Incidents List
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Year Month Day Surname Forenames Location Contractor Client Depth Type of Diving Details -
2011 9 26 HSE Prosecution UK The supervisor of a diving project at Ramsgate Royal Harbour Marina was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £2,000 in costs after pleading guilty to a single breach of the Diving at Work Regulations for failing to ensure a standby diver was ready to enter the water in the event of an emergency. Concerns were raised about the standard of his operation by a fellow diving supervisor on a neighbouring quayside. The Health and Safety Executive investigated and found that the standby diver was not in a state of immediate readiness to provide assistance to the diver in the water (The standby diver should have been fully dressed and kitted up to enter the water with his diving helmet in hand or close by. However, he was only in his dry suit, which put the diver in the water at serious risk had he required urgent assistance). DG had previously been served with a Prohibition Notice by HSE in October 2010 for a similar failing as a diving supervisor. His employer had spent time retraining and mentoring him before allowing him to continue in his role, but he ignored the guidance given. After the hearing, the HSE Inspector said: "The diving supervisor has a critical role to play in ensuring that a dive is conducted in such a way that the safety of the divers in the water is protected at all times. It is reasonably foreseeable that a diver may require urgent assistance from a standby diver should an emergency unfold, and therefore, the standby diver should be ready and able to enter the water in seconds. Yet that did not happen on Mr Gill's watch, and this clearly compromised safety. He should have known better having previously been warned about his conduct as a supervisor, but he ignored the trust, training and guidance of his employer to repeat the same failings." HSE Press Release in January 2013 -
2011 4 26 Pizanias N Greece Topsides Aged 29, commercial diver/diving school instructor. Throwing dynamite sticks at an Easter clrebration, expolded in his hand, hospitalised in Kalymnos, transferred to Athens but lost his hand and permanently blinded in one eye. Two other men died in similar Easter celebration incidents on Rhodes. Reported by Kalymniansvoice.gr -
2009 6 26 Not Recorded Honduras 43 SCUBA Paraphrased from press report:- “The Honduran indigenous community in La Mosquitia lives from the lobster catch. The export of the 'Panulirus argus' is also one of the most profitable Honduran exports, especially to the United States. During the lobster season, from August to May, most of the adult Miskito men dive, while younger males accompany them in small boats known as 'cayucos', floating alongside the bigger lobster boats. A study by the Honduran special ombudsman for ethnic groups and cultural heritage, sponsored by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), based in Washington, found that there are 4,200 divers living with injuries, nearly half the total Miskito diving population of 9,000. The Miskito men work 12 to 17 days out at sea, in five-hour diving sessions at depths of up to 43 meters. The annual death toll among Miskito lobster divers averages around 50, according to several reports.� IPS (Inter Press Service) NOTE, IF I ADD THESE DEATHS, 50 PER YEAR JUST SINCE 2000, THAT ADDS 500 DEATHS TO THE LIST TC -
2009 3 26 Burfield Ronald USA Police 4 SCUBA American, aged 46, Erie County police training dive, found on lake bed, did not respond to treatment. -
2008 7 26 Not Recorded S/S Air Shell safety flash, complete failure of stand-by diver basket main lift wire, basket caught by clump weight. Report in preparation -
2008 1 26 Casanova Gines Acosta Spain Spanish Navy Spanish, aged 29, warrant officer, training dive at the Spanish Naval Diving training establishment, Caratagena, diving from the Neptuno, training dive, two others (Cortina and Paz) injured. -
2008 1 26 Cortina Jose Spain Spanish Navy Spanish, training dive at the Spanish Naval Diving training establishment, Caratagena, diving from the Neptuno, training dive, one other injured (Paz), both given hyperbaric treatment in Santa Maria del Rosell naval hospital, one fatality (Casanova). -
2008 1 26 Paz Julio Spain Spanish Navy Spanish, training dive at the Spanish Naval Diving training establishment, Caratagena, diving from the Neptuno, training dive, one other injured (Cortina), both given hyperbaric treatment in Santa Maria del Rosell naval hospital, one fatality (Casanova). -
2007 6 26 Not Recorded Russia, Sakhalin DOF Saturation New built mobile saturation system on DSV "Geosea". Bell port leaked during descent. Investigation revealed multiple problems with system, Audits not thorough or accurate. -
2006 8 26 Griffeth Kevin S USA Caldive 67 S/S Mixed Gas "Cal Diver IV", Main Pass area, Freeport-McMoRan Energy Inc, platform inspection. Began his ascent, at approx. 150 fsw a large manta ray became entangled in his dive hose, pulling the diver to the surface in a rapid ascent. Into DDC but died -
2006 5 26 Snow Joe USA Fireman Surface Swimmer “It is with deep regret that we advise you that a rescue-paramedic with Montgomery County (TN) EMS who went overboard during a water rescue attempt this past Thursday night died this morning. Joe Snow, an eight-year veteran was a diver and trained in swift-water rescue. He and a fellow rescue-paramedic were trying to rescue one of two 15-year-old boys who were trapped in the undercurrent below Ringgold Dam. Their raft was capsized by water spilling over the dam, and both paramedics went under. Snow was under water for six to eight minutes before rescuers could free him from the powerful undercurrent. Since then, he has been in critical condition at Vanderibilt University Medical Center in Nashville. The bodies of the teen-age boys were found Friday�. Firehouse Forum -
2006 4 26 Martinez Stephen USA SCUBA BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. --aged 42, professional golf ball diver hired by the city to retrieve golf balls from a lake was attacked by a 9-foot alligator. The alligator apparently bit the diver's air tank and tried to pull him under the water. The diver tried to stab the animal and it bit his arm, He was treated at a hospital for injuries similar to a dog bite. NB, Mark Feher, also a professional golf ball diver drowned on this course in 2001. -
2005 7 26 Kringle Alan USA Anchor Marine Environmental Services S/S Air Aged 16, Reported as recreationally SCUBA qualified 8 months earlier, had been working as a diver for the contractor for 6 months. Four man team working on a lake restoration project. Conflicting press/sheriff reports. One version is that 'he surfaced but then sank', another that the compressor 'just ran out of gas', another that the compressor stopped but had a reserve tank but that for some reason he ditched his helmet, another that only his hands broke surface though there seems to be agreement that as the incident progressed, the surface crew pulled on this hose but only succeeded in pulling up his helmet and discovered he was entangled in another rope, eventually brought to the surface not breathing, no pulse. On site CPR, taken to Orlando Regional Medical Centre, reported as in a critical condition. No further details. -
1994 9 26 Not Recorded USA Caldive 91 Saturation High Island, Block 0376, G02754, Andarko. "A Cal Dive International diver injured his right hand when he opened a valve to flood a pipeline, and his hand was sucked to the valve due to the differential pressure. He was hung up for approximately 1 hour, 45 minutes. The nature of his injury was a cut nerve on his right index linger. To prevent a recurrence, a diffuser should be installed before operating. OCS Incidents database 1991 to 1994, page 73 -
1985 3 26 Workman Jim USA 9 S/S Air American, aged 29, umbilical cut by passing boat propeller, drowned -
1983 6 26 Oselton Robert P Canada Wijsmuler Salvage Saturation British, aged 37 or 38 from Portsmouth, third diver to die in a week during salvage operations on the Ocean Ranger (Sank in a storm Feb 15th 1982 with a loss of 84 persons), diving from the salvage barge 'Ocean Servant 2' thought to be a dropped object, but no details, salvage operations were suspended for an investigation. Spokane Chronicle/Ottawa Citizen -
1981 12 26 Marmion Mathew USA Aged 20, Long Beach harbour, drowned after getting trapped in an underwater intake of the tanker 'Arco Alaska'. Reported in the Los Angeles times, Telegraph Herald -
1978 11 26 Prangley Tony UK Northern Divers 116 Saturation British, aged 28. Beryl Alpha, DSV "Star Canopus", DP incident inside anchor pattern, lost bell, double fatality (Ward), hypothermia/drowning -
1976 3 26 Mitchell Michael Jay Singapore General Marine American, aged 29 from Seattle, died in hospital following a salvage dive from the barge 'Federal 401' during which his left foot was trapped in an air vent underwater. No other details. Straits Times -
1971 3 26 Pasquier Jean Pierre Italy Comex SCUBA Oilfield dive. Breathing 50/50 during decompression stops, hyperoxia, drowned. PC -
1949 9 26 Jorgensen Robin Claude Soren USA 15 S/S Air Aged 20, professional abalone diver, was drowned in 50 feet of water in Little Harbor on the west side of Santa Catalina Island when his air compressor failed. No other details. -
1949 8 26 Rasmussen Hans Kristian Krogh Denmark Military Aged 45, Danish Navy diver (First grade Torpedo quarter-master) reported as having died in a diving accident in Aarhus Bay. Reported in navalhistory.dk -
1946 8 26 Carlson Andrew Anthony USA S/S Air Aged 27, sponge diver out of Tarpon springs diving off the 40' boat 'Kaliopi' North West of Big Banks. Began working as a diver in 1942, joined the army in 1944, worked on the clearance operations of the river Passig in Manila, left the army in March 1946 and moved to Dunedin with his wife and three year old son. Air hose severed by boat's propeller. St Petersburg Times -
1941 8 26 Grieve David UK S/S Air "Inspector gives life for diver. Two dead in docks mishap. Two lives were lost in a diving accident at the docks yesterday. Victims were David Grieve (aged 31)..." "Died trying to save trapped diver. Detective inspector W. Stewart of Methil, Fifeshire, gave up his life in a vain bid to save…" or "Cupar dver honoured in recognition of his gallantry in repeated attempts to save a fellow diver from drowning in methil docks. John....." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western daily Press/The British Newspaper Archive -
1941 7 26 Tesei Major Teseo Malta Military Submarine Italian human torpedo attack on Valletta harbour resulted in the death of one of the co-founders (With Major Elios Toschi) of the human torpedo unit of the Italian Navy (1 Flottiglia Mezzi d'Assalto) founded in 1938, re-organised in 1940 as the Decima Flottiglia MAS (10th light Flotilla of Assault Craft). -
1910 8 26 Mathewson RN Able Seaman James Edward UK Military 20 S/S Air Diver based at HMS Vernon, diving off the Navy vessel 'Redwing' (Tender, previously the war department's 'Sir Charles Pasley', transferred to the Royal Navy in 1905, sold in 1931) to investigate a seabed obstruction in the solent near the site where the A1 sank in 1904 (First British designed submarine, first of the A class submarines - an enlarged and improved 'Holland' class - sank with the loss of all 11 crew during a practice attack on HMS Juno when the conning tower was breached when she was run over by the Mail Steamer "SS Berwick Castle". She was refloated the same year and returned to service), reached the seabed and the repeatedly signalled for less air, then lost communications. Surface crew tried to pull him up but his lines were fouled (Although only diving in 11 fathoms they had paid out 200' of hose because of high currents and wanting to give the diver freedom to move about). They then manouvred the vessel and freed the lines bringing the diver to the surface 15 minutes later, but he was dead. Believed that his lines caught round the stump of an old mast and in an attempt to free himself had dropped his weights at which time he had floated towards the surface then held upside down by his lines and suffocated from lost air supply. "If he had waited perfectly quiet in deep water he could have been saved". They had a second diving dress on board but only had 50' of hose left so could not reach the diver. Inquest verdict was 'death from misadventure' with the coroner commenting that the diver's shipmates appeared to have done all that was possible in the circumstances. Wanganui Chronicle/Papers Past/National Library of New Zealand -
1896 12 26 Hobbs RN Mediterranean Navy "Death of a Naval Diver. News has been received from HMS Anson (Pre-deadnought battleship commissioned 1889, broken up in 1909 on Mediterranean Station that leading shipwright Hobbs, of that vessel, while diving for a lost anchor..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Worcester Journa/The British Newspaper Archive -
1890 8 26 Tanaka Australia S/S Air Japanese, reported as the first dead pearl diver recorded by name in the Broome cemetary. Died of the bends whilst diving off the pearling schooner "Willie" off Ninety Mile Beach (Stretches between Broome and Port Headland to the South). Reported by John Bailey, page 55, in his book "The White Divers of Broome" -
1884 7 26 Moreton UK S/S Air "A diver drowned in the Firth of Forth setting up moorings for the Lord Waeden. Intelligence was received at Sheerness Dockyard on Saturday that a riggers diver….. ." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Lancaster Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive -
2021 5 26 dos Santos Irenilson Marcos Brazil Hookah Aghed 25, gold mining raft on the Teles Pires river near the town of Alta Floresta, entered the water around 18:00 hours, after 35 minutes failed to respond to signals, gear pulled up but only brought up hose/regulator. Search diver found weightbelt. Body recovvered by SAR divers a day later. rdnews.com and other outlets. -
2011 9 25 Hussin Hazri Miri or Malaysia Allied Marine (AME) Surface Swimmer Aged 43, riser installation job from the vessel 'Mas Mulia' (Pipelay barge owned by Target Engineering). Diver acting as a surface swimmer, 11:12 PM (Night operation) installing a pneumo hose and cutting mooring lines in the splashzone. Was hit and submerged several times by 1 metre swell. On returning towards the dive basket was seen floating facedown on the surface, stand-by diver recovered him onboard, CPR was administered, flown to Miri hospital by helicopter but pronounced dead on arrival at 02:30. Borneo Post/PC Later (Longstreath website, April 2013!) reported as 'drowned' but no details or report. -
2011 6 25 Abdeen Massoud Egypt Seapro 30 S/S Air Diving off the Cosmos 1 for GPC, two man dive. LS 09:25, AB 09:27, LB 09:35, AS 09:40, divers in distress at depth. Reported as having switched air supply mid dive (HP bank to diesel compressor?). Appear not to have had medical oxygen or working DDC on vessel, nor access to onshore medical suppport so used mobile phone to call the supervisor of another diving contractor at approx 10:30, vessel with full IMCA compliant dive system and personnek in transit to July field (mid point) at 10:45. Arrived in field renezvous 11:40, Cosmos tied up alongside 11:55. 12:00 injured diver transferred and receiving oxygen (transferred ashore and on to hospital, suspected pneumothorax), Second diver declared dead on site (by doctor flown out by helicopter). Possible contaminated air but no reports or information from the contractor. Not reported in the public domain. PC -
2011 6 25 Said Egypt Seapro 30 S/S Air Diving off the Cosmos 1 for GPC, two man dive. LS 09:25, AB 09:27, LB 09:35, AS 09:40, divers in distress at depth. Reported as having switched air supply mid dive (HP bank to diesel compressor?). Appear not to have had medical oxygen or working DDC on vessel, nor access to onshore medical suppport so used mobile phone to call the supervisor of another diving contractor at approx 10:30, vessel with full IMCA compliant dive system and personnek in transit to July field (mid point) at 10:45. Arrived in field renezvous 11:40, Cosmos tied up alongside 11:55. 12:00 injured diver transferred and receiving oxygen (transferred ashore and on to hospital, suspected pneumothorax), Second diver declared dead on site (by doctor flown out by helicopter). Possible contaminated air but no reports or information from the contractor. Not reported in the public domain. PC -
