Teen paralyzed diving in the Keys - anyone have more info?

[Orlando Eric]

"his oxygen was getting dangerously low and surfaced too quickly, instead of to a gradual ascending with regular pauses. "

Pretty much what everyone guessed. Up too fast.

This happens too often for different reasons. Gas goes quicker the deeper you go and many 40' reef divers have never experienced this until they go 120' on a cold dark wreck. Many of those same people have never experienced the massive effect of expanded gas in the BC until then.

It's the little things all at once that kill you. ---- Sneak on on new stuff a inch at a time no matter what dangerous sport you are pursuing.

 

[Scott L]

I was on a charter Saturday heading for the Speigel Grove which turned-around a mile from the site as the seas were kicking up to 8 feet. There was a group of divers visting from Conn, two of which just received their OW the day before. That's how stuff like this occurs...

 

[deepstops]

I was on a charter Saturday heading for the Speigel Grove which turned-around a mile from the site as the seas were kicking up to 8 feet. There was a group of divers visting from Conn, two of which just received their OW the day before. That's how stuff like this occurs...

Um, but they turned back realizing the conditions would be too much so actually, that's how this stuff does NOT happen.

Point of reference, Conch Republic was out there the same morning as this accident occurred and their dive blog said 1' seas: Dive Portal - Dive Log

We can continue to speculate all we want but using those newspaper articles aren't going to get us any real answers as to what went wrong. All I can say from what I've read is that he ran low on gas and quickly headed for the surface.

 

[Saltwater Junky]

Wow..... tragic. Wishing him well and a speedy recovery.

Matthew's statements below are what lead me to believe panic set in.

"I was thinking I needed to get to get to the surface; that I didn't want to run out of air," he said Thursday by telephone from a Miami hospital. "I just needed to get out."

"I told my brother I had to go," Matthew said. "I tried to ascend slowly, at a small angle. But as I finned, the air in my vest expanded. That drew me up quicker than I expected."

 

[boulderjohn]

We can continue to speculate all we want but using those newspaper articles aren't going to get us any real answers as to what went wrong. All I can say from what I've read is that he ran low on gas and quickly headed for the surface.

Amen.

Newspaper stories often get details wrong regarding scuba accidents, but these stories seem to be unusually clueless.

 

[fdog]

I'm not sure where the 20 minutes of deco came from, but, I can see it happening.

I ran this out of curiosity:

V-Planner 3.86 by Ross Hemingway,
VPM code by Erik C. Baker.

Decompression model: VPM - B

DIVE PLAN
Surface interval = 1 day 0 hr 0 min.
Elevation = 0ft
Conservatism = + 3

Dec to 135ft (2) Air 60ft/min descent.
Level 135ft 12:45 (15) Air 1.07 ppO2, 135ft ead
Asc to 60ft (17) Air -30ft/min ascent.
Stop at 60ft 0:30 (18) Air 0.59 ppO2, 60ft ead
Stop at 50ft 2:00 (20) Air 0.53 ppO2, 50ft ead
Stop at 40ft 2:00 (22) Air 0.46 ppO2, 40ft ead
Stop at 30ft 3:00 (25) Air 0.40 ppO2, 30ft ead
Stop at 20ft 6:00 (31) Air 0.34 ppO2, 20ft ead
Stop at 10ft 10:00 (41) Air 0.27 ppO2, 10ft ead
Surface (41) Air -30ft/min ascent.

Off gassing starts at 86.4ft

OTU's this dive: 18
CNS Total: 6.3%

81.1 cu ft Air
81.1 cu ft TOTAL


DIVE PLAN COMPLETE

It's certainly not a profile I would run, but shows the obligation he might have easily (and unknowingly) incurred.


All the best, James

 

[Scott L]

Um, but they turned back realizing the conditions would be too much so actually, that's how this stuff does NOT happen.

Point of reference, Conch Republic was out there the same morning as this accident occurred and their dive blog said 1' seas: Dive Portal - Dive Log

We can continue to speculate all we want but using those newspaper articles aren't going to get us any real answers as to what went wrong. All I can say from what I've read is that he ran low on gas and quickly headed for the surface.

Sorry, I was refering to this past Saturday and was just making the point that divers are too often lead by others into dives outside their current training and experience levels. The group in question in my post should not have been on board to begin with IMO.

 

[Saltwater Junky]

Newspaper stories often get details wrong regarding scuba accidents, but these stories seem to be unusually clueless.

Agreed; however, the diver's own statements give a little insight. Matthew will need to be more forthcoming if the all of the facts are to come to light. Understandably, he is more focused on his recovery than indulging us.

 

[boulderjohn]

Isn't there an unwritten rule in the tech diving community that says," Once you pass No Deco Limits, you're on your own....buddy or no buddy"?
He had passed NDL.

I know others have already said this, but I feel a need to pile on.

This is not true at all. The tech communities with which I am familiar, in fact, strongly emphasize the need for good team behaviors in such dives.

Despite the fact that the claim that they had accumulated 20 minutes of deco implies tech training, I am more likely to believe that Tiger Woods will win "Husband of the Year" than that they had tech training.

 

[Codiak]

"After Robert surfaced with his smaller air tank, Matthew and Andrew were still in the Gulf's depths when reality set."


That makes me go hmmm... Dad had the smallest tank?

Since the Coast Guard was called I wonder if they confiscated the equipment? Hopefully a report will be published some day and we can get real details... like training certs etc.