St. Lawrence River recovery - Ontario, Canada

[Blue Quaker]

Thanks!!
Would it be fair to say that anyone with experience at this site could visually see it was flooded and conditions poor for diving?

That lets us know the eastern end of Lake Ontario, not the St. Lawrence Seaway/ 1000 Islands area. The normal Kingston water level is 0.7 -0.8m over Datum. This spring it has been up to 1.72m over datum.
Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons / Escadrilles canadiennes de plaisance will give you a better idea about the site where the diver went missing. Personally I don't often dive Lock 21 any more as I find it an uninteresting site , not worth more than a couple of visits. A been there, done that, worn the T shirt dive.... just my perspective on it. I prefer the Conestoga for a pleasant shore dive an I prefer to look at a shipwreck rather than concrete walls.

 

[electric_diver]

My buddies and I had discussed a couple of weeks ago whether we would dive the Eastcliffe Hall or Lock 21 this summer and we all decided there would be no way we would dive them this summer..

That would be a mistake IMHO. This year's high water levels and higher currents are very similar to two years ago. The currents will subside as we move into July and August. By the time of Seaway Valley divers' pig roast and Eastcliffe Hall dive (July 13th IIRC) the sites should be dive-able by most AoW divers.

 

[electric_diver]

I see now, they are asking for very advanced divers with experience in the area for help...
.

Where do you see that?
If they are actually seeking assistance, they should contact O2 to Go in Cornwall. There's a team of divers there with scooters who routinely dive sites with much stronger currents than lock 21 in the area and who know the lock 21 site very well.

 

[alphakry]

Thank you for all of your support and kind words. The family and friends have now decided to release more information regarding this incident - involving PADI Course Director and mentor to many, Thomas Andy Phillips.

"It is with a heavy heart that I make this official social media announcement about the untimely passing of our dear friend Andy Phillips as a result of a tragic dive accident on Tuesday June 11th 2019

Andy was extremely respected in the dive industry and was loved and will be missed by so many more. He is survived by his life partner Marie-Claude, his father and his sister.

A legend taken too soon"

Andy has been a friend and mentor to me for many years now and I am utterly destroyed that he isn't coming back to our tiny island of Utila to watch the sunset and drink a beer together.

 

[chillyinCanada]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Thank you alphakry for telling us.

Condolences are to be shared in the thread found at the Passings forum, for that purpose please

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[nudisusie]

Jason Levi

 

[shoredivr]

Alphakry, sorry for your loss. Is there any information on a possible cause of the accident?

 

[nudisusie]

@shoredivr

After an extensive week long search Andy has not been found. Therefore it is impossible to say what was the cause of the accident.

We know he was on a rebreather, we know he and his buddy were making an ascent after aborting their dive and then in shallow water they lost contact. That's it.

Beyond that it is just speculation.

 

[NAUI Wowie]

@shoredivr

After an extensive week long search Andy has not been found. Therefore it is impossible to say what was the cause of the accident.

We know he was on a rebreather, we know he and his buddy were making an ascent after aborting their dive and then in shallow water they lost contact. That's it.

Beyond that it is just speculation.

That is so very sad. Dive aborted and in shallow water its most likely medical unless some catastrophic rebreather malfunction? Someone with his immense experience to pass like that so very sad and also frightening.

 

[Dan]

It may not be medical issue. Rebreather system is more complicated than the open circuit system, additional non-medical accidents can happen in rebreather divers as mentioned in Rebreather Fatalities - DIVER magazine

"Open circuit diving fatalities are usually caused by heart attack, arterial gas embolism, running out of gas or environmental factors (lost, trapped, etc.). In technical diving you also see oxygen seizures, hypoxia and decompression sickness (DCS). When diving a rebreather you see all of the above plus too much carbon dioxide and failure of the rebreather."

Buddy system is becoming more important.