2011 5 25 Chavez Angel Lopez Mexico Construcciones Mare Aged 29, diving at the Ensada Marine Terminal. Reports indicate that the Federal Department of Labour laumched an investigation following an accident that was hidden from the authorities and that at that time the construction company had not allowed inspectors from the Ministry to enter the site (Companies are required to notify the authorities within 72 hours, the accident happened on the 25th May and apparently as of 4th August - the date of the report - authorities had neither been informed nor allowed access to the site). Autopsy listed causes of death as due to rib and spine injuries, lacerations to the chest, Accident occurred during cutting operations, injuries caused by a falling metal bar hitting the diver in the chest. No other details. AFN/Ensenada.net etc -
2011 5 25 Not recorded Nigeria Subsea 7 S/S Air Pipeline intervention in shallow water from the "Acergy Hawk", unbolting a pig receiver on a pipeline replacement project. Using air bags, as the pig receiver was freed from the pipeline end flange it rose to the full extent of the hold back line trapping the divers leg resulting in a dislocated ankle and fractured fibula. Although weaknesses were identified in the procedures and RA process, essentially this incidents highlights the risks of of using airbags in shallow water and near zero visibility where the rigging and airbag cannot be fully monitored. Source:- A good and well circulated Oil Company report -
2011 1 25 Castro Policcarpio UAE Amasco, Dubai SCUBA Personal Communication “A diver was killed carrying out a hullscrub on the offshore anchorage Fujairah – date of incident 25th Jan 2011. Filipino diver, one of four using brush carts, crushed on surfacing between dive boat and tanker 'Najm' (Maltese flag, Iranian National Oil Company) in rough seas� PC. Waiting on further details -
2011 1 25 Rouxhet Olivier Belgium Fireman SCUBA Paraphrased from press reports:- Aged 39, a Civil Protection Force Fire Rescue FF/Diver was killed in the Line of Duty during the search for 2 children in the Meuse River. The 12 and 6 year old children had been missing since January 16 when the oldest girl jumped after her sister who fell into the water were swept away by the current of the river in the vicinity of the eastern city of Liège.. The crew-chief of the diving operation over the the previous days got into trouble going down in the man-made barrier (Sluice gate) complex on the river. He gave alarm signals by his security line, but the surface-crew couldn't free him. They immediately started a rescue operation but it was too late. He had been smashed to a pier of bridge by the flow and lost a part of his diving equipment, most importantly his breathing mask. A diver of the Liège Fire brigade was also injured bringing the unconscious diver to the surface. An medical crew start life saving measures but he died on the way to hospital. The diver was divorced and leaves a 7 year old daughter. Reported on Flanders News. -
2010 7 25 Alajbegovich Samo Italy 7 Rebreather Aged 41, Slovenian biologist working at the Piran Marine Biology centre, diving on a 'Trieste HDT' rebreather off Miramar, body located in 7 metres of water 200 metres from the beach location where his diving partner, Ziga Dorajc was pulled alive, but unconscious (He subsequently died in hospital), from the water 4 hours earlier. Reported in Slowwwenia.enaa.com -
2010 5 25 Costa Dr. Paolo Italy 107 Rebreather Aged 60, dive team of 4 people filming for Rai 3 programme "Geo and Geo" on Sardinia (Oliena, Nuoro) in an underwater spring (Su Gologone). Reported as becoming ill (Heart attack) during the ascent, failed to respond to treatment. A companion who assisted him up was treated for omitted decompression. Vip.it -
2009 2 25 Mirabella Maurilio Honduras Waihuka Adventure Divers SCUBA Diving business owner on Roatan island selling shark feeding dives to tourists. Allegedly tried to kill a competing dive operator underwater at a shark feeding site. Witnesses said he attacked another dive guide who took a group of tourists to the shark feeding site, apparently attempting to prevent the competing dive operator from profiting off of "his sharks". He tried to shut off his air supply. The authorities have charged Mirabella with attempted murder (He declined to comment on the charges, but said he sells shark feeding dives because "without sharks, scuba diving in Roatan isn't worth much"). -
2008 4 25 Rebolledo Andres Nelson Bustamente Chile Cultivos Marinos Chiloe 40 Chilean, aged 29, Salmon farm in central Butachauques, reported as DCI, died in hospital (inference is SCUBA and no DDC, to be confirmed) "Third diver to die in the industry this year. Reported that there have been 54 fatalities in the salmon industry since 2005. Ecoceane -
2007 10 25 Myers Mathew USA Sealife Centre SCUBA American, aged 44, Resurrection Bay, Alaska, training dive to become a Sealife centre scientific diver, "ran out of air, may have panicked trying to take off his weight belt" drowned. -
2007 9 25 Myers Mathew USA Sealife Centre SCUBA Aged 44, Marine mammal scientist with the Sealife Centre in Seward, alaska. Training dive, ran out of air, surfaced with instructor, decided to swim to shore (rather than to their anchored boat), unable to release weight belt or inflate buoyancy, submerged, instructor assumed he was trying to release his weight belt but he did not resurface. Pair were diving alone. Body recovered 90 minutes later. -
2006 9 25 Not Recorded Spain Brazilian, aged 28, Port of Castellon, inlet pipe/differential pressure incident, died of head injuries (Another diver died in the port in January). -
2006 5 25 Delgado Lt. Nelson Salidas Bolivia Navy Bolivian Navy diver, working on a hydroelectric dam in Chojlla (La Paz). Double fatality (The second was Lt Wilson Uequizo). Unclear why naval divers were carrying out work for a private company (Commanding officers sued in court and two officers - including the commanding officer of the diver training centre - were dismissed) and it seems that the second diver was ordered into the water to rescue the first, but the details of the incident have not been reported though it appears to have been a Dam/differential Pressure, dual fatality. Reported in Elmundo.com -
2006 5 25 Uequizo Lt Wilson Perez Bolivia Navy Bolivian Navy diver, working on a hydroelectric dam in Chojlla (La Paz). Double fatality (The second was Lt Nelson Delgado). Unclear why naval divers were carrying out work for a private company (Commanding officers sued in court and two officers - including the commanding officer of the diver training centre - were dismissed) and it seems that the second diver was ordered into the water to rescue the first, but the details of the incident have not been reported though it appears to have been a Dam/differential Pressure, dual fatality. Reported in Elmundo.com -
2005 7 25 DSV "Samundra Suraksha" India ONGC Saturation Mumbai high collision, fire, destruction, 6 divers in sat survived the incident -
2005 7 25 Mumbai High India ONGC Mumbai High platform, DSV 'Samundra Suraksha' collided with platform, riser broken, fire destroyed the platform a rig, a helicopter and the DSV. 22 fatalities. -
2004 4 25 DSV 'Ocean Winsertor' Indonesia Topsides In transit from East Timor to Singapore, off Lingga Island, 12 armed pirates boarded the DSV and robbed the crew at gun point. No deaths, minor injuries. Reported in the Sydney Morning Herald. -
2003 1 25 Humphreys Tracy USA SCUBA Sports divers. Two men died while ice diving in a Lowden quarry, drowned, apparently after their tanks ran out of air as they searched for an opening in the ice. An investigator for the Cedar County medical examiner's office, said Thursday that Kevin Petersen, 31, and Tracy Humphreys, 30, were dropped off at Wendling Quarry Saturday. Their bodies were found Sunday morning, authorities said, with their air tanks empty. One man had PADI advanced open water and rescue level diver's certification but police could find no diver certification record for the other. The two had trespassed to dive in the quarry, which prohibits diving, authorities said. Authorities tested the rental equipment used by them and found the gear was working properly. The only problem was a hole in one pressure hose that would not likely have been the primary cause of the accident. Restrictors on either end of the hose prevent it from leaking air too quickly. Investigators found a rope tied to a tree hanging down into the water, but not tied to the divers. Quote:- "That would have been totally useless if they weren't tied to it, if you could find a rope in the water, you could see the hole anyway." Reported in the Cedar Rapids Gazette -
2003 1 25 Peterson Kevin USA SCUBA Sports divers. Two men died while ice diving in a Lowden quarry, drowned, apparently after their tanks ran out of air as they searched for an opening in the ice. An investigator for the Cedar County medical examiner's office, said Thursday that Kevin Petersen, 31, and Tracy Humphreys, 30, were dropped off at Wendling Quarry Saturday. Their bodies were found Sunday morning, authorities said, with their air tanks empty. One man had PADI advanced open water and rescue level diver's certification but police could find no diver certification record for the other. The two had trespassed to dive in the quarry, which prohibits diving, authorities said. Authorities tested the rental equipment used by them and found the gear was working properly. The only problem was a hole in one pressure hose that would not likely have been the primary cause of the accident. Restrictors on either end of the hose prevent it from leaking air too quickly. Investigators found a rope tied to a tree hanging down into the water, but not tied to the divers. Quote:- "That would have been totally useless if they weren't tied to it, if you could find a rope in the water, you could see the hole anyway." Reported in the Cedar Rapids Gazette -
2002 6 25 Jelasi Cristiano Italy Tecnosub 80 SCUBA Aged 25, off the island of Capri (Thyrrenian Sea), diving in SCUBA to 80 metres, alone, off a small boat to cut ropes off a recently installed water pipeline prior to trenching operations. Died in the water -
2001 7 25 Novichenko A USSR Stavropolsky region, Aged 41, During the repair work at the Sengeleevsky Water reservoir dam. Sucked in a wall break by the water flow. No details. Undersea Review -
2000 10 25 Benvenuto Francesco Italy Barracuda 0 SCUBA Italian aged 32. Workshop in Genoa harbour, charging SCUBA cylinders, explosion, killed by facial impact from fitting/valve. Fitting with incorrect thread screwed into cylinder -
2000 6 25 Banu Fred Australia Oceantech Pty 25 S/S Air Australian (Torres Straits Islander), professional sea cucumber (Beche de mer) harvester. Near Don Cay in the Torres Strait. Diving from tender vessel on hooker style SSBA diving system. Airline pulled tight causing separation of airline at connection. Diver found on the seabed 15 minutes late and recovered unconscious from sea floor. Outboard unable to be started. Drowned. Prosecution (Inappropriate and poorly maintained SSBA equipment. No emergency air source. No current medical. No depth indicator used. No O2 resuscitation equipment). Workplace Health and Safety, Queensland. -
1997 6 25 Cousteau Jacques-Yves France Explorer Legendery diver, inventor (with Emile Gagnan invented the first open circuit SCUBA demand valve in 1942-1943) , ecologist and subsea explorer, died aged 87 at his home in Paris -
1993 5 25 Masadi Singapore Indonesian, aged 29, died in an underwater explosion during a salvage operation on a shipweck. No other details. Straits Times -
1985 9 25 Hadzic Hussein Croatia Navy 82 Saturation Salvage of the chemical tanker, the Brigitta Montanari that sank on the 16th November 1984 (See separate entry) carrying vinyl chloride monomer (‘VCM’, toxic, explosive and carcinogenic) in 82m water depth. Known to be leaking toxic chemicals, the only salvage resource available was the ‘Sapasilac’, Yugoslavian Navy submarine deep rescue unit. Built as the PS-12, 55 metres in length, 1,490 GRT, at the Tito shipyard in 1976. She was initially fitted out with a 600m depth rated rescue submarine (‘Mermaid IV’, 8 metres long, capable of carrying 10 personnel including crew), a three man, 300 metre diving bell that was also rated as an atmospheric observation chamber and a 30 man surface recompression chamber. Two further rescue vessels were built in 1977, one was sold to Libya, the ‘Al Munjed’, the other to Iraq, the ‘A-81’ - Sunk during the second gulf war. The later vessels had modified funnels (to reduce overheating of the hyperbaric chambers). The vessel has had the submarine and diving systems removed and was still in service with the Croatian Navy as the patrol vessel OB-73 ‘Faust Vrancic’ in 2010). During a bell run to assess the wreck of the Brigitta Montanari, the salvage vessel was moved to clear the bell from above the hull but the bell weights (suspended on chains below the bell) caught on the wreck and were ripped off causing an uncontrolled ascent the buoyant bell. The two divers who were locked out (Dragutin Siljevinac and Hussein Hadzic) were dragged to the surface by their umbilicals and although rescued from about 30 metres, both subsequently died in the chamber. The bellman (Dragisa Koprivica) spent 4 weeks in the chamber but survived and carried on a career as a diver. Centre of Marine Research, Zagreb -
1985 9 25 Koprivica Dragisa Croatia Navy 82 Saturation Salvage of the chemical tanker, the Brigitta Montanari that sank on the 16th November 1984 (See separate entry) carrying vinyl chloride monomer (‘VCM’, toxic, explosive and carcinogenic) in 82m water depth. Known to be leaking toxic chemicals, the only salvage resource available was the ‘Sapasilac’, Yugoslavian Navy submarine deep rescue unit. Built as the PS-12, 55 metres in length, 1,490 GRT, at the Tito shipyard in 1976. She was initially fitted out with a 600m depth rated rescue submarine (‘Mermaid IV’, 8 metres long, capable of carrying 10 personnel including crew), a three man, 300 metre diving bell that was also rated as an atmospheric observation chamber and a 30 man surface recompression chamber. Two further rescue vessels were built in 1977, one was sold to Libya, the ‘Al Munjed’, the other to Iraq, the ‘A-81’ - Sunk during the second gulf war. The later vessels had modified funnels (to reduce overheating of the hyperbaric chambers). The vessel has had the submarine and diving systems removed and was still in service with the Croatian Navy as the patrol vessel OB-73 ‘Faust Vrancic’ in 2010). During a bell run to assess the wreck of the Brigitta Montanari, the salvage vessel was moved to clear the bell from above the hull but the bell weights (suspended on chains below the bell) caught on the wreck and were ripped off causing an uncontrolled ascent the buoyant bell. The two divers who were locked out (Dragutin Siljevinac and Hussein Hadzic) were dragged to the surface by their umbilicals and although rescued from about 30 metres, both subsequently died in the chamber. The bellman (Dragisa Koprivica) spent 4 weeks in the chamber but survived and carried on a career as a diver. Centre of Marine Research, Zagreb -
1985 9 25 Siljevinac Dragutin Croatia Navy 82 Saturation Salvage of the chemical tanker, the Brigitta Montanari that sank on the 16th November 1984 (See separate entry) carrying vinyl chloride monomer (‘VCM’, toxic, explosive and carcinogenic) in 82m water depth. Known to be leaking toxic chemicals, the only salvage resource available was the ‘Sapasilac’, Yugoslavian Navy submarine deep rescue unit. Built as the PS-12, 55 metres in length, 1,490 GRT, at the Tito shipyard in 1976. She was initially fitted out with a 600m depth rated rescue submarine (‘Mermaid IV’, 8 metres long, capable of carrying 10 personnel including crew), a three man, 300 metre diving bell that was also rated as an atmospheric observation chamber and a 30 man surface recompression chamber. Two further rescue vessels were built in 1977, one was sold to Libya, the ‘Al Munjed’, the other to Iraq, the ‘A-81’ - Sunk during the second gulf war. The later vessels had modified funnels (to reduce overheating of the hyperbaric chambers). The vessel has had the submarine and diving systems removed and was still in service with the Croatian Navy as the patrol vessel OB-73 ‘Faust Vrancic’ in 2010). During a bell run to assess the wreck of the Brigitta Montanari, the salvage vessel was moved to clear the bell from above the hull but the bell weights (suspended on chains below the bell) caught on the wreck and were ripped off causing an uncontrolled ascent the buoyant bell. The two divers who were locked out (Dragutin Siljevinac and Hussein Hadzic) were dragged to the surface by their umbilicals and although rescued from about 30 metres, both subsequently died in the chamber. The bellman (Dragisa Koprivica) spent 4 weeks in the chamber but survived and carried on a career as a diver. Centre of Marine Research, Zagreb -
1983 10 25 Drillship 'Glomar Java Sea' South China Sea Arco Capsised in tropical storm 'Lex'off Hainan Island (China), 81 fatalities. Rumours of survivors held in vietnam camps never substantiated. Was there a dive team onboard? -
