The diver was in a PADI Tech Deep class. His name and other information has been released by the Oronogo, MO police department and is online if you do a search. His instructor was Randy Piper out of Tulsa and is doing much better after some chamber rides. The report said they hit 179' and they were diving air for the class.
Missouri Fatality
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Wow, great to hear that the news report of him being being a "fatality" was wrong.
It's certainly confusing why some reports quote the same police department as being dead, some say he was from Tulsa, some say he was from New York, etc. 
The only info I can find for "Randy Piper" diver is that he is the owner of Poseidon Adventures.
Maybe someone will decide to tell us what did happen.
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Wow, great to hear that the news report of him being being a "fatality" was wrong.
The only info I can find for "Randy Piper" diver is that he is the owner of Poseidon Adventures.
Maybe someone will decide to tell us what did happen.
Dandy Don-
One diver is dead, the one reported in the news.
It sounds like Randy Piper was the instructor and is alive after chamber treatments. His credentials on his website are IMPRESSIVE, btw.
plot
Contributor
To clarify, a man from Vestel, NY named Miguel Perez-Troche was taking a Tech deep class from an instructor from Tulsa, OK named Randy Piper. They went to 179' on air. Don't know if this was the planned dive or depth, but seeing as it was a tech deep class, deep water is definitly what they were going for. I think we can assume they had the proper equipment for the dive.
Randy Piper, the instructor, surfaced at some point, was disoriented, and taken for medical attention and apparently ended up in a chamber.
Miguel Perez-Troche, the student, surfaced in the quarry alone (his instructor/dive buddy was either still in the water or already headed to the chamber, not sure what order these happened in), was pulled from the water by a bystander, CPR was performed by bystanders but to no avail... he was officially pronounced dead at a hospital later.
That's what happened on the surface. As for the planned dive, and what happened underwater to lead to the situation that followed... pure speculation by everyone at this point. If the surviving diver ever feels up to it, I'm sure he can fill us in on a lot of it.
Randy Piper, the instructor, surfaced at some point, was disoriented, and taken for medical attention and apparently ended up in a chamber.
Miguel Perez-Troche, the student, surfaced in the quarry alone (his instructor/dive buddy was either still in the water or already headed to the chamber, not sure what order these happened in), was pulled from the water by a bystander, CPR was performed by bystanders but to no avail... he was officially pronounced dead at a hospital later.
That's what happened on the surface. As for the planned dive, and what happened underwater to lead to the situation that followed... pure speculation by everyone at this point. If the surviving diver ever feels up to it, I'm sure he can fill us in on a lot of it.
ianr33
Contributor
Maximum depth for that course is 165
DSAT Tec Deep Diver Course Details
Suspect the instructor might have some explaining to do assuming the details are correct.
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PfcAJ
Contributor
Man, another deep dive on air that resulted in a fatality. I really hope more details emerge.
plot
Contributor
Well something obviously went wrong, we need to know the planned dive before we can speculate about why someone ended up at 179'. Should also be noted, the 179' reading came off of the dead divers computer, have no idea if the instructor was with him or not at that depth.
Would be extremely interesting to see the dive profile from the computer...
Would be extremely interesting to see the dive profile from the computer...
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I cannot believe how people are. It used to be that nitrox and trimix were "Voodoo gases". Now pendulem has swung the other way. Suddenly air below 60 feet (OK, maybe I exagerate, but not by much) is the EVIL BLEND of breathing gases.
The truth? We do not know as much as we need to in order to say what is safest on any dive. People continue to take "undeserved hits" on recreational dives. If we do not have keeping that from happening figured out, how can anyone get on a soapbox about "Deep Air"?
I am a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. I do gas exchange for a living. I am a Divemaster. I am in the middle if my Tec Deep class. I cannot tell you Trimix is "safer" than air. Each has it's own risks. Diving, especially at the Tec level, is about understanding and accepting risk.
As Plot said, we do not know the intended dive plan. Diving deeper than 165' is outside of standards for the course. 120' is the deepest minimum dive for Tec Deep. Something went wrong. We don't know what yet. Saying "Deep Air" oversimplifies the question that we lack data to answer.
LiteHedded
Contributor
wow wow wow
when will this STOP? when will people step up and say 'you know what, this is NOT ok anymore'
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