[/QUOTE]


I personally do not think this is a sad thing. That a diver died is sad. That new OW divers saw the reality of this activity is a good thing. They will remember it and perhaps keep from doing something stupid. It will make them question their training, their skills, and perhaps even their reasons for diving. It may cause them to ask questions of their instructor that may not have occurred to them in the class. It will cause them to think and that is far from sad.

 

[Ayisha]

The diver was wearing a weight belt with about 24 lbs of weight.
He "may" have had more in his BCD pockets, my buddy was not sure...

He entered the water and went straight to the bottom.
His buddy followed him down but descended slower due to ear clearing etc. and immediately saw him on the bottom not moving.

I'm wondering if the victim's valve was on and/or if there was gas in his tank?

There wasn't any mention above of trying to inflate the BCD to assist with the ascent prior to letting go of the victim. Did his buddy try to inflate the BCD and if so, what happened, if anything?

 

[Rocketmahn]

I'm wondering if the victim's valve was on and/or if there was gas in his tank?
There wasn't any mention above of trying to inflate the BCD to assist with the ascent prior to letting go of the victim. Did his buddy try to inflate the BCD and if so, what happened, if anything?

Ayisha,
I don't know and my dive buddy didn't either.
He said that he heard both that the tank was empty and that it was full...
He was too busy working on the diver while others quarantined the gear.
In keeping with the forum rules - especially since I was giving a 2nd person account of the events - I wasn't going to speculate.

 

[Seahuntjerry]

hi,
since diving since 1963,teaching students to breathe off free flowing regulators is a must.This must be done without panicking,and done while feathering there valve off while Ice diving or in other over head environments
Lots of my diving has been in Lake superior and other cold water quarrys etc.

Gilboa and white Star present no special problems and I have dove them numerous times while also attending legends at Portage.
Safe diving,
Jerry Lang :mooner:
Oh and Yes I also bring my AED DEfib with me incase its needed. EMT_P

 

[netmage]

With respect to your planned diving at Gilboa keep in mind that while it is one body of water there is clear definition between the shallow and deep side.

The deep side is demarcated by a line and obvious cliff. Done right with the correct skill and gear I think the record is good. When I got to dive there I was diving with a local instructor as a buddy and Mike was not bashful about asking if I had cold water experience and what my gear configuration was. He also reviewed our plan, a written plan was required as I recall.

Agreed, I for one would not miss the deep dock being removed outright... If you want to hit the deep side or meet some certification spec, there is a much safer, slower avenue to visit it.

Drop down from dock 3, check out the plane, make sure everything is square.
Hit the 'tower wreckage', then down to the tubes, oh look... 60' feet.
If your doing a deep or absolutely need to hit something deeper, just go past the tubes down the path.

IMO - It's the zero to 80' or 117' if you miss the platform in dark and cold conditions that contributes.