1982 6 25 McCarty Michael USA 14 SCUBA "Navy SCUBA diver died Friday afternoon 45 feet under the waters of Long Beach Harbour under the World War II Battleship 'New …. ?" Reported as a 'valve malfunction'. Los Angeles Times -
1980 9 25 Ong Ah Lam Singapore SCUBA Aged 53, diver on a fishing vessel (His first trip) which left Singapore on the 16th September, dropped anchor in rough weather but could not lift it when conditions improved on the 24th September. Diver cleared the anchor (depth was not specified at the inquiry) after a 4 hour dive but then complained of stomach pains, weakness in his legs and being unable to urinate. Died the following day 'of acute decompression sickness' whilst en route to Singapore. Coroner recorded a verdict of death by misadventure. Straits Times -
1979 11 25 Rig 'Bohai 2' China Ocean Oil Company Jack Up, sank during rig move/towing (caught in a storm), 72 fatalities out of a POB of 74 -
1976 10 25 Soonee Mohamed bin Amin Borneo SCUBA Aged 48, onboard a Singaporean registered fishing vessel working 100 miles off the North Borneo coast. Propeller entangled with rope and nets, went in to clear it around 15:00 hours. Did not surface. Other crew members spent three hours searching for him before they saw his SCUBA gear hanging on the propeller. As it was dark they abandoned the search until the morning After a thre or four hour search the following day, they recovered his body from the seabed. The coroner recorded a verdict of misadventure, cause of death was certified as asphixia due to drowning. Straits Times -
1975 9 25 Wendelaar Joachim USA 322 German, aged 36, from Hamburg, described as a veteran diver with the West German shipbuilder GKSS, was part of a three man team preparatory works to the 100 ton underwater NOAA habitat 'Helgoland' sponsored by the US, West Germany, Poland and Norway off Roskport. Quote “It appeared something went wrong with his oxygen regulator and he suffered the bends on surfacing�. Confused reporting - it appears he actually fell unconscious on deck, initially reported as a surface accident - but no details Reported in 'The Hour' -
1972 10 25 Collett Clive New Zealand Divers fron Proctor Reclaim, NZ on contract to United Salvage Company of Melbourne Killed during diving operations cutting up the wreck of the ferry “Wahine� (Sank at the entrance to Wellington Harboure April 10 1968 by Cyclone 'Giselle' with the loss of 53 people), in an underwater explosion. � The Wahine was lying in the middle of Wellington Harbour and the Harbour Board ordered her removal. The original idea was that she would be pumped full of polyutherane foam and refloated intact. However during another storm on May 8th, 1969, the hull was broken into three pieces. The Salvage company decided then to break the wreck into 30-80 ton segments, which would then be lifted and carried ashore by the floating crane Hikitia. Most of the metal was sent to scrap mills in Auckland to be melted down in steel reinforcing for buildings. All the timber, plastic, fittings and furniture were disposed of at the Wellington rubbish dump. During the salvage, Mr Clive Collett was killed in an explosion while diving� PC -
1972 8 25 Fleming James P USA 85 Aged 25, working to salvage a 40' cement commercial fishing vessel - the 'Ferro Queen '- that sank on May 27th in 280' of water off Newburyport, reported as 'bends', unconscious in the water, brought to the surface by a fellow diver, taken ashore to Seabrook Beach in New Hampshire and transferred by ambulance to a recompression chamber at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, pronounced dead by a doctor 30 minutes after he entered the chamber. The Nashua Telegraph. -
1970 3 25 McKee RAN Able Seaman Quatermaster Gunner David Australia Navy “Diver dies. Able Seaman Quarter master Gunner David McKee, aged 20, of Mentone, Victoria, a diver in the crew of the RAN destroyer escort, HMAS ‘Derwent’, died during a standard diving exercise in Manila Bay on Wednesday. An inquiry has been ordered. Reported in the Canberra Times. -
1969 11 25 Rig 'Constellation' UK Jack Up, sank during rig move/towing (caught in a storm). -
1964 9 25 Harrison Gerald P USA Military Topsides Maryport naval station, repair operations to flooded pontoons damaged by hurricane 'Dora'. Harrison and another diver from the destroyer tender 'Yellowstone' were killed by the 90' boom of the crane barge they were rigging to lift out damaged pontoons when it collapse onto the small boat they were diving from. Two other navy personnel were seriously injured. -
1959 10 25 Hayashi Sanza Australia Fujita Salvage Company 18 S/S Air Japanese salvage diver, aged 48, inquest held in Darwin on 3rd November where it was reported that he drowned in his helmet after being knocked unconscious by falling pieces of metal in Darwin harbour. May have had his air line dislodged/knocked off. Straits Times/Canberra Times -
1959 4 25 Gause George USA 25 S/S Air American, aged 56 (or 57), professional sponge diver (Most sponge divers at this time were of Greek descent) with 23 years experience, diving some 30 miles North of Big Bank off the St. Nicholas V, air hoses severed by support vessel propeller (Guard basket had been damaged earlier in the trip “but repaired to the skipper's satisfaction�. Recovered to surface dead. Ruled as 'accidental death'. Reported in the St Petersburg Times. -
1957 6 25 Iwanoto Satehel Australia Japanese, diving off the pearling lugger 'Hakucho Maru' out of Darwin. Reported as dying of diver's paralysis. Buried at Piper's Head on Melville Island alongside the bodies of two other diver who died in 1955 and 1953. “Modern equipment and methods now used prevent the fearful loss of life experienced off Broome and in territory waters before the war�. Reported in The Age. -
1950 3 25 Ayerst Syd Australia S/S Air DIVER HAS TOUGH JOB Sydney, Saturday. A daring Public Works diver, Syd Ayerst (26), of Newcastle, today battled for 10 hours against Murrumbidgee floodwaters racing at 10 to 15 knots to successfully restore domestic water supplies. Ayerst had to lash himself to an underwater pipeline and take down extra weights to withstand the surging waters. Silt blocked pumps at a pumping station some days ago, cutting off supplies to many towns including Cootamundra Young, West Wyalong, Harden and Temora. Reported in the Sunday Times, Perth, WA. -
1948 5 25 Not Recorded France S/S Air "A diver is missing and three workmen were slightly injured after an explosion aboard a destroyer in Toulon Naval Harbour. The vessel was being dismantled when the explosion occurred. The cause was not known" Reuters/Straits Times -
1948 3 25 Ingle or Ingles Floyd USA Aged 22, From Rhode, Michigan, working in a 23' cistern at the Consumer's Power Company 'John C Weadock' Power plant at the mouthy of the Saginaw River. Had been underwater for about 10 minutes then failed to respond to signals, was brought up but failed to respond to treatment. “drowned when his face mask apparently knocked off�. Oswosso Argus Express. -
1944 8 25 Johnson John Paul Australia Topsides BROKE HIS NECK IN 5 FT. FALL. John Paul Johnson, 63, married, of Ferguson Road, Norman Park, a diver, was killed in a 5ft. fall at Borthwick's Meatworks Wharf, Queensport, Brisbane, yesterday. He struck some rocks when he fell, fractured his neck, and received a laceration on the head. He died instantly. Johnson, who was engaged in general repair work at the wharf, started work bracing the wharf planking at 7.30 a.m. yesterday, and was seen at 7.45 walking along a thrust pile. Reported in the Courier-Mail, Brisbane, Qld. -
1939 7 25 Masumoto Muneo Australia 24 S/S Air JAPANESE APPRENTICE DIVER'S FATE. Mystery surrounds the loss of Muneo Masumoto. 17, Japanese apprentice diver, whose Corselet and helmet attached to lines were found in 13 fathoms near Darnley Island on July 25. It is surmised that Masumoto was seized with convulsions from diver's paralysis and twisted himself out of his helmet and corselet. The boy descended 31 fathoms at first but found the tides too strong and was brought to the surface. He complained of numbness, but later descended again to 13 fathoms. Alter five minutes he failed to respond to signals, and the captain of the lugger descended and found only the helmet and corselet. Reported in The Advertiser, Adelaide, SA -
1938 11 25 Kakishita Tetsuo Australia Morey & Co 33 S/S Air Japanese aged 20, diving from the pearling lugger 'Thelma' at Turu cay, 90 miles Northwest of Thursday Island, was diving in just Corselet and helmet (Not full dress), appears to have flooded his hemet and was pulled up and then staged for in water decompression for 11 hours but he died. The post mortem indicated cause of death as diver's paralysis and asphyxia by accidental drowning. Reported in the Courier-Mail, Brisbane. -
1935 10 25 Fukami Maso Australia 37 S/S Air Japanese, aged 23, Bathurst island, bitten on the left wrist by a snake, surfaced and a tounequet put on the bite, put back in the water to decompress but came to the surface unconscious and died two hours later. Unclear whether cause of death was DCI or venom poisoning. -
1927 10 25 Giorgas James USA 16 S/S Air Aged 28, Greek Sponge diver working out of Tarpon Springs onboard the Porteritisa, signalled to be brought to the surface after his airline parted, hauled aboard and appeared OK, helmet off, announced he was alright then collapsed and died. St. Petertsburg Times. -
1927 5 25 Harrison Edgar USA S/S Air American, from Catalina, speculative search for Aimee Macpherson (faked her own disappearance, but at the time was presumed missing/dead and there was a $25,000 reward for finding her. She had actually run off with her boyfriend). Water pressure acerbated appendicitis and he died. Macpherson re-appeared from the desert, initially claiming kidnap. Harrison's widow tried to sue Macpherson. -
1926 9 25 Lee John UK 21 S/S Air "Accident to diver. While working on a wreck in Morecambe Bay yesterday, Jihn Lee of Weast Hartlepool..." "Diver's Ordeal. Broken helmet 70 feet below surface interviewed yesterday in Fleetwood hospital, a diver named Lee who almost…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Aberdeen Journal/The British Newspaper Archive -
1924 8 25 Laurentic UK 27 Salvage of Gold bars off the wreck of the “Laurentic�, sunk off northern Ireland (off Lough Sully) in 1917 by a German submarine “Despite the perils attending what is said to have been the greatest salvage feat on record, there was only one accident, in which a diver suffered a broken leg� -
1915 3 25 Murphy James Joseph UK Topsides "Death of well known government diver who died in Dover from pneumonia at the …" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dover Express/The British Newspaper Archive -
1900 5 25 Not Recorded UK "Tragic death of a diver. Last night the steamer 'Fawn', which had been at the steam liner "Dewdrop" of Aberdeen, which was wrecked at the Swarf, Stronsay,..." (Fishing liner 'Dewdrop' went ashore at Linga Sound, Stronsay, in a storm, refloated and put back into service). No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Angus Evening Post/The British Newspaper Archive -
1897 2 25 Olsen Albert M USA Baltimore Wrecking Company S/S Air “A driver in the employ of the Baltimore Wrecking Company, died suddenly yesterday while he was under water in a diving suit in the channel of the Patapsco river, off Sparrow's Point. "Heart disease is supposed to have caused his death� (Quote from his employer......) -
1885 9 25 Gregory George RN UK Military 15 S/S Air "Fatality to a diver, George Gregory of HMS Revenge. Was drowned last evening whilst engaged in examining some moorings 8 fathoms deep". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive -
1872 6 25 Warner George UK S/S Air Melancholy Fatal Accident to a Diver. It in our painful duty this week to report one of those melancholy accidents, which fortunately are not of frequent occurrence, viz., the death by drowning of a diver, named George Warner, while following his occupation. It appears that the unfortunate young man was on Tuesday last engaged at a ship sunk off Dungeness, and while searching in the cabin for a sum of money amounting to about £800, supposed to have been left there; the air pipe suddenly burst, the result being, of course, that the communication of air to the deceased was instantly cut off. Mr. Philip Warner, a brother of the deceased, was attending him, by whom the bursting of the pipe was felt, and he immediately took measures to raise him to the boat; this was accomplished in about a minute and a half, and on his being dragged on board he exclaimed “ Oh, my poor head; I am dying' and then breathed his last. The body was taken to Dover, where an inquest was held, the jury returning a verdict of “Accidental Death." On Wednesday the corpse was brought home to Whitstable for interment. The deceased was a very steady young man, and his untimely end in lamented by a large circle of friends and relatives. He was a son of the well known diver, Mr. Philip Warner, who, as many of our readers are aware, was employed for several years in the construction of the harbour of refuge at Alderney. Deceased was twenty-six years of age, and was, we understand, shortly about to be married. Reported in the Whitstable Times -
2016 4 25 Ngay Le Van Vietnam Int Manpower and Construction Aged 46, died on the way to hospital the day after diving at Ha Tinh on an embankment project for the Taiwanese company, Formosa Hung Nghiep steel, who are alledged to have polluted and killed large numbers of fish in recent weeks. Team members also claimed they had felt unwell after diving there. Ha Tinh News -
2017 1 25 Ortega Agustin Spain Balizamientos y Obras Hidraulicas de Mazarron. Sociedad Limitada Rebreather Aged 37, married, two children diving off Mazarron, working on the underwater pipelines associated with the Valdelentisco desalination plant near El Mojon diving from the vessel 'Ten de Todo'. Taken out of the water unconscious, brought ashore and taken to hospital in Mazarron where he was in cardiac arrest, did not respond to treatment. Reported in la Voz de Almeria. No other details. RB Faral Accident Database reported this as a commercial dive on a recreational rebreather. -
1991 11 25 Lillard Billy Ray GOM Cal Dive SMG Age 25, Came off the downline on Waterstop. Died in Chamber on deck. 1) Young Diver First surface Gas Dive 2) Stage was not at first stop when he reached it. It was being lowered. 3) Seas Heavy, surge, and current. 4) There was a serious bend previous to this dive. Source: JC Roat post in Incidents forum -
2021 2 25 Diaz Leiva Cristian Chile Servicios Primes SCUBA Aged 58. Married, 8 children. Blumar owned Concheo II salmon farm, Aysen, Southern Chile. Reported as 'accident around 12:30 am', 'suffocation by submersion in the context of a work accident', 'handling counterweights', No other details. Reported by Salmon Business. Diving off the 'LM Don Hector' reported by SagaChile. Later reported that the regulatory 'Chilean Safety Association' (ACHS) said 'not work related' as there was no link between the diver's work and death..... -
2021 1 25 Chiguay Carimoney Remigio Eduardo Chile SCUBA Aged 16 or 17 diving from the 'Eugenia 1' (Registered in Quellon) an hour and a half sailing time from Melinka, surfaced unconscious. Reported fatality, Navy vessel attended site and confirmed fatality. Initial reports centred on his (under) age - minimum age for this type of diving work in Chile is 18 years of age - so was most likely unlicensed and the vessel operating without port authorisation. Reported by eldivisadero.cl, litoralpress.cl, cooperativa.cl etc -
2012 7 24 Sheinost 1 David D USA Dept. of Natural Resources SCUBA Aged 24, from Puyallup, two man dive working with a four man diving tean for the Department of Natural Resources conducting geoduck surveys (sampling for paralytic shellfish poisoning) near Restoration Point on Bainbridge island. Reported as 'went missing during the dive' (surfaced in distress, called out he could not breath, slipped below the surface before the other divers reaced him), body recovered three days later. Death certificate indicates cause of death as 'salt water drowning' with a contributing factor 'acute cocaine intoxication'. Apparently did not hold a commercial diving license. Bainbridge Island Review. In January 2013, Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries (L & I) cited the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for 15 worker-safety violations including two “willful� violations (committed with intentional disregard or plain indifference to worker safety and health regulations). (1) 370 occurrences over a 6-month period in which divers were deployed without carrying a reserve breathing-gas supply (2) DNR did not ensure a designated person was in charge at the dive location to supervise all aspects of the diving operation affecting the health and safety of the divers and proposed penalties of $172,900.
