Early tech diving death reports article
- Thread starter Marie13
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OP
The July 1994 incident at Harpers Ferry - what is the deep water black out while switching from bottom mix to air??
Is this a form of ICD? Probably the most disappointing part of trimix class was not getting a great understanding of this, the ratios we need to stay within at gas changes.
Is this a form of ICD? Probably the most disappointing part of trimix class was not getting a great understanding of this, the ratios we need to stay within at gas changes.
It would be interesting to see more up to date to compare how the new practices have improved these stats.
OP
The big reduction in deep air diving, more Trimix, and more standardized cylinder labeling have probably contributed to fewer incidents.
There are still incidents where drivers with only recreational training are going into overheads and way too deep on single tanks. People are still going to do stupid stuff. Then there are the ones that would be caused by what I refer to as “testosterone poisoning.”
Like most articles of this sort, they try to lump together many accidents and explain it all as deaths caused by not using trimix. I know all of the people involved in the Moody incident and deep air played no part in that accident. Arrogance and lack of experience caused those deaths and DCS.
IBCD may exist at crazy depths like the historic switches discussed in that article. 200ft switches to air cause a whole host of issues. But in 2020 we aren't trying to get off that scary helium like they were in the 1990s.
Switching from mix to a nitrox deco gas in the 120-70ft range? IBCD just doesn't exist there.
You can get an inner ear hit at 20ft from a type of accelerated inert diffusion, most commonly at the O2 stop. These can be seriously debilitating but aren't due to any in-rushing N2 at all so they are not IBCD. The IBCD concept gets way too much chatter for the actual threat which is basically zero if you keep your ENDs reasonable.
Agreed, trimix was still considered voodoo gas until the late 1990s and technical diving below 220' was like going to the moon.
I know up here in the Great Lakes that's when deep diver deaths peaked and most wrecks that those divers died on lies in between the 120-200ft range. Arrogance, conditions, and old equipment and techniques killed most. Not deep air or nitrogen narcosis, though it played a part. By 2003 the conditions and visibility was changing. It was no longer pitch black at 100ft with 5<ft and 37°. I had 43° at 200' with 100'+ vis in Lake Huron!
Statistics and articles only show numbers and not causes. They dont show the guy who started in 1970 something wearing triple 72s to dive a wreck in 230' with a single double hose and bendomatic computer. They dont include the story of the guy with 50 dives under his belt doing the Detroit in 180' with twin 72s and an ego larger than Mike Nelson. They dont show the guy who had 10 hoses, double rigged inflator and triple of everything and him not knowing his own routing to properly use and deploy his own gear etc.
The Moody is in 140 feet.
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