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Body of scuba diver discovered in Alexandria Bay
Updated: 7/13/2004 9:49 PM
By: Veronica Castelo, News 10 Now Web Staff
A man and his two teenage sons were diving at the Market Street Docks in the
Village of Alexandria Bay Tuesday morning when they noticed a pair of
swimming fins underwater.
After taking a closer look, they discovered it was a body.
State police believe 43-year-old Nelson Barger may have been exploring an
underwater shipwreck, known as the Islander, when he became entangled under
some debris and died.
Drowning in Alexandria Bay
Police say the scuba diver found dead Tuesday morning failed to obey the
"Golden Rule" of diving - do not dive alone.
"There's a wreck down there with some old artifacts from the city and it's
stuff that people like to see and that's why they dive in that area," said
investigator Michael Marvin.
State Police are still trying to figure out exactly what happened, but they
do know one thing - Barger was by himself.
This fact is something that scuba and diving instructors say was his number
one mistake.
Certified diver Scott Edmonds and his son were out on a dive training
session at the same spot Barger was found, and Edmonds says he would never
let his son dive alone.
"Absolutely not. For anybody. Not just a teenager. Although you can get
certified, I believe, as a single diver, it's just not smart," he said.
Michael Washburn instructs divers, and can't understand why an experienced
master diver would fail to follow the number one rule of diving.
"We try to maintain diving with buddies. Buddy checks prior to getting into
the water," he said.
But state police don't know whether it would have made a difference in this
case.
"I can't say one way or another whether, if he would have been diving with
somebody, they would have been able to get him free either. But that would
be my safety tip," said Marvin.
Police say Nelson Barger often dived around the St. Lawrence River Area.
He was found properly and fully outfitted in scuba gear, about thirty-nine
feet under water.
An autopsy has been scheduled to find out his exact cause of death.
State police can't recall the last fatal diving accident in the area.
Updated: 7/13/2004 9:49 PM
By: Veronica Castelo, News 10 Now Web Staff
A man and his two teenage sons were diving at the Market Street Docks in the
Village of Alexandria Bay Tuesday morning when they noticed a pair of
swimming fins underwater.
After taking a closer look, they discovered it was a body.
State police believe 43-year-old Nelson Barger may have been exploring an
underwater shipwreck, known as the Islander, when he became entangled under
some debris and died.
Drowning in Alexandria Bay
Police say the scuba diver found dead Tuesday morning failed to obey the
"Golden Rule" of diving - do not dive alone.
"There's a wreck down there with some old artifacts from the city and it's
stuff that people like to see and that's why they dive in that area," said
investigator Michael Marvin.
State Police are still trying to figure out exactly what happened, but they
do know one thing - Barger was by himself.
This fact is something that scuba and diving instructors say was his number
one mistake.
Certified diver Scott Edmonds and his son were out on a dive training
session at the same spot Barger was found, and Edmonds says he would never
let his son dive alone.
"Absolutely not. For anybody. Not just a teenager. Although you can get
certified, I believe, as a single diver, it's just not smart," he said.
Michael Washburn instructs divers, and can't understand why an experienced
master diver would fail to follow the number one rule of diving.
"We try to maintain diving with buddies. Buddy checks prior to getting into
the water," he said.
But state police don't know whether it would have made a difference in this
case.
"I can't say one way or another whether, if he would have been diving with
somebody, they would have been able to get him free either. But that would
be my safety tip," said Marvin.
Police say Nelson Barger often dived around the St. Lawrence River Area.
He was found properly and fully outfitted in scuba gear, about thirty-nine
feet under water.
An autopsy has been scheduled to find out his exact cause of death.
State police can't recall the last fatal diving accident in the area.