In addition to the two willful violations, L&I cited DNR for eight serious and five general violations for not complying with standard safe-diving practices and procedures, including failure to:- have an effective safety and health accident prevention program and training program; ensure that divers maintained continual visual contact with each other; inspect and maintain equipment; have a stand-by diver available while divers are in the water. DNR says it will appeal the fines saying that the department has corrected most of the violations that were found during the investigation by the state Department of Labor & Industries. Bainbridge Island Review -
2012 7 24 Sheinost 2 David D USA Dept. of Natural Resources SCUBA In January 2013, Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries (L & I) cited the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for 15 worker-safety violations including two “willful� violations (committed with intentional disregard or plain indifference to worker safety and health regulations). (1) 370 occurrences over a 6-month period in which divers were deployed without carrying a reserve breathing-gas supply (2) DNR did not ensure a designated person was in charge at the dive location to supervise all aspects of the diving operation affecting the health and safety of the divers and proposed penalties of $172,900.
In addition to the two willful violations, L&I cited DNR for eight serious and five general violations for not complying with standard safe-diving practices and procedures, including failure to:- have an effective safety and health accident prevention program and training program; ensure that divers maintained continual visual contact with each other; inspect and maintain equipment; have a stand-by diver available while divers are in the water. DNR says it will appeal the fines saying that the department has corrected most of the violations that were found during the investigation by the state Department of Labor & Industries -
2012 3 24 Not Recorded Russia Navy Diver 60 Diving off the Rescue vessel "Alagez" with the Pacific Fleet in Pyotr Veliky Bay of Primorye conducting a submarine salvage drill with a "damaged" submarine on the seabed in 60 metres of water. Reports unclear, though may have been 'equipment failure'. Contradictory reports regarding his diving partner say he is 'undergoing intensive decompression therapy' or 'did not suffer and needs no treatment'. No details. Reported by Navaltoday.com -
2012 2 24 Amando Hugo Villajuana Mexico SCUBA Aged 36 from Puerta Chuburna, wife and four children. First diver to die in the official - on the second day - of the Sea Cucumber season, harvesting operation onboard the 25 foot long "VMCM 5" working 20 miles out of Celestun (Yucatan Penninsula). Accident ocurred at 13:00, admitted to hospiral in Celustan at 16:00, declared dead at 17:30. Reported as due to DCI, depth initially reported as 'cinco brazas '(5 fathoms or 30 feet) but later corrected as 12 fathoms (60 feet). No other details. Reported by Por Esto -
2011 5 24 Barbieto Jeffrey USA Grove Farm Fish Poi / Hukilau Food SCUBA Aged 41, Honolulu Fire Department Firefighter and part time commercial diver working at a fish farm 2 miles offshore Pearl Harbour. US Navy vessel 'Salvor' responded to a 2:30 pm emergency call and was on site in 5 minutes. The diver was given hyperbaric treatment onboard before being transferred onshore to the Pali Momi Medical Centre where he was declared deceased. Honolulu medical Examiner's office confirmed the cause of death as accidental drowning. 6 months later HIOSH proposed $50,000 penalties against Hukilau foods on the grounds that the death was preventable and that equipment and procedures were inadequate. 19 citations: 1 Failure to prohibit a dive team member from diving during the period that the diver was sufficiently impaired as to adversely affect his/her safety and health. 2 Failure to develop and maintain a safety practices manual, which shall be made available at the dive location to each dive team member. 3 Failure to inquire into the dive team member’s current state of physical fitness prior to each assignment and failure to indicate to each dive team member the procedure for reporting physical problems or adverse physiological effects during and after the dive. 4 Failure to provide a means for exiting the water that extends below the water surface and a means for assisting an injured diver from the water. 5 Failure to provide decompression, repetitive, and no-decompression tables at the dive site. 6 Failure to maintain a depth-time profile, including when appropriate, any breathing gas changes for each diver during the dive including decompression. 7 Failure to check the physical condition of the diver after each dive, including instructing the diver to report any physical problems or adverse physiological effects as well as the location of a decompression chamber which is ready for use. 8 Failure to provide a decompression chamber capable of recompressing the diver at the surface to a minimum of 165 fsw (6 ATA) at the dive location. 9 Failure to limit SCUBA diving at depths deeper than 130 fsw. 10 Failure to limit SCUBA diving at depths deeper than 100 fsw, or outside the no-decompression limits, where no decompression chamber was ready for use. 11 Failure to provide a clean standby diver to assist a diver in the water at any time during the diving operation. 12 Failure to require a diver to be accompanied by another diver (buddy system), maintaining continuous visual contact during the diving operations, or alternatively, line tending from the surface. 13 Failure to provide a diver-carried reserve breathing gas supply for each diver consisting of a manual reserve (J valve) or an independent reserve cylinder. 14 Failure to provide every diver with a buoyancy compensator device, aka BCD and require the diver to use the BCD for SCUBA diving. 15 Failure to provide and maintain a list of emergency contact numbers for an operational decompression chamber, accessible hospitals, available physicians, available means of transportation and the nearest U.S. Coast Guard Rescue Coordination Center at the dive location. 16 Failure to record and maintain accurate dive logs as required by the HIOSH Standards. 17 Failure to record and maintain depth-time and breathing gas profiles, decompression table designation, and elapsed time since last pressure exposure if less than 24 hours or repetitive dive designation for each dive outside the no-decompression limits, deeper than 100 fsw. 18 Failure to maintain records for each dive in which decompression sickness was suspected or symptoms were evident. 19 Failure to maintain records for each equipment modification, repair, test, calibration or maintenance service. Reported in the Pacific Bulletin -
2011 3 24 Irvine James UK 6 SCUBA Aged 42, from the Glenrothes area of Fife, disappeared at 13:00 GMT on Thursday off the coast at Lower Largo. "The two men who remained on the boat reported that the man had surfaced during the dive and requested more weights, but did not resurface after this." Paraphrased from AP/STV reports: “Police have confirmed that a body recovered from the water at 19:30 GMT on Friday was that of a missing scallop diver. Extensive searches had been carried out by police divers supported by the Central Scotland Police Diving Team, a Royal Navy rescue helicopter and Kinghorn Lifeboat were also involved. HSE investigation ongoing, unclear if this was a commercial dive, but is one of two scallop diving fatalities (the other was Graham Mackie, 11th June) that led to the HSE issuing a safety alert on the 22nd June -
2010 9 24 Not Recorded Croatia Tourists SCUBA A SCUBA cylinder exploded as it was being loaded onto to a diving bost in the Port of Komiza killing a 48 year old Polish woman, three other people were injured and taken to hospital in Split where a 43 year old man who had received head injuries died overnight. They were part of a 12 person group of Polish tourists on a SCUBA diving holiday. AFP -
2010 7 24 Costello Patrick Germany Nordic Dive Enterprise 41 S/S Air 27 year old Swedish air diver working for a Danish contractor on a windfarm project in German waters. Reported as drowned in the last week of a six week diving job, had been airlifting from the DP II 'Maersk Tender', umbilical entangled one of the valves on the airlift. Did not activate his bailout, recovered to surface by the stand-by diver. Translated from German
Press reports dated Monday 26 07 2010:- “Diver dies when working in the offshore windfarm near Borkum. (Bard Offshore). The accident happened on Saturday at 40 meters in depth work. 'Aged 27, a professional diver from Sweden' said a police spokesman, confirming corresponding media reports�. Source: n-tv.de Other press reports indicate a possible lifting incident (TC)<br />UPDATE: The Danish Maritime Authority have released a Casualty Report regards this incident available from: http://www.dma.dk/news/Sider/Casualtyreportaboutdivingaccident.aspx<br />Also see topic in Incidents Diving Forum. -
2010 4 24 Sims Christopher USA Louisiana Oilfield Divers Topsides Aged 39 from Florida, returned onshore due to bad weather, went for a motorcycle ride, crashed off the road into a bayou, body found a day later after reported as missing. Reported as accidental drowning, not wearing a helmet. Houma Today. In March 2011 it was reported in the Louisiana Record that:- The family of a deceased seaman has filed a lawsuit against the man's employer for allegedly allowing him to drive a motorcycle while heavily intoxicated. “He was employed as a seaman, commercial diver and crewmember. When the vessel was ordered to return to shore because of inclement weather, he, along with his co-workers, were taken to the home of a Louisiana oilfield diver's supervisor where they were to remain on call and "on the clock" for further instructions'. The lawsuit claims that the diver's supervisors served their employees alcoholic beverages while waiting to return offshore. A supervisor allegedly supplied him with the keys to a motorcycle despite knowing that he had been drinking heavily. The defendant is accused of negligence for failing to properly plan for the evacuation, bunking and quartering the crew, providing alcoholic beverages to its crew, allowing and providing him with the keys to a motorcycle knowing that he had been drinking and failing to provide him with a safe and nonhazardous workplace� -
2010 3 24 Canales Rodrigo Varas Chile Surface Swimmer Aged 28, shellfish diver off Caldera (El Morro), disappeared. Not counted as a commercial diver for our purposes as this was free diving. Noticia Relacionada -
2009 7 24 Not Recorded Australia Peter Cunningham Holdings 17 metre Cray fishing vessel 'Wave Crest' (with 1500 litres of diesel fuel onboard) was blown ashore and then sank in Waubs Bay, near Bicheno. The salvage company raised the boat and sealed the fuel leak but Workplace Standards Tasmania prosecuted. “The diver was not properly qualified to be involved in that process," The diver was fined $300 dollars and the company fined $600. ABC News, Australia -
2009 6 24 Logan Christopher USA 2 S/S Air American, aged 27, hired by Las Colinas Country Club to retrieve lost golf balls Employees at the club noticed that one of the men employed by the company contracted to recover the balls had not returned by closing time at 8 p.m, So someone went to look for him. Near the eighteenth green, an employee saw Logan’s breathing apparatus floating in the water and noticed that the pump that supplies the air was not running. The Irving Fire Department responded and found the diver's body submerged in the water. The Dallas County medical examiner’s office has ruled the death an accident due to drowning and the toxic effects of carbon monoxide. Wife and three year old son. Was SCUBA certified , took the part time job with a friend's golf ball retrieval business because his employer had cut his hours. -
2009 5 24 Spencer Carl Greece 120 Rebreather British, aged 37. National Geographic Expedition filming the wreck of the 'Britannic' (Sister vessel to the 'Titanic'). British Hospital ship sank by a mine in 1916 with the loss of 30 lives off the Greek island of Kea. Reported to have surfaced rapidly, unconscious, flown by military super puma to Athens Naval Hospital, but did not respond to treatment -
2008 7 24 Fournier Christophe France Hydrokarst S/S Air French, aged 39, Marseilles port, cutting up a sunken boat, underwater oxy/arc explosion -
2008 3 24 BBC UK Bangladesh 61 S/S Air BBC news article covering the 'Kohji' ('those who search for something') working the rivers of Bangladesh using tyre air compressors, hose pipe and basic BA type full face masks to recover scrap, cargo and bodies. -
2007 9 24 L Maciej Poland Tri-Marine 35 SCUBA Aged 29, one of two divers 'performing routine maintenance after a storm' at around 35 metres on the unmanned platform 'Petrobaltic 1" (An ROV was reported as monitoring the divers), apparently passed out and sank towards the seabed, the second diver went down to 45, 55 or 80 metres (depending on which press report you read, and prosecutors were unable to determine depth/profile as both dive computers and work logs were 'all lost') to find him and pulled him to the surface but he failed to respond to treatment (Second diver was transported by Navy helicopter and successfully treated for DCI in a chamber in Gdynia). Proecution a year later claimed no lifelines, insufficient number in the dive team, improper equipment (no communications, use of sports diving equipment for commercial purposes), misconduct. Incorrect diving gas mix was quoted as possible cause of initial loss of consciousness (Was this a nitrox or trimix dive?). Reported in Wirtualna Poland -
2006 2 24 Guarascio Anthony USA Drake associates 11 S/S Air American, aged 24, Delaware River, Camden, NJ, jackhammer concrete, lost air supply, clawed his way to the surface, without air 5+ minutes, coma, 9 + months paralysis, prognosis not reported -
2005 11 24 Jones Zakarij Mason USA PDCoF 60 SCUBA American, Professional Diving Charters of Florida, Ft Lauderdale, Vessel "Pro diver II", He drowned, Contrary to initial USCG report, it was a sports dive, hospital "lost the medical records", reports contradictory -
2005 8 24 Stehbens Jarrod Australia University of Adelaide SCUBA Australian, Aged 23, gathering cuttlefish eggs for the university of Adelaide was killed by a Great White. Body never recovered, gear found intact Not wearing a shark repellor. Coroner was Anthony Schapel who recommended divers wear electric shark repellors as recommended by coroner Wayne Chivall after the death of Paul Buckland in April 2002 (Not mandatory, "but should not be discouraged when they are available") AAP General News, Australia -
2005 4 24 Baker Patrick Allan Canada SCUBA Aged 33, drowned whilst retrieving golf balls at the Saint Andrew by the Lake golf course, Penticton, British Columbia. No other details. Reported by Outdoor News Wire -
2003 10 24 Harrison USA 70 miles south of New Orleans, three men, the diver, his son (tender) and boatman, in a boat working on a pipeline attaching a clamp when there was an explosion. The two men in the boat suffered serious burn injuries, the diver's body was recovered two days later. Probably live leak repair. No real details. Kansas City star. -
2003 3 24 Riani Avishai Israel Ardag Fish Farm SCUBA Aged 42, dive team leader at the Ardag Fish Farm in Eilat where had worked for the previous 10 years. Around 9 o'clock in the evening in a storm, 20 -25 knot winds, 3 metre seas, went with one other diver went out to repair a seawater inlet pie (supplying fresh seawater to land based fish breeding tanks). Onshore team noticed his body floating on the surface and pulled him ashore but were unable to revive him. No obvious injuries, no details. -
2001 7 24 Murray David UK RN 81 Rebreather Diving from the British Underwater Test and Evaluation Centre at Kyle of Lochalsh, RN "Could not reveal the nature of the men's dive" Aged 28, a member of Fleet Diving Unit 3, based at Horsea Island in Portsmouth for just 6 weeks, failed to surface and was reported missing on the morning of July 24. His body was recovered that afternoon. The cause of the incident was not reported pending a Board of Inquiry. -
2000 6 24 Climer Michael USA Caldive Topsides American, diver/tender, topsides work removing a helideck, killed in a fall of 30', no details. cDiver -
