Tennessee woman dead - Kauai island, Hawaii

[DandyDon]

Thank you for your eyewitness input.

We started watching the couple and the dive master for about 20 minutes because we thought it was odd that they were swimming around the red dive flag at the surface for so long

That does sound odd, like maybe they were attempting to resolve a problem there.

One of us made the call. Another of us ran to the husband and helped him remove his gear.

Having y'all there to help gave her the best chance of being saved possible, even tho not possible. Great for y'all to pitch in.

The dive master had the wife and was carrying her back to shore. When the dive master reached the “lava break line” that was where the fire department grabbed the woman.

So the firemen were the first responders erroneously referred to as lifeguards.

There were no lifeguards on this beach.

 

[eleniel]

I thought that sounded off. Baby beach is one of my favorite beaches on Kauai but it's very small and doesn't have a lifeguard - the area is fine for snorkeling but you'd have to go much further out past the rock wall to do any diving. Koloa landing isn't terribly far away and is at least somewhat popular for snorkelers and shore diving, so it's possible they came from there.

 

[explore_DMC]

At least one of the dive operations offers a scooter dive(s) that starts at Koloa landing. I did this a few weeks ago and the first dive was at Stone House which is not far from Baby Beach. They have you practice with the scooter for a few minutes (for familiarization) in the bay before heading out to the dive site.

 

[Bob DBF]

We were surprised the dive master didn’t know what beach he was on when he arrived onshore.

Aside from the fact he didn't come from that beach and wasn't planning on going there, one's focus during a rescue causes a lot of extraneous information to get out of the way.

Bob

 

[Sheepdog Mama]

Should you be PADI certified to use those KUSA scooters? Can’t they be dangerous if you have zero experience except the day of the dive?

 

[Steve_C]

Should you be PADI certified to use those KUSA scooters? Can’t they be dangerous if you have zero experience except the day of the dive?

Some training is desirable but that is not same as a PADI card. Also several agencies offer DPV training. They vary in ease of handling. I did the PADI DPV course and we used several different scooters. The basic rec ones were very easy. The big long cave diver one was harder to control.

If you are unaware it is possible to go up or down faster than you normally would scuba diving.

 

[Bob DBF]

If you are unaware it is possible to go up or down faster than you normally would scuba diving.

Even if you are aware, mistakes are possible. As ones attention is split between more tasks, the easier it is to to lose track of one, bandwidth is real, and one should know their limitations. This may not be a factor in this accident, but is something to take into consideration when adding tasks while diving, and during training where one has a tendency to focus on the new task.


Bob

 

[Steelyeyes]

My daughter and son in law did the DPV as an adventure dive as part of their PADI Advance OW cert. in that area a few years ago.

 

[Texas T]

I witnessed this tragedy with several friends. We started watching the couple and the dive master for about 20 minutes because we thought it was odd that they were swimming around the red dive flag at the surface for so long—we were sitting on Baby Beach. They were way offshore—the yardage in the article is misleading. Baby Beach has a ring of lava that keeps the waves from pounding the shoreline. The husband swam to shore and yelled call 911. One of us made the call. Another of us ran to the husband and helped him remove his gear. The dive master had the wife and was carrying her back to shore. When the dive master reached the “lava break line” that was where the fire department grabbed the woman.

Hello, lady was my cousin. Her Mother is my aunt and I am trying to help her get as much information on her death as possible. Any chance you would talk to me?
Thank you,

 

[SoFlaDiver954]

Hello, lady was my cousin. Her Mother is my aunt and I am trying to help her get as much information on her death as possible. Any chance you would talk to me?
Thank you,

I am sorry for your loss.