Florida Keys News - Key West Citizen
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Scuba diver dies; body found floating in water
BY ADAM LINHARDT Citizen Staff
alinhardt@keysnews.com
A scuba diver died after being pulled from the water near the Vandenberg artificial reef Friday and another man's body was found 20 minutes later floating in the water near the White Street Pier, according to one witness and a Monroe County Sheriff's Office report.
The first call came in at 11:20 a.m. after an Ohio man, unresponsive and not breathing, was brought to Front Street on Stock Island. He had been on a commercial dive boat that was diving the Vandenberg and was in about 30 feet of water during a test dive in preparation for a deeper dive later, reports say.
Other divers in the group reported that the man had surfaced and given the OK sign, but when they saw him again minutes later, he was floating on the surface of the water, not breathing.
The man was taken from Front Street to Lower Keys Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
The Sheriff's Office would not release his identity until it notified his family, which it had not done as of Friday evening, spokeswoman Deputy Becky Herrin said.
An autopsy will determine the cause of death.
Twenty minutes after dispatchers received that call, a Key West Water Tours employee came across what he thought was a turtle or a turtle shell floating near the White Street Pier, but it turned out to be a body floating in the water.
"I saw something black in the water and thought it was the top of a turtle shell, but when I turned around and came up on it, I knew exactly what it was," said Dante Varela, personal watercraft tour guide. "The guy was face-up in blue jeans and a T-shirt that said Key West."
Varela called his boss and then 911 to report the body.
"I'm not a forensic scientist, but it looked like someone who may have fallen off a boat," Varela said. "It didn't look like he had been in the water very long."
There was no obvious sign of foul play on the body, Herrin said.
Varela had only one customer with him, for which he was thankful.
"The guy was a former military MP and said not to worry about it because he's seen everything," Varela said. "If I had seven other skis with me with families or kids, it could have been a disaster."
Key West emergency crews took the body to the Coast Guard station, where they were met by sheriff's detectives.
Detectives have asked for the public's help in identifying the man, who was white, in his late 40s or early 50s, with medium-length salt and pepper hair. He was about 5-feet-10 or 6 feet tall and weighed about 250 pounds, reports say. He was wearing a brown T-shirt, brown belt, water shoes and a ring on his left ring finger.
Detectives ask that anyone who can help identify the man call the Sheriff's Office at 305-292-7000.
alinhardt@keysnews.com
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Saturday, January 14, 2012
Scuba diver dies; body found floating in water
BY ADAM LINHARDT Citizen Staff
alinhardt@keysnews.com
A scuba diver died after being pulled from the water near the Vandenberg artificial reef Friday and another man's body was found 20 minutes later floating in the water near the White Street Pier, according to one witness and a Monroe County Sheriff's Office report.
The first call came in at 11:20 a.m. after an Ohio man, unresponsive and not breathing, was brought to Front Street on Stock Island. He had been on a commercial dive boat that was diving the Vandenberg and was in about 30 feet of water during a test dive in preparation for a deeper dive later, reports say.
Other divers in the group reported that the man had surfaced and given the OK sign, but when they saw him again minutes later, he was floating on the surface of the water, not breathing.
The man was taken from Front Street to Lower Keys Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
The Sheriff's Office would not release his identity until it notified his family, which it had not done as of Friday evening, spokeswoman Deputy Becky Herrin said.
An autopsy will determine the cause of death.
Twenty minutes after dispatchers received that call, a Key West Water Tours employee came across what he thought was a turtle or a turtle shell floating near the White Street Pier, but it turned out to be a body floating in the water.
"I saw something black in the water and thought it was the top of a turtle shell, but when I turned around and came up on it, I knew exactly what it was," said Dante Varela, personal watercraft tour guide. "The guy was face-up in blue jeans and a T-shirt that said Key West."
Varela called his boss and then 911 to report the body.
"I'm not a forensic scientist, but it looked like someone who may have fallen off a boat," Varela said. "It didn't look like he had been in the water very long."
There was no obvious sign of foul play on the body, Herrin said.
Varela had only one customer with him, for which he was thankful.
"The guy was a former military MP and said not to worry about it because he's seen everything," Varela said. "If I had seven other skis with me with families or kids, it could have been a disaster."
Key West emergency crews took the body to the Coast Guard station, where they were met by sheriff's detectives.
Detectives have asked for the public's help in identifying the man, who was white, in his late 40s or early 50s, with medium-length salt and pepper hair. He was about 5-feet-10 or 6 feet tall and weighed about 250 pounds, reports say. He was wearing a brown T-shirt, brown belt, water shoes and a ring on his left ring finger.
Detectives ask that anyone who can help identify the man call the Sheriff's Office at 305-292-7000.
alinhardt@keysnews.com
Share your thoughts and opinions related to this posting. Login or register to post comments. More Info
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