1999 8 24 Swint, Jr Elwin USA S/S Air Initially reported as ‘diver lost at sea while harvesting sea urchins off Santa Rosa island'. Body was recovered. Cause of death recorded as drowning for unknown reasons, but no details NAOCD/cDiver. However a later report gives more details:- (Paraphrased) “The son of a sea urchin diver killed when a yacht ran over his air hose is suing the boat owner. The diver, aged 53, of Santa Barbara drowned last year off Santa Rosa Island. Attorneys for his son argue that the yacht was being operated in an "unsafe manner" before the accident. The U.S. Coast Guard found that the yacht had run over the diver's air hose but the owner was not negligent and that the boat contacted authorities shortly after spotting the diver in the water. The 49-foot yacht was battered by rough seas before the accident and sought shelter next to Swint's boat while the diver was underwater, the Coast Guard report said. The diver, who was not using a diver-warning flag, surfaced and yelled as the boat approached, and the boat owner turned turned his vessel around, the report said. The boat owner has said the diver's air hose became entangled in the boat's propeller as the vessel searched for him�. Associated Press article dated July 2000. -
1991 3 24 Sugrue Jim USA AOD 76 DSV 'American Eagle' U/W explosion, face plate blown in, drowned. “Chasing Hangers after doing an inside burn-off. Paraphrased from reports:- “Chasing hangers after doing an inside burn off below the mud line, almost at the end of his bottom time (gas dive), Said 'One more burn and then I'm getting off bottom'. Topside heard a loud bang, then incoherent speech. His standby diver reached him very quickly (overshot his gas because he wouldn't stop for the switch in order to get to the diver faster) but when he reached him, the faceplate was gone and the diver was unresponsive. He was recovered to the chamber and treated but never regained consciousness. The incident led to a brief and informal moratorium on inside burn offs at AOD but they quickly resumed them when they started to lose work to other companies who did not follow suit. The final verdict the divers all heard was 'improper equipment usage' (as opposed to equipment failure) since Jim's hat (SL 17B) was old and beat up. This incident was a major factor in the introduction of the 'T' type faceplate screw anchors�. -
1988 5 24 Olsen Alan Nigeria Comex SCUBA First dive on an SBM. Competition between the divers ("The best diver is the first in the water"), pillar valve not fully opened and flow restricted, became short of air, made a rapid ascent in the well of a crude oil filled buoy but swam into a cross beam and lost his mouthpiece. Drowned. PC -
1984 11 24 Edie Winfield S USA Police 4 SCUBA American police diver aged 29, Wenatchee, Washington State. First open water training dive, surfaced, yelled for help, sank, resurfaced, yelled again and sank, found on the bottom in 12' of water, could not be resuscitated -
1981 7 24 Tay Ah Sai Singapore Aged 41, Fisherman. Vessel owner testified at the inquest that the diver surfaced after half an hour underwater complaining that he felt like he was 'dying'. Two crew members went back into the sea with him to get rid of his bends but he died later of acute decompression sickness. Verdict:- Death by misadventure. Straits Times -
1976 12 24 Moore M R or H R UK Comex 0 SCUBA British, aged 29. Drill rig "Sedneth 701". Heavy swell, difficulty getting into basket, tried to swim to stand-by boat, presumed drowned, possibly run over by stand-by vessel, body never recovered. -
1976 11 24 Liang Tan Boon Singapore Underwater Mairenance Company Aged 23, hull cleaning with 5 other divers on the Barber lines vessel 'Trinidad' at the Western Anchorage, propeller started injuring him. A search was launched and he was recovered from the water, taken to hospital and declared dead 2 hours later. Straits Times -
1975 5 24 Babin Jean Claude Dubai Comex SCUBA Oilfield Dive, extended bottom time but no provision for in-water decompression stops, zodiac outboard engine failed leading to delayed recompression/surface decompression. Doctor refused to enter DDC. PC -
1958 6 24 Mott Leonard K Canada Seaboard Marine Divers SCUBA Aged 26. Following the collapse of the new Second Narrows bridge being constructed over Burrard inlet with a loss of 18 lives on the 17th, a commercial diver died two days later during body recovery operations. He had come to the surface to change cylinders, wearing a heavy weight belt, slipped and went down, drowned. Reported in the press on the occasion of the 50 anniversary ceremony in 2008 (CTV.ca). "Mott, formerly of Nelson, BC., worked as a stand-in for actor Peter Lorre in the movie 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. Wife and two children. Calgary Herald -
1954 9 24 Motlop Fred Australia Haritos Brothers 34 S/S Air Aged 32, diving off the pearl lugger “Fram� off the Arhem coast (Off Maroonga Island between Millingimbi and Elcho Island missions). Some reports are more complete than others. One just says :- “A deck-hand lost his balance in heavy seas and in an attempt to save himself dragged the tender operator overboard with him. The tender lost Motlop's air and life lines and the diver sank to the 'bottom. Before he could be raised again he tore off his helmet and rocketed to the surface. The crew did not realise his lungs had burst. They fitted another helmet on him and lowered him to the bottom to "stage' him. (Staging is a treatment to prevent "bends," a form of paralysis, caused by bringing a diver to the surface too quickly.) The crew 'staged" Motlop for about an hour, (but they found he was dead when they raised him to the deck)�. As reported in the Canberra Times. A second report says:- "His air line became entangled in the propeller and Motlop was dragged towards the surface (from 17 fathoms). He was pulled up to 6 fathoms before the crew could stop the lugger and free his line. The diver's tender was holding Motlop's line keeping him steady at 6 fathoms when the lugger pitched badly in a heavy sea. A native crewman slipped and grabbed the tender and both fell overborad. Motlop plummeted to 17 fathoms before the crew could gab the lines. Before they could bring the diver up slowly he hsad thrown off his helmet, apparently in panic, and shot to the surface. The crew fiitted him with another helmet and sent him down for an hour or so in an effort top avoid bends." He was dead when brought up, a post mortem completed by a visiting Docor Langsford from Darwin concluded the divers lungs were ruptured. Sydney Morning Herald -
1951 8 24 Saunders John Alfred India Aged 25, Described as "Born in Bombay, a deep sea diver who died in an accident whilst working for the Bombay Port Trust. No details. -
1949 9 24 Fois Lani Australia Topsides The pearling lugger 'New Moon', valued at £3,000, was lost in rough seas off Mangrove point, 130 miles South West of Broome. Lanis Fois, a 33 year old Koepanger river diver, is missing, believed drowned. The other members of the crew have been rescued. Reported in the Canberra Times. -
1943 6 24 Moore Louise USA WOMAN DIVER. Louise Moore, 21-year-old Jacksonville (USA) girl, has a war job that is probably unique for a woman-that of a diver engaged in the work of salvaging sunken ships. "There is nothing to worry about in deep-sea diving if the diver is careful," she explained. "And it certainly is a thrilling occupation!� Her first salvage dive, at Cocoa, Fla., was a two-hour Inspection of a sunken freighter. "That would have been just routine work," she said, 'except that four huge tiger sharks insisted on sticking around and watching me. They kept circling around me the entire time until I neared the surface. At times they were so close I could have put out my hand and touched them-but I didn't." The feminine diver said they made no move to attack her and she was confident they wouldn't. Other sharks and other fish, big and little, watch her as she goes about her job of salvaging. She began professional diving at the age of 15. Prior to the war, however, her experience was limited to inspection work and the recovering of lost articles. She prefers salvaging to all types of diving. Miss Moore believes that she and her sister, Mrs. Fannie Peterson, 23, also of Jacksonville, are the only working professional divers in the United States. Their father worked at that profession for for many years, and two older brothers, Warren and William, have many diving years to their credit. A younger brother, Stanley, worked with Louise in Cocoa, Fla., in the recent salvage of a large British freighter that was sank off the coast after being torpedoed by a Nazi submarine. Reported in The Northern Miner, Charters Towers, Qld. -
1941 11 24 Shimizu Ischma Australia 57 S/S Air "Japanese Diver Dies". Brisbane, Tuesday. "Although his mates lowered him into the sea three times in an effort to ward off diver's paralysis, Isthma Shimizu (32), a Japanese diver, died while suspended 120 feet below the surface 30 miles from Darnley Island, Torres Straits. The Hobart Mercury, Tas. Another reports says: "Shimizu had been working at a depth of 31 fathoms for an hour and a half, and had sent up 3 baskets of pearl shell before being hauled to the surface. He was held for 40 minutes at 24 fathoms to avoid the effects of a sudden change in the pressure, but when he reached the deck of the boat he complained of pains in the hips, and later, at his own request, he was lowered to 25 fathoms for 6 hours. When he was brought to the surface again it was seen that he was losing the use of his legs, so he was lowered to 20 fathoms. He did not respond to a signal from the tender, and another diver descended and found him dead". The Argus, Melbourne, Vic -
1940 9 24 Passaris Emanuel USA S/S Air Greek, aged 60, sponge fishing out of Tampa in the Gulf of Perry, no details -
1940 1 24 Jackson Roy Australia 21 S/S Air “Diver's Condition Still Serious - Although still recorded as serious, the condition of Roy Jackson (31), diver, 33 Cross St, New Town, who is in the Royal Hobart Hospital, had much improved last night. Jackson, with another diver A. H. Trotter, was working 70 feet under the water on the construction work of the Derwent Bridge on the western shore on Wednesday when his air line became tangled and his air supply was cut off�. Reported in the Mercury Hobart -
1938 8 24 Jotana Koheharu Australia Bowden Pearling Company 73 S/S Air 30 year old Japanese diver diving from the lugger Zamia for shell off Darnley Island in the Torres straits wearing only a helmet and corselet in 40 fathoms. His lifeline went limp and then he floated to the surface without helmet or corselet, recovered by dinghy, put back in his helmet and taken to 15 fathoms before being staged to the surface but failed to revive. "The opinion is expressed that Jotana may have been overcome by sickness during staging and was unable to keep a firm grasp of the lifeline which was the only secure means of remaining in the helmet and corselet. The cause of death was certified by the Government Medical Officer at Thursday Island to be diver's paralysis and asphyxia by drowning". Reported in The Western Australian, Perth. -
1934 5 24 Christofis Fotis USA, Florida 27 S/S Air Aged about 52, Sponge diver onboard the 'George Washington', he had been at 15 fathoms for 43 minutes when he was taken ill, brought to the surface, but 'On removing his helmet he was found to be dead'. Vessel spent 24 hours in transit to port (Tarpon Springs) and the body was transferred to the Vinson Funeral home. Cause of death was recorded as 'suffered a stroke'. Funeral service held at the St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, buried at the Cycadia cemetery. St Petersberg Times. -
1933 7 24 Not Recorded Australia 31 S/S Air “DIVER'S HELMET PULLED OFF�. DARWIN, Monday. – “A diver's remarkable escape from death, while working in 17 fathoms of water is reported by several pearlers from the Aru Islands. The diver signalled to the tender to take up the loaded basket and send down an empty one. As the tender was hauling up, the rope of the laden basket fouled the helmet of the diver, but the tender, considering the extra weight due only to the heavily-laden basket, continued hauling up, and pulled off the diver's helmet. The diver was soon hauled to the surface, apparently drowned, but without signs of the usual paralysis. Other boats, summoned by a distress signal, rushed to his help, and one man used resuscitation methods. After almost an hour's work the diver was revived. Next day he resumed diving as usual�. Reported in the Barrier Miner, Broken Hill, NSW -
1928 7 24 Kakutchi K Australia S/S Air Japanese pearl diver diving off Poit Vicente from a launch with a two man surface crew. Apparently flooded suit but no details. Reported in the Los Angeles Times -
1927 12 24 Caisson incident USA Caisson Caisson work during construction of Hudson river bridge, 3 drowned -
1926 5 24 Devine John USA 12 S/S Air American, aged 40, New York East River, "Friend by mistake cut off his air hose" New York Times. Another report indicates "His lead soled boot was trapped in a cofferdam frame, his airline twisted and tangled, he died a divers death 30 feet under the East River this afternoon". He was recovered to the surface by fellow diver Alexander Hansen but was dead. Survived by 5 children. They were working on the installation of filter screens on the two water inlet tunnels supplying water to the new Edison Company plant being built at the end of fourteenth Street. Montreal Gazette -
1925 9 24 Okuna Nizo Australia S/S Air Japanese pearl diver aged 33 or 35. “Drowned on the sea bottom�. "Was drowned while pearling near Broome owing to his air pipe snapping on a reef" The Wyalong Advocate and Mining, Agricultural and Pastoral Gazette, NSW, Australia. “JAPANESE DIVER DROWNED� PERTH, Wednesday.— “A Japanese diver named Nizo Okuna, about 35 years, was drowned on the bottom while engaged in pearling 80 miles from Broome in consequence of the snapping of the air pipe attached to his diving suit. Okuna’s line fouled a reef in a heavy sea and broke and then his air pipe went. The diver, later, floated to the surface dead. Another diver saved his life by rising before the reef was encountered�. Reported in The Register, Adelaide -
1914 5 24 Not Recorded Australia Topsides "Lugger goes to bottom. Loss of Two Lives. The chief harbourmaster at Freemantle has been advised by the wharfinger at Broome that the lugger 'Eleanor' sank off Wallal after parting her moorings in a south-east gale. Two members of the crew, a Japanese diver and a Malay, were drowned. The balance of the crew, including a white man named Chapman who was in charge of the lugger, were picked up after being in the water 6 hours. Reported in the Kalgoolie Western Argus. -
1901 9 24 Chomatza Australia A. E, Jolly and Co 24 S/S Air Paraphrased from newspaper report at the time in the Northern Territory Times and Gazette “Early this week the pearling lugger "Beryl" returned to port with a sick diver and was dispatched out to the grounds again with a try diver named Chomatza in charge. Strangely enough the same boat again made her appearance in the harbour on Wednesday morning, and the dead body of the try diver, was brought ashore by the crew, and carried to the Japanese lodging house. ~ The 'matter was reported to the police, but it was not considered necessary to hold any inquest. The diving gear was found to be sound and apparently in good working order. According to the crew, the boat was at work off Shoal Bay and the diver, had been down several times in 11 to 14' fathoms of water. He usually stayed down about 15 minutes, but about 2 pm, he gave the signal to be hauled up after being down only about five minutes. He was hauled up very quickly and instructed the tender to take off his dress and after to heave up anchor and go into Shoal Bay. A few minutes later the tender discovered him sitting in his bunk in the cabin, with teeth tightly, clenched, unable M speak. He had not complained of feeling ill and uttered no cry. The tender administered some medicine taken by divers in such cases, but after a comparatively brief interval the unfortunate fellow was found to be dead. There is not the slightest doubt that, many of these diving fatalities are the outcome, of carelessness or ignorance on the part of the men engaged, the implicit instructions given by the best authorities being notoriously neglected in one important particular, i.e., regarding the time to be taken in ascending and descending. As a rule, when divers give the signal to be drawn up, they are rushed to the surface as quickly as two men hauling upon the life line can bring them, and it is this practice, resulting in a rapid change from heavy water to atmospheric pressure, which has caused more attacks of divers paralysis on the local grounds than the depth, which, as a rule, is shallow compared with other places. -
