Another Canary Islands fatality

[DandyDon]

Female British diver dies after incident in Canary Islands | Daily Mail Online

A British woman has died after a diving accident in the Canary Islands in the second tragedy of its kind in a week.

The 44-year-old woman was pronounced dead after diving near a beach in the holiday resort of Mogan, Gran Canaria.

Regional government officials confirmed the tragedy saying it happened at around 10.45am today off Veneguera Beach, one of the island's most pristine beaches.

A spokesman for the local emergency services said: 'A 44-year-old English woman died at Veneguera Beach in Mogan around 10.45am today.

An emergency call came in to say a woman who had suffered a diving accident near the beach and might be in cardiac arrest was on a boat that was taking her to Mogan Port.

'Paramedics confirmed she was in cardiac arrest when they arrived and made an unsuccessful attempt to revive her. She was pronounced dead at the scene.'

An investigation into the circumstances surrounding her death are now underway.

The woman is thought to be a British holidaymaker but has not yet been named.

Last Saturday a British man died after a similar diving incident a 35-minute flight away off the island of Lanzarote.

He was later identified as ex-paratrooper Johnny Walker, 54, from Consett, County Durham.

The experienced diver was on holiday with his partner Brenda and went into cardiac arrest after he was forced to make an emergency descent while scuba diving near the Marina Rubicon yacht harbour.

He is believed to have been planning a visit to the island's newly-opened Atlantic Museum, an underwater museum featuring more than 300 human sculptures.

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

British woman, 44, dies in second diving tragedy in the Canary Islands in a week after going into cardiac arrest at popular tourist beach

Unnamed woman had a heart attack and was confirmed dead at the scene
She got into difficulty near Veneguera Beach, Gran Canaria just before 10.45am
Her death is the second of its kind on the Canary Islands in a week


Read more: Female British diver dies after incident in Canary Islands | Daily Mail Online
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[Dan]

Another fatality due to cardiac arrest. Condolences to her family & friends.

OK, before the moderator removing my post for violating the A&I rule, only expressing my sympathy & nothing else, here is an A&I related question to you: For a person who had a heart attack (fortunately on dry land, myself), what should I do or my dive buddy do when that happens to me underwater?

 

[tridacna]

Your buddy can administer last rites. Or help you get the heck up to the surface as safely as possible. Unfortunately, I've seen this before and the outcome was not a happy one. Does he or she know about your previous cardiac events?

 

[Dan]

Your buddy can administer last rites. Or help you get the heck up to the surface as safely as possible. Unfortunately, I've seen this before and the outcome was not a happy one. Does he or she know about your previous cardiac events?

Yep. I had a stent put into my right coronary artery (90% blockage at the time, 7 years ago)

I tell my buddy to not rush me up to the surface & ended up we both would suffer AGE on top of my heart attack.

The incident changed my lifestyle. I began to excercise more & eat right food. My total cholesterol dropped from 280 to 160 & stay there till now. In December 2014 I summited Mount Kilimanjaro.

 

[tridacna]

Yep. I had a stent put into my right coronary artery (90% blockage at the time, 7 years ago)

I tell my buddy to not rush me up to the surface & ended up we both would suffer AGE on top of my heart attack.

The incident changed my lifestyle. I began to excercise more & eat right food. My total cholesterol dropped from 280 to 160 & stay there till now. In December 2014 I summited Mount Kilimanjaro.

Kili three times for me. Polepole. I’ve been vegan for 15 years - my total cholesterol is 69. With regard to your heart, it looks like you already know the answer...best of luck, you’re doing the right stuff.

 

[DandyDon]

Inquest findings: Super-fit police officer died while scuba diving after she went for a run the night before, inquest hears

A British police officer who died while scuba diving in Gran Canaria might have lost her life through being super fit, an inquest heard.

An inquest into the death of Justine Barringer found recent exercise could have played a part in the tragedy.

She had gone for a run the night before her dive and possible dehydration might have caused a condition that triggers muscle damage. This can affect various organs such as the heart and kidneys, experts think.

The British Transport Police officer returned to Gran Canaria with her fiancée last September, a year after they were engaged on the Spanish island, along with her mother and her mother's friend

But four days into the holiday, the 44-year-old from Sittinghbourne, Kent, lost consciousness around 10 metres (32ft) below the surface while on an advanced scuba diving course.

She went for a 40-minute run the night before her death... it is proposed such exercise the night before might have played some part in what happenedCoroner Ian Wade
She was described as fit by fiancée Tina Best and had dived to around 27 metres, but lost consciousness while resurfacing.

Attempts to revive her on the dive's boat and at a nearby harbour failed and she was pronounced dead. A post-mortem examination in Spain proved inconclusive.

A subsequent post-mortem in the UK gave the cause of death as decompression sickness brought about by scuba diving, but said recent exercise could have played a part, with a lengthy run causing rhabdomyolysis, a form of muscle damage.


Concluding that her death was accidental, coroner Ian Wade said: "Justine was a short distance runner, she watched her health and took it very seriously.

"She went for a 40-minute run the night before her death, she didn't seem to have suffered any ill effect but it is proposed such exercise the night before might have played some part in what happened."

Miss Best, a fellow British Transport Police officer, was waiting for her partner to return from the dive when she saw a "commotion" at a nearby harbour.

Not suspecting it was her fiancée, Miss Best returned to the dive centre.

She told the inquest: "When I got to the dive centre there were two guys in there, when I arrived they stood up.

"They both looked at me, it was like I knew, they both looked like rabbits in the headlights. I said, was that Justine? One of them said 'I'm really sorry we did everything we could,' my legs gave way after that."

 

[Steve_C]

Not much detail.

 

[DiveTheGalapagos]

Diver's death linked to exercise

..."A post-mortem examination in Spain was reported to have proved inconclusive, but back in the UK pathologists found indications not only of decompression illness (DCI) but also of a condition called rhabdomyolysis.

This breakdown of damaged muscle causes the release into the bloodstream of myoglobin, the protein that stores oxygen in the muscles, and can affect organs such as the kidneys and heart.

It was suggested in the pathologists’ report that Barringer might have become dehydrated on her 40-minute run the night before the dive, with rhabdomyolysis occurring as a consequence."

 

[DandyDon]

"A post-mortem examination in Spain was reported to have proved inconclusive, but back in the UK pathologists found indications not only of decompression illness (DCI) but also of a condition called rhabdomyolysis.

This is why I tell my daughter that if I die on an international trip, have DAN return my body, then get a local autopsy.

From the symptoms I found online (Rhabdomyolysis - Wikipedia), I would think a person would feel like crap the day after - therefore unfit to dive if honest. After a long plane trip, all trip expenses, and all - I wouldn't want to miss diving if I thought I could man thru it (bluff), but I skipped most of the divers on a liveaboard once when I had a flu relapse. Glad I did.

I guess it can hit anyone. I think I am too lazy for it tho. Boy, 17, diagnosed with deadly illness caused by working out too much