One dead, one injured - Pensacola Beach, Florida

[DandyDon]

One dead and another injured after a diving incident at Pensacola Beach

PENSACOLA BEACH, Fl. (WKRG) — The Coast Guard responded to two divers experiencing symptoms requiring medical attention offshore Pensacola Beach, Florida, Saturday.

One 28-year-old male was transported to a local hospital in stable condition, and one 48-year-old male was pronounced deceased by a local coroner.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Mobile received a report Saturday at about 8:30 a.m. of a diving incident approximately 12 nautical miles southwest of Pensacola Beach, Florida.

After reportedly ascending too quickly during a dive, the 48-year-old male went into cardiac arrest and failed to resurface. The 28-year-old diver went into the water and found him unconscious at the bottom. Upon resurfacing with the unconscious diver, the 28-year-old diver also began experiencing symptoms requiring medical attention

Watchstanders directed a Coast Guard Station Pensacola 45-foot Rescue Boat-Medium boat crew to the divers’ location. The crew embarked both divers and took them to Pensacola Pier. The 48-year-old male was pronounced deceased, and the 28-year-old male was transferred via Life Flight to Springhill Alabama Medical Center in stable condition.

 

[ibj40]

Would love to know physical conditioning of the deceased.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

Would love to know physical conditioning of the deceased.

Not good, now. I think you'd need to know depth and speed of ascent and a lot of other factors to make a determination if being out of shape killed him.

 

[Altamira]

Would love to know physical conditioning of the deceased.

I can think of a lot of reasons, other than being out of shape, that might have had something to do with ascending too fast.

 

[BlueTrin]

I can think of a lot of reasons, other than being out of shape, that might have had something to do with ascending too fast.

Well the 28 years is in hospital too so they both probably ascended too fast ?

So agree with you, we would need to know why they started ascended too fast.

 

[dmaziuk]

Well the 28 years is in hospital too so they both probably ascended too fast ?

So agree with you, we would need to know why they started ascended too fast.

Sounds like the 28yo went back in the water and "ascended too fast" with the body. I think the why is understandable.

 

[BlueTrin]

Sounds like the 28yo went back in the water and "ascended too fast" with the body. I think the why is understandable.

You are right I missed the important sentence where he went back.

 

[DanBMW]

On Facebook a friend who knew him stated that he was very experienced and that it was a heart attack.

 

[DogDiver]

Any ME could only assume asphyxia due to drowning. As any tissues and organs will be turned into oatmeal on ascent with a closed epiglottis as in dead.

 

[doctormike]

Any ME could only assume asphyxia due to drowning. As any tissues and organs will be turned into oatmeal on ascent with a closed epiglottis as in dead.

People often quickly conclude that a death was cardiac in nature, which then shuts down any discussion of diving issues. Often people with vested interests in making diving look safe will push that narrative as well.

There are two comments on another article about this tragedy, one from the divers daughter who just said he was an experienced diver and one from a friend who said it was a "heart attack". This is an inexact term used for a sudden cardiac event (fatal or non-fatal). There are a number of things that can fall under that category, but two more common conditions are either (1) the death of a significant amount of cardiac muscle due to blockage of the coronary arteries (which would probably be seen on autopsy), or (2) a fatal heart rhythm abnormality (which wouldn't).

The epiglottis doesn't close the airway, the vocal cords do. If you ascend while holding your breath (closing your vocal cords), then you could have barotrauma in the lungs due to the inability of trapped gas to escape. If a diver dies at depth and then ascends, the vocal cords would not be closed and gas would likely escape. In neither case would the organs be damaged to the point that autopsy would not be possible. But of course, in many cases the ME will conclude death from drowning even if there was another cause of that, if that cause couldn't be determined.