1891 10 24 Leest or Lust Frank Australia S/S Air Aged 40, diving operation to raise the launch 'Bluebell" (Sank after a collision with the gunboat HMS Boomerang (British Sharpshooter class torpedo gunboat launched 1889 as HMS Whiting, renamed 'Boomerang' in 1890 arriving Sydney in September 1891 as part of the auxilary squadron of the Australia station). Ropes fouled and it took them 20 minutes to bring him to the surface but "when he was taken on deck he was dead". Reported in the Sydney Morning Herald -
1879 3 24 Manchester Horace USA S/S Air Drowned, after the event, it was claimed that �the diver who was drowned on Monday deliberately committed suicide on account of financial and domestic troubles which had been preying on his mind for a long time" -
2018 4 24 Castagnet Bastien France 5 Aged 28, working at the Mercues power station, run by EDF subsidiary 'Shema', trapped on inlet grill around 11:50 on 24th April 2018, pulled off by rescuers about 13:30, in cardio respiratory arrest, revived by paramedics and taken unconscious to Cahors hospital. No other details. Reported by Medialot. After being in a coma for two and a half years passed away on Saturday 3rd October 2020. -
2021 12 24 Williams Rodney Dale USA Canon's Service SCUBA Aged 57, died in a retention pond. OSHA report stated "Investigation Nr: 142251.015, Event: 12/24/2021, Employee Is Killed, Drowned When Diving With Defective Equipment. At 10:20 a.m. on December 24, 2021, an employee who worked as an independent con tract diver was entering a retention pond for a second dive to place a buoy on pipe that was broken. A coworker (the employer) who was observing from the shore noticed about 15 minutes into the second dive that employee's bubble trail had made a circle and then stopped. Coworker #1 called 911 immediately as Coworker #2 entered the water and tried to rescue the employee. Local police and Fire/EMS a rrived on scene, but were unable to rescue the employee. EMS called for the Coun ty Dive Team to assist but by the time the team arrived the rescue operation had turned into a recovery. The employee was retrieved from the pond approximately two (2) hours after he was last seen. The employee was pronounced dead at the sc ene due to drowning. The employee's personal dive equipment was not functioning properly which potentially lead to hypoxia and then death. -
2013 1 23 HSE Safety Alert UK HSE Saturation Paraphrased and adapted from HSE safety alert: “A serious incident occurred where a diving support vessel's dynamic positioning (DP) system, designated as IMO class 2, failed resulting in the vessel drifting off position while divers were deployed subsea (Refers to Bibby Topaz incident on 18th September 2012 which left saturation diver Chris Lemons isolated on the seabed for 40+ minutes). Investigations have shown that a probable cause of the DP failure was a single fault which caused blocking of the DP system's internal data communications. Many DP systems rely on bus-oriented communications networks. Investigation of the incident referenced above found that communications dependent on a dual bus network can be totally lost because of a single fault. IMO MSC Circular 645 includes the requirement:- "For equipment class 2, the DP-control system should consist of at least two independent computer systems. Common facilities such as self-checking routines, data transfer arrangements, and plant interfaces should not be capable of causing the failure of both / all systems". If the dynamic positioning functions are dependent on a shared communication medium such as a dual data bus network, then the duty holder should ensure that appropriate measures are in place to prevent a single fault causing failure of the DP system. Manufacturers and suppliers of dynamic positioning systems who claim their products satisfy IMO Class 2 or better should investigate the communications architecture for the relevant dynamic positioning systems. If the dynamic positioning functions are dependent on a shared communication medium such as a dual data bus network, then the manufacturer / supplier should check that appropriate measures are in place to prevent a single fault causing failure of the DP system. If such measures are not in place, then the relevant manufacturer or supplier should ensure that the users of the dynamic positioning system are provided with adequate information regarding the vulnerability of the dynamic positioning system to single faults.� Essentially the HSE, regardless of the published data, are warning the industry that there is the potential for a single point failure in any dual bus system utilising any unit connected to both buses (In the case of the Bibby Topaz that referred to each of the three DP consoles on the bridge). In other words, unless addressed, the DP system is actually not DP II but DP I because it has apotential single point failure. -
2012 10 23 HSE Alert UK Divers and supervisors are being warned that they could be putting lives at risk if they forge documents, and could also face criminal charges. It comes after a diving supervisor received a Police Caution under the Fraud Act 2006 for signing blank pages of a diver's log book. The diver had subsequently falsified details of dives to make it look like he had the necessary experience needed for a Closed Bell course in Scotland. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) alerted the police when initial checks by course leaders indicated that some of the dives were not possible without a very high risk of decompression illness. Chris Sherman, HSE's chief inspector of diving said: "Divers and supervisors need to be reminded that log books are legal documents which must be completed accurately. Had the man succeeded in completing the course, which is for experienced divers only, he could have led dives which he was not properly qualified for, putting others at risk. HSE diving teams will investigate all cases where divers are found to hold forged documents or qualifications and will work with police where necessary." -
2012 9 23 Al-Qethami Naif Saudi Arabia Civil Defence Corporal with 9 years diving experience in the civil defence, had been called to recover a cild who had fallen down a well in Rehat, 115 km from Al-Jamoom in the Makkah region. He climbed out of the well carrying the body of the 3 year old and was knocked backwards by a surge of some 400 onlookers, hit his head as he fell into the 25' deep well. Colleagues dived in to pull him out but he failed to respond to treatment. Saudi Gazette -
2012 8 23 Echevarria Pardo Columbia Aged 48, married with three chidren, ex-navy diver, working with 7 other divers on the Luxembourg flagged Jan de Nul dredger "Charles Darwin" (Launched 2010, 180 metres long, 40 metre beam, twin trailer suction dredges each with 3,400 KW of power) off the Port of Santa Marta. Described as 'human error' - they started the turbines with divers in the water. Two divers caught, Echavarria recovered to the surface 20 minutes later, apparently still alive but died, his dive partner Duva Hernandez suffered broken legs, taken to hospital. No other details. Reported by El Informador -
2012 8 23 Hernandez Duva Columbia Working with 7 other divers on the Luxembourg flagged Jan de Nul dredger "Charles Darwin" (Launched 2010, 180 metres long, 40 metre beam, twin trailer suction dredges each with 3,400 KW of power) off the Port of Santa Marta. Described as 'human error' - they started the turbines with divers in the water. Two divers caught, his partner, Pardo Echavarria recovered to the surface 20 minutes later, apparently still alive but died, Duva Hernandez suffered broken legs, taken to hospital. No other details. Reported by El Informador -
2012 2 23 Cappanera Daniele Italy 41 South Energy SCUBA Aged 41, doing maintenance work on an experimental tidal measurement buoy a mile offshore from Punta Righini (Castiglioncello, Livorno). Saw his colleague (Francis Vezzani) motionless on the seabed (at 'several 10s of metres deep') and went down to recover him, brought to the surface but colleague was pronounced dead when they reached port. Daniele Cappanera was taken to Pisa hyperbaric centre for treatment (suspected DCI). La Republica -
2012 2 23 Vezzani Francis Italy 40 South Energy SCUBA Aged 38, doing maintenance work on an experimental wave measurement buoy a mile offshore from Punta Righini (Castiglioncello, Livorno). Seen motionless on the seabed (at 'several 10s of metres deep') by his colleague (Daniele Cappanera) and brought to the surface but was pronounced dead when they reached port. Daniele Cappanera was taken to Pisa hyperbaric centre for treatment (suspected DCI). La Republica -
2011 5 23 Strakele Sean USA 11 SCUBA Aged 37, Diving for lobsters out of Provincetown off the commercial fishing vessel "Chase" in the vicinity of Race Point Lighthouse. Entered the water at 06:30, failed to surface an hour later. Diving solo on single SCUBA cylinder. Coastguard searches called off after two days. Body located the day after in 56' of water by another lobster diver from the fishing vessel 'Mad Dog' in the same area he had dived in, half a mile south of the lighthouse. Reported as 'drowned'. Cape Cod Times -
2011 3 23 Macias Javier Diaz Spain Macpherson Servicios Subaquacuaticos Aged 26, from El Puerta de Santa Maria (Cadiz), carrying out repair works on the (upstream) Analucian water board (Agencia Andaluza del Agua) Los Melonares dam gates near Castilblanco de Los Arroyos (North of Seville). One of a four man team. Emergency services called a 17:00 hours, body recovered downstream of the dam. No other details. Reported in Europa press/www.internetnews.tk. -
2011 2 23 Garvizo Roberto Rojas Chile Acuinova A shellfish diver, net/cage inspection dive, failed to suface, body recovered by dive team. The incident occurred on the Wednesday evening at Quitralco 7, reported as 'dying after swallowing water underwater' and listed as 'drowning'. No other details. Reported by Radio Santa Maria -
2010 10 23 Copeland Mark Eugene USA Greg's Marine 12 S/S Air American, aged 45. Paraphrased from reports "On Oct. 23 at approximately 11:34 a.m., units from the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office and Maryland State Police responded to the Dominion LNG Plant Gas Dock to investigate a reported industrial accident. The victim was later pronounced deceased at Calvert Memorial Hospital. The preliminary investigation revealed he was working for Greg’s Marine as a labourer. His duties this day were to chip away old cement jackets placed over pilings at the gas dock, preparing these pilings for new jackets, approximately 1 mile off the coast of Calvert County. While conducting this task, he was equipped with a neoprene wet suit, fins, a harness, and a diver’s helmet. He slipped underwater and continued to the bottom of the Chesapeake Bay, approximately 40 feet. After several attempts, the supervisor finally rescued his unconscious body from the Bay’s floor. CPR was conducted by his co-workers as well as medical staff and members of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office. Forensic investigation revealed there were no signs of trauma to the body. This is an on-going investigation handled by the Calvert Investigative Team (CIT) and the United States Coast Guard" -
2010 5 23 Eves Stephen James UK Topsides Aged 26, car crash on his way to work at Connah's Quay at 07:35 on a Sunday Morning. Reported in the Liverpool News -
2010 4 23 Salas Jonathon Michael Botello Panama Braswell Shipyard Int SA Aged 21, had been diving at the Braswell shipyard in Balboa (South East entrance to the Panama Canal) for just three months. Apparently ate a meal at noon and after a brief rest, entered the water, 'had a seizure' (Vomited) and drowned. Reported by critica.com.pa -
2008 5 23 Garcia Pol Carlos Spain Tinsa SA 30 S/S Air Aged 33, from Madrid, one of two diving supervisors in a 6 man team working on the dam on the river Agueda 5 km South of Cuidad Rodrigo (Salamanca, Western Spain) since February (4 months) on contract to OSEPSA - Obras y Servicios Publicos Sociedad Anonima - for CHD - Hydrographic Confederation of the river Duero . Ten minutes into a dive dredging with an airlift at 09:30, reported as stopped talking to topsides, stand-by diver located the diver at depth, unconcious, recovered to surface but failed to respond to CPR treatment. Band mask pulled off, drowned. Reported in Terra Noticias, plus PC -
2008 5 23 Not Recorded Yemen Muhibbah Baltic Taucher Topsides German, aged 42, deck Supervisor – (Was he the diving supervisor? TC) was fatally injured on the Muhibbah B9 Barge. Demobilising an air spread, attempting to remove an air receiver tank from the deck of the barge with a 150T crane. The signalman signalled the crane operator to lift the vessel. As he was lifting the vessel it did not move or rise. The signalman instructed the crane operator to stop lifting (but not slack tension) and the Deck Supervisor started checking on what was the problem. As he was checking around the air receiverl it suddenly popped loose and struck the Deck Supervisor in the head causing major injuries to the back of his head. -
2007 10 23 Rig 'Usumacinta' Mexico PEMEX Jack Up, drilling well KAB-103 in the Bay of Campeche, caught in a storm, rig moved hitting a producing christmas ttree, blow out, major hydrocarbon release. 22 fatalities. Investigation has not been made public, speculation that the rig suffereda structural or jacking mechanism failure. -
2006 11 23 Johnson Chris USA Veolia 9 S/S Air MMS report dated 31 Jan 2006 (typo?) published 4/4/2007 (See 2006 GOM MMS.doc) Block ST 300 (South Timbalier platform), at 19:50 hours, Underwater Oxy Arc explosion, knocked unconscious, facial lacerations, chipped tooth, sore ribs. Evacuated to Terrebone General Medical Centre, stabilised, kept in overnight, released 10:50 hours 26/11/2006. "Will be out of work for three weeks" 'No violation" (MMS report) but diving medical revoked, may not ever dive commercially again (OD). -
2006 4 23 Rig 'Maersk Giant' Norway Maersk Jack Up, blow out (Hit shallow gas) -
2005 11 23 Cherapanoy Dmitry USSR Navy 35 Navy diver undergoing compulsory military service, reported as having died in the Northern Fleet because of serious decompression sickness during a training dive to the depth of 35 m. bur report sates “This was an ordinary dive to a standard depth. Unexpectedly, 20 seconds after the dive, the sailor suddenly came to the surface� so was unlikely to be DCI. No details -
2004 4 23 Buttrey Curtis USA 18 SCUBA American, aged 41, Contract diver working for the St Paul Regional Water Services, in Vadnais lake, cleaning water plant intake filter, at end of dive he and his partner left the job site but he failed to surface, apparently got caught in some weeds and cables. His body was recovered about three hours later. Drowned. No explanation. Reported in Star Tribune (MN) -
2003 12 23 Wiggins Neil UK Neil 'Wiggy' Wiggins died on 23 Dec at the age of 47. Paraphrased from MCDOA article:- "Neil joined the Royal Navy in 1972 at the age of 15 as a trainee electrical engineer. He qualified as an engineer but decided on a change of direction in 1977 to pursue a career as a Navy Clearance Diver. One of his first postings was to the Naval base at Rosyth where he was a member of the bomb disposal team. He returned to Portsmouth to complete the Leading Diver’s course at HMS Vernon, subsequently joining the saturation diving team (1981) which involved experimental deep diving and various diving trials. He joined Naval Party 1007 on board MV Seaforth Clansman where he was a member of the diving team that was responsible for the recovery of the navy’s first submarine, Holland One. A personal letter from the then Flag Officer Submarines, Admiral Herbert, read as follows: “His skill and leadership as the main dive team leader clearly provided inspiration to the other divers and he made a marked contribution.� Neil’s time served in the navy gave him a thorough grounding and the necessary discipline to pursue a successful career as a commercial saturation diver, working mainly in the North Sea with many of his old Navy team mates. Neil’s first contract was with the Aberdeen based diving company, Comex. It was in the summer of 1984 whilst working for Comex that he was called upon to carry out the heroic rescue of his colleague George Lawson who was rendered unconscious by an explosion during an underwater cutting operation (4th May 1984, Kingsnorth Explorer). Without a shadow of a doubt, Neil’s clear thinking, professionalism and determination saved George’s life. Neil was awarded the Frank Dearman award for bravery and a Queen’s Commendation. Neil’s calm and selfless bravery was again called upon in 1987 when he saved two hypothermic divers, Fred McNally and Kanute Monstra, from a stranded welding habitat. Again, Neil was recognised for his valour by being presented with the Silk Cut award for Nautical achievements -
2003 5 23 Bradley Michael South Africa Police 30 SCUBA Aged 35, Police diver searching Lesotho Katse Dam for victims of a helicopter crash. Reported as stopping breathing, probable natural causes, but no details. South African Press Association -
2002 5 23 Macko Steven C USA SCUBA Aged 42, off duty firefighter/diver, working for a contractor installing a fountain in Petersen Lake, a 15 acre lake in the centre of O'Hare Office Plaza, with 4 other divers, died, no details but reported that he and his colleagues planned to swim across the lake to the fountain but that when he was pulled from water his air valve was turned off -
2000 11 23 Moscow USSR Military An elite, specially-trained team of combat divers guards the Kremlin against potential attackers trying to gain access to the Kremlin through the sewers underwater from the River Moskva and the underground network of sewers. But any would-be transgressors would be met by sinister-looking combat divers - known as strategic-purpose divers. The first units of combat divers were set up in the 1960s to combat underwater saboteurs. They now form part of the Presidential Bodyguard Service. The divers all have officer's rank and get free flats in Moscow. As well as patrolling the sewers, they also inspect the River Moskva around the Kremlin, protect all the presidential residences from offshore and accompany the president when he goes to the Black Sea resort of Sochi. A special underwater pistol was designed as a non-automatic four-barrel gun loaded in the same way as a hunter's rifle, by opening the breach. The bullets look strange too. A bullet is actually a long needle or a "nail" as the divers call it. The nails can kill at a distance of six to 17 metres, depending on the depth. The divers say that underwater fighting with knives only exists in films. A basic principle of underwater combat is that whoever attacks first, wins. Even the slightest wound could be lethal underwater because water pressure leads to massive loss of blood which renders the diver useless in seconds. If their oxygen supply is cut, the special purpose divers have a small reserve balloon attached to their chest with enough oxygen to get to the surface, Reported in the Russian weekly newspaper Versiya and BBC -
1997 7 23 Not Recorded Singapore A shark attacked a diver doing underwater work at a Tuas Wharf "almost bit his arm off". No other details. Straits Times -
1994 3 23 Sirry Tarek USA Bay Diving Company SCUBA Aged 35, owner/operator of his own diving company, salvage dive off Poole Island in the mouth of the Sassafras River, Chesapeake bay. 20-25 minute dive, reported as drowned 'when he accidentally let his SCUBA tank run low on air and passed out' according to the USCG investigation. Reported by HometownAnnapolis.com -
1993 1 23 Vognetz David A. USA SCUBA (Surname was Vognetz, not Bognetz, incorrectly reported in early articles). Aged 39, described as an experienced diver, Unami Creek at the Delmont Boy Scout Camp in Marlborough township. "Attempt to rescue diver fails Phoenixville man". The victim and two other men were at the dam attempting to drain water through the pipe to lower the overall water level of the dam and may also have intended to clear the pipe of debris. With a rope tied to him, he descended into the pipe. His co-workers soon realized he was in trouble, Buza said, and called in rescue personnel. Throughout the afternoon and into the evening, rescue workers tried to stop the tremendous flow of water through the pipe, without much success. The danger of the strong current prevented any rescue divers from venturing into the pipe. When a plug could not be found to fit over the mouth of the pipe, rescue personnel tried a different idea. His body was finally retrieved from the pipe at 7:20 p.m. after rescue workers built a temporary dam to divert water around the pipe. After diverting the dam water, rescue personnel were able to retrieve the body with the tripod winch. The Morning Call -
1988 9 23 Bates Brian UK Saturation Post Alpha disaster salvage ops, blow back during cutting ops, cracked helmet, faceplate loosened, both eardrums perforated, sinus damage, concussion, pulled in by bellman, reported as third incident in under 36 hours. The Glasgow Herald -
1985 1 23 Cavalcanti Ruben Brazil Comex Saturation Incorrect oil (selected only for oxygen compatibility, management of change process not followed) used in regeneration system coupled with a series of circumstances that allowed the oil to come into direct contact with a heater element. The oil broke down producing by-products that included phosgene and fluoridic acid gases that were released into the chamber atmoshere. Cause of death recorded as lung oedema. Double fatality (Luis Washington). PC -
1985 1 23 Washington Luis Brazil Comex Saturation Incorrect oil (selected only for oxygen compatibility, management of change process not followed) used in regeneration system coupled with a series of circumstances that allowed the oil to come into direct contact with a heater element. The oil broke down producing by-products that included phosgene and fluoridic acid gases that were released into the chamber atmoshere. Cause of death recorded as lung oedema. Double fatality (Ruben Cavalcanti). PC -
1974 8 23 Tay Chwee Kiat Singapore Diver on a fishing vessel dived to retrieve the vessel's anchor at about 3 pm. Having freed it and surfaced he complained of stomach pains and at about 8 pm on the same day, died. Straits Times -
1974 5 23 Auestad B UK 61 Norwegian, aged 24. Died of natural causes in the DDC, Delay in getting him into DDC - obese – plus post mortem revealed history of heart problems, not medically fit to dive. -
1967 9 23 Billis George USA S/S Air Newspaper Headline “Air line cut, diver drowns� Tarpon Springs, Florida, “Aged 72, retired Greek (Town of Calymnos) sponge diver drowned during an exhibition dive before a boatload of tourists when the boat 'Plastisras' turned in the wind and the propellers cut his air hos and life line. He was demonstrating sponge diving techniques in the Anclote River. The Spokesman Review -
1966 3 23 Brashear, USN Carl Maxie Spain Military Topsides First coloured US Navy ship's diver, (Oct 1954) lost left leg from knee down in a deck accident off Spain during search for lost Atomic bomb, returned to diving, retired 1979, died 25/07/2006 -
1958 8 23 Sambo Kallu Australia S/S Air Torres Strait Islander, diving off the Native Affairs Department lugger 'Macoy' died on 'death Reef, off Darnley Island. 120 miles north-west of Thursday Island. Described as the fifth diver fatality off Darnley Island that year, all fatalities put down to 'diver's paralysis'. Reported in The Age -
1956 8 23 Yanase Masumi Australia Topsides “Japanese Diver Found Dead� BROOME (WA), Wednesday. — A young Japanese pearl diver, Masumi Yanase. 23, was found dead in the water alongside his boat today. He had noosed a rope around his neck which was made fast to the lugger's diving platform. It is thought Masumi Yanase jumped overboard and accidentally strangled himself. He had been in Broome for the past year and was considered an efficient diver�. Reported in The Canberra Times. -
1956 3 23 Joost Russell USA Military US Navy diver training, taking a test one month into his course, died, no details. Chicago Tribune -
1952 2 23 Foord PO R Australia Military “Diver's escape�. SYDNEY. Sat. — “Petty Officer R. Foord, 24, a Navy diver, was swept from his feet to-day in a Bunnerong water tunnel 72ft. underground while trying to clear an obstruction. After half an hour he was hauled to the surface by a mobile crane�. Reported in The Sunday Mail, Brisbane. -
1948 4 23 Christiansen Edward USA 9 S/S Air American, aged 49, in the Kill Van Kull, a channel in the bay between Staten Island and New Jersey, cutting a telephone cable trench, it collapsed trapping him completely by cave in for three and a half hours, guided rescuers by phone. Rescuers largely a USN diving team. During the rescue had to flag down a passing tug and send it to a nearby dredger to tell not to set of underwater explosives. St Petersburg Times. -
1939 9 23 Salile Ahmat bin Australia 37 S/S Air Malay Diver Killed. PERTH. Saturday. ‘While working In 20 fathoms of water 19 miles off shore from Anna Plains pearling grounds 180 miles south of Broome, a Malay pearl diver, Ahmat Bin Salile, 24, operating from a pearling lugger, was killed when the air pipe fouled on a coral reef. Reported in the Sunday Mail, Brisbane, Qld. -
1939 8 23 Purdue, RN PO Henry Otho UK Military 45 S/S Air Aged 33, Reported as 'dying of the bends' during the salvage of the "Thetis" (Sank during sea trials in Liverpool Bay on the 1st June 1939 with the loss of 99 personnel). Because of the war, at the time, the entire tragedy was largely hidden from the public.Left surface at 06:33, On bottom 06:35 (At the stern to examine the propeller), returned to surface at 07:15, put into chamber for surface decompression. Surfacing had bbeen delayed by around 5 minutes when was fouled on a grapnel on his downline. Reported that he was unconscious when in the decompression chamber. The medics further reported that his lungs wrre congested (Diseased) and this had prevented him decompressing properly, cause of death listed as Asphyxia due to lack of oxygen during decompression owing to the diseased condition of the lungs. Thetis Families Association, navy archives, Glasgow Herald -
1937 3 23 Yamada Kiachichi Australia Gregory 29 S/S Air Aged 52, diving off the lugger D36 'Red Bill' at the Goulburn Island Pearling beds. (Had replaced the former number 2 diver on the vessel who died of fever two weeks earlier). At the Inquest on the Japanese diver, Kiahichi Yamada, a verdict of death from asphyxia, due to drowning was returned by the Coroner, Mr. G. J. Pigott From the evidence given it appeared that Yamada had been down once that morning, and, after a spell of about 20 minutes, went down for a second trip. He mentioned that the water was very dirty, and he had to lie down to gather shell, so he asked for a slack life-line. About half an hour after his second descent, his tender got an urgent signal to 'haul up,' Quickly followed by a second urgent signal, so the tender called for help to haul Yamada up as quickly as possible. He came up, feet first but was quickly righted, and guided to the ladder, where the helmet was removed. He then appeared to be dead, but his suit was cut off him immediately, and artificial respiration tried for about an hour, but without success. As the body was growing cold, It was placed in the cabin and covered with rugs, but when all hope was abandoned, it was sewn up in canvas, and the lugger made all speed to Darwin, which was reached about two days later. The doctor who performed the post mortem said that the body was much decomposed, but it was evident that death was due to asphyxia, probably caused by drowning. The second tender, who was in charge of Yamada said that when the suit was cut off him it was found to be half full of water, and when they tried to revive him, water came from his mouth. The inquest was adjourned for a while to permit of the production of the suit the dead diver had worn and also to obtain the services of Mr. David Carruth, whose long and varied experience of diving made his evidence of the greatest value In this case. A diver showed how the suit was worn, and Mr. Carruth explained the uses of It, and the method of controlling air inlets and outlets On examining the dead diver's suit, it was discovered that the rubber cuff had a long tear In It and It was then evident that the water had entered the suit through this tear, so that when the diver capsized, either through stumbling into a hollow on the ocean bed, or through over-balancing owing to the weight of the pearl shell be had gathered, the air rushed to the bottom part of the suit (that now was upper most) and the water filled the helmet and corselet, thus drowning the diver. What the tender had mistaken for urgent signals, to haul up must have been the last struggles of the diver in his dying agony. Reported in the Townsville Daily Bulletin, Qld. -
1915 2 23 Hanson Harry USA Merrit and Chapman Wrecking Company 20 S/S Air Aged 48, third dive of the day on the salvage of a scow sunk at the foot of 57th Street, Brooklyn. Reported that he descended, signalled to be lifted but was entangled, hoses kinked and he suffocated though at the inquiry his erstwhile employers denied that his air supply was cut off or that there was any delay in pulling him up and stated that the inside of the suit was dry and receiving fresh air when he was pulled to the surface, Reported in the New York Times -
1907 1 23 Harper New Zealand 41 S/S Air Off Aukland, attempting to recover gold from the wreck of the Eligamite. ""After three descents and securing 800 sovereigns, died suddenly", reported in the Camperdown Chronicle, Vic -
1903 6 23 Antisevitch France S/S Air "Death of a diver, Marseilles. While divers were at work on the steamer 'Liban" this morning, one of them, name Antisevitch…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Derby Daily Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive -
1900 11 23 Not Recorded UK Military S/S Air "Naval diver's death. Diving in support of the Battleship Howe (Admiral class battleship launched in 1885), died shortly after recovering a…" Presumed to be a report on the death of Alexander Virco (TC) No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Portsmouth Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive -
1899 10 23 Gorry UK S/S Air "Manx boating disaster, death of a diver, a diver named Gorry made a search off Port Erin for the bodies of Mr Hassall a Liverpool Stockbroker, his son and 2 boatmen whose boat capsised on Saturday off Port Erin..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Shields Daily Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive -
1892 9 23 Jones UK "Extraordinary Accident to a Diver at Cardiff. A diver named Jones, residing in Cardiff, was engaged on Friday in .." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser/The British Newspaper Archive -
1876 4 23 Thomas George UK "Accidental Death of a Diver. In London last Thursday (2nd March 1876), Mr. Payne, the coroner, held an inquiry at the Essex Head, Essex Street, Strand, regarding the death of George Thomas.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Tamworth Herald/The British Newspaper Archive -
1858 7 23 Affer UK S/S Air "Death in a Diving Aparatus. On Friday, a mason, named Affer, employed as a diver in building the new admiralty pier at Dover, lost his life by opening a valve in his diving dress. The unfortunate man had gone down for the ...." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sherbourne Mercury/The British Newspaper Archive -
2013 10 23 Guidry Earl USA J & J Diving 5m S/S Air Aged 40, Port Sulphur, Louisisana, airlifting 10 feet below the mud line, he was found with his helmet off, not wearing a bailout, Facebook/Longstreath. Contractor fined $7,000 by US dept. of Labor "Employer did not ensure that an adequate safety assessment was made of underwater conditions prior to a diving operation". No real details. -
2017 5 23 Lataste PO Bob France Military 28m Aged 24, French Navy clearance diver on the mine hunter 'L'Aigle', Seine Bay, French Atlantic coast, unconscious at depth, brought to surface by second diver, medivac to Le Havre, died during the night. Reported by Sud Ouest -
2017 7 23 Waqa Felix Fiji Triton Marine SCUBA Aged 43, diving 600m from the shore with two other workers 'repairing a submarine pipeline' in Vuda, near Lautoka. 'Discovered lying motionless on the seabed 10 metres from the worksite', did not respond to treatment, conveyed to Lautoka hospital, pronounced dead on arrival. Coroner recorded death due to heart attack, but no real details. Reported by the Fiji Times Online -
2016 12 23 Not Reported Spain SCUBA Aged 40, cable entangled in propeller of fish farm support boat in Puerto Calero (Lanzarotte, Canary Islands), went in to clear it, surfaced, went back down and 'suffered a series of fatal cuts' with the boat's propeller. Reported by La Voz de Lanzarote -
2018 6 23 Firdaus Mohamed Singapore Marine Diving & Engineering Vopak Terminals SCUBA A 27-year-old commercial diver died after he was struck by a concrete pile while working in the waters off Pulau Sebarok on Saturday afternoon (Jun 23). Mohamed Firdaus was working as a commercial diver for Marine Diving & Engineering (MDE), which specialises in underwater services including marine and underwater construction. On the day of the accident, Firdaus was working on a project developed by Vopak Terminals Singapore on Pulau Sebarok’s Jetty 2. The project's occupier is HSL Constructor, which had engaged MDE for the project. "Two divers were in the water, installing brackets onto a concrete pile, when one of the workers was struck by a concrete pile," said the Ministry of Manpower. Firdaus was unconscious when taken to National University Hospital, where he died from his injuries, added the police, who received a call for assistance at 5.13pm. The police are investigating the unnatural death. Advertisement MOM has stopped all works at the worksite and is currently investigating the incident. In an email to Channel NewsAsia, Vopak Terminals confirmed that a fatal accident happened at its terminal in the port. "We are deeply saddened by this accident. We, jointly with our main contractor and his employer, are providing his family with all possible aid and assistance they need during this difficult time," said Vopak Terminals. Vopak Terminals also said it has started "a thorough investigation to find the root cause" of the accident. On Sunday afternoon, representatives from MDE, HSL and Vopak attended Firdaus' funeral, MDE and HSL said in a joint statement. "No words nor gesture can replace the loss of Firdaus, and we will certainly be here for his loved ones. We truly share the grief of his family, friends and colleagues," said Mr Masahiro Aoyagi, managing director of MDE. "This is the first fatal accident ever experienced by MDE since our incorporation 38 years ago and we are doing our utmost to understand what happened," he added. All related parties are currently working closely with the authorities, the companies said in the statement. Pulau Sebarok is an oil storage and refueling port at one of the southern islands of Singapore. Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/mohamed-firdaus-diver-27-dies-waters-pulau-sebarok-concrete-10464340 -
2020 11 23 Hong Kong 23rd November 2020 – (Hong Kong) The Labour Department (LD) is investigating a fatal work accident in Kwai Chung this afternoon in which a man died. At about 4pm today (23rd), a male diver and several colleagues performed underwater welding works off the container terminal No. 5 in Kwai Chung. Colleagues discovered that he did not return ashore on time, they immediately called the police for help. The firefighters sent divers to the scene to search and rescue him. After some searches, they found the victim and immediately rescued him back to shore. However, the victim had fallen into a coma. The fire department immediately provided him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation and he was sent to hospital by ambulance. Unfortunately, the victim died subsequently. The police classified the case as an industrial accident and investigated the cause of the accident. A female relative and a boy related to the victim rushed to the hospital. The Labour Department stated that it had deployed staff to the scene immediately and is now investigating the cause of the accident. Reported by: https://www.dimsumdaily.hk/diver-at-container-terminal-no-5-in-kwai-chung-dies-while-performing-underwater-welding-works/ -
2012 9 22 Collins Danny USA Fireman 18 SCUBA Captain in the Conway Fire depatment, training dive (grid search) in Hot Springs. Apparently got entangled, brought to the surface by his partner but had breathing difficulties. Flown to Shreveport hospital (Louisiana) for treatment for an embolism. Firefighterclosecalls.com -
2012 5 22 Deep Sat Dive USA USN Saturation Naval Experimental Diving Unit (NEDU), Panama city, Florida, training dive during testing of the 26 million dollar US Navy Saturation Fly-away Diving System. 4 day sat, 11 day decompression with a 6 man team to 1000' (Reported as "the first USN dive to 1,000 feet since 1974" though USN divers are reported as having dived to 1,148' using the Mk I Deep Dive System in 1975, NEDU to 1,800' in the Ocean Simulator Facility in 1979 and the Duke Medical centre ran a chamber dive to 2,250 in 1981, TC). wjhg.com -
2012 4 22 Abu Khalil Hussein Ahmad Lebanon 50 SCUBA Aged 42, head of the Environment and Development department and the Marine Exploration Department, diving off the village of Qleileh, Tyre, inspecting a seafloor project designed to increase fish numbers. His body was located by a Navy SAR team the day after. Reported as having died of a heart attack. Dailystar.com.lb -
2012 4 22 Sprout Brad Robert Mexico Global Diving and Salvage American, aged 29, Working a DP DSV ('Captain Tale'?off Cuidad del Carmen, may have been an umbilical in thruste/lost gas incident, no other details -
2012 3 22 Driifingr Ethan Nigeria DSIT SCUBA Israeli, aged 31, initially reported as installing a diver detection sonar system 'Aquashield' (Built in Israel, owned by an American corporaton, aimed at detecting swimmers, divers, diver delivery vehicles etc) in Lagos harbour and that he failed to surface, body recovered the day after, reported as drowned. Later reports say that he was involved in ship's husbandry (hull cleaning) and 'knocked his head under the hull and died' and that the body was found floating nearby. No confirmed details, Nigerian authorities were disuaded from doing an autopsy after intervention from the Israeli consulate and ZAKA (Autopsy is forbidden under Jewish law unless the procedure is deemed by a rabbinical expert to be 'specifically of life saving value'). Nigerian/Israeli News -
2012 2 22 Collins Lawrence Canada SCUBA Aged 49, one of a three man commercial sea urchin harvesting dive team on board the vessel 'Water Queen' working off Digby Neck in the Grand Passage Waterway (Bay of Fundy off St St. John, an area with the highest tides in the world - Mean spring tide 14.5 metres, extreme range 16.3 metres), 30 minutes into the diver, failed to surface with the other team members around 13:00, seen on the surface being swept away by fast currents, vessel crew searched for about 15 minutess then called emergency services about 13:30, RCMP called at 13:45. Ebb tide, Southerly current, air temp 43F, water 42F, 5 foot seas, search hampered by fog. Reported as having just moved to the area from Ottowa and as having held a commercial diving licence since the early 1990s (but had only been in the water about 10 times in the last 10 years) and that it was his first dive harvesting sea urchins. Search called off four days later (RCMP - "There is no reasonable expectation that he was going to be found alive"), body not found. Reported by Postmedia news and others. -
2011 12 22 Diaz Jose Mexico Fisherman Aged 33, from the town of Timucuy, diving off the vessel "Golfo II" (Gulf II), lobster fising operation out of Yucalpeten, 15:00 hours, Captain of the boat radiod ashore to tell the port authorities that the diver had drowned. No details. Progresohoy.com -
2011 8 22 Soto Luis Enriques Cabrales Mexico SCUBA Aged 30 from Guaymas, living in El Desemboque (Caborca), clam diver 'decompression illness'. La Policiaca -
2011 6 22 HSE Safety Alert UK UK HSE Health and Safety Executive (HSE) issued a safety alert to remind the industry of the essential aspects of safe diving operations after two shellfish divers died in separate incidents (at Methil -Graham Mackie, 11th June 2011 - and Largo Bay in the Forth estuary - James Irvine, 24th March 2011, both fatalities still under investigation, facts surrounding the deaths have yet to be established) in inshore waters in Scotland. Its guidance makes clear that:- “The minimum team size normally required when diving for shellfish is three – a supervisor, a working diver, and a standby diver, and that additional people may be required to operate the boat and to assist in an emergency. The standby diver should be in immediate readiness to provide any assistance to the diver in the water. Those not employed by the diving contractor but who are included in the dive team must also be competent for the work they are going to do. They should be familiar with the diving contractor’s procedures, rules and the diving equipment being used� -
2010 12 22 Busso Philippe Vietnam Tourist SCUBA French tourist diving off the island of Cu Lao Cau, double fatality (with Russian Alexander Nikolaev). Another diver reported being knocked unconscious by a powerful explosion, local police blamed poachers 'blast' fishing. Voice of Russia -
2010 12 22 Nikolaev Alexander Vietnam Tourist SCUBA Russian tourist diving off the island of Cu Lao Cau, double fatality (with Frenchman Philippe Busso). Another diver reported being knocked unconscious by a powerful explosion, local police blamed poachers 'blast' fishing. Voice of Russia -
2010 10 22 Demian Jorge Argentina Fireman Aged 24, fireman based at Caleta Olivia on a rescue diver course in Puerto Santa Cruz, appears to have died in an accident at the Juan Carlos Narvaez sports centre swimming pool during training, but no details. Reported by GPS Diving -
2010 7 22 Torres Luis Martin Cohuo Mexico From Celestun but resident in Hunucma, wife and two children aged 14 and 7, shellfish diver, died in a decompression incident. No details. Reported by Yucatanalamano.com -
2010 5 22 Smith Gary USA SCUBA Aged 61, founding member and chief officer of the Lacey Township Dive Team, diving off the 'Dina Dee', a 42' charter vessel out of Barnegat Light, not clear if it was a Search and Rescue dive or training dive (He was an SAR diver Instructor), surfaced unresponsive, did not respond to treatment. Atlantic City Press. -
2010 3 22 Medina Daniel Choquehuanca Renzo Peru Aged 21, from La Bocana, shellfish (Scallops) diving operation off the island 'Lobo de Mar' (Or Isla Lobo de Tierra) 8 hours out of Parachique from the vessel 'Brandon IV', reported as a long dive, surfaced with a pulmonary embolism and died. Body brought ashore and taken to the central morgue in Piura, pronounced cause of death as lung collapse. Reported in La Primera, Peru -
2009 11 22 Allen Steve UK RBG 15 S/S Air Aged 43, Braefoot terminal (Fife, Scotland), last dive of the day, completed his dive without comment, reported having difficulties removing his fins at the bottom of the ladder, assisted by stand-by and hoisted to jetty, unconscious, failed to respond to treatment. Update January 2013:- A Fatal Accident Inquiry has ruled that the death of a commercial diver at a Fife harbour was not the result of an accident or any kind of medical or professional malpractice. The inquiry at Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard evidence from 13 witnesses over five days. The Sheriff concluded that the death was as a result of “some kind of cardiac event or arrhythmia� resulting from existing heart and liver problems, not the result of any diving-related procedures, and that he could have died at any time. The inquiry also dismissed criticisms from a Health and Safety inspector that no rescue practice had been rehearsed on the day of the incident. He held a valid certificate of fitness to dive and was a qualified and competent diver, diving as part of a six-strong dive team, the diving operation had started on November 20 and involved an inspection to ascertain the condition of the piles supporting the jetty and, in addition, the installation of a new current-monitoring buoy on the seabed next to the jetty. During the morning he was inside dive control on board the diving vessel. At 5.02pm he entered the water to carry out the final dive of the day to undertake an “as left� survey of the cable installation for the buoy. At no time did he indicate to any of the team or any other person that he was unfit to dive. At 5.07pm he reached the seabed at a dive depth of 15 metres. He then carried out a video survey by slowly ascending the pile and demonstrated that the current-monitoring buoy cable was securely attached to the jetty pile. At 5.21pm he surfaced and swam to the bow of the diving vessel to access the deck via a vertical ladder. At 5.22pm he reported that he was having difficulty removing one of his fins. Given assistance, as he lifted his left leg for fin removal, he continued to roll backwards and started to invert in the water. He appeared to have lost consciousness and emergency recovery was initiated. He was not breathing and there was no carotid pulse, members of the diving team gave CPR. Paramedics then took over but he was pronounced dead at 6.05pm. The Sheriff noted medicine was an “inexact science� but concluded that he could have died at any time. There was no evidence of anything related to the diving operation which might have caused death. The Sheriff concluded: “There is no evidence that the failure to have a diver rescue practice on the day in question was relevant to his death. There were no other facts relevant to the circumstances of his death. The Courier -
2009 9 22 Chandrashekhar Petty Officer Clearance Diver 1 India Indian Marine Commando Topsides Paraphrased from press reports:- “A clearance diver attached to the Indian Navy marine commando (Marco) in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district to control the infiltration of terrorists from across the border to Jammu and Kashmir through Wullar Lake, a 65 sq km freshwater lake, in Baramulla. Terrorists attacked the marcos camp. In retaliatory fire, one terrorist was killed and one marco died,� a senior Indian Navy official said. “He is survived by his wife and two children�. Sporting long beards and toting AK-47 assault rifles, marcos can be mistaken for militants and they follow in letter and spirit the adage of the counter-terrorism doctrine: ‘Fight a militant like a militant'. Dubbed as the ‘bearded force’ by the militants, Marcos have a knack of executing covert operations. Officially known as the Indian Marine Special Force, the unit was raised in 1987 out of naval divers to lead amphibious operations. Personnel volunteering for the force have a two-year training programme with a pass rate of only 10-25 percent. “They operate sporting beards and wearing ‘pheren’ (Kashmiri suit), thus making them indistinguishable from the locals,� another navy official added. The Marcos have gained a fearsome reputation among terrorists who refer to them as the Dadhiwali Fauj (bearded army) since Marcos are the only non-Sikh personnel allowed to grow beards, or ‘Jal Murgi’ (water hens) for the speed in which they assault from the water and even ‘Magarmachh’ (crocodiles) for their amphibious capability. OK, not a diving accident, but a diver on site, at work, so included, TC. Reported in the Thaindian News -
2008 8 22 Buang Abdul Hamid Singapore Dive tech Marine Services SCUBA a 7m diameter propeller (at Singapore Anchorage) on the tanker “Shetland Spirit�- when the engine/propeller was turned on. Buang suffered a broken left keg, ribs, collapsed lung and bruises, two months in hospital. About noon, the captain ordered the engine generators and fuel pumps be started because a nearby ship was drifting and it appeared that there could be a collision if the Shetland Spirit was not moved. Chief Engineer, who assumed that the diving operation was over, also began 'blowing the engine' - without permission - to ensure that there were no leaks or debris in the engine cylinders. The process also caused the propeller to rotate. (He would normally have been required to make a request to the bridge and receive orders from the captain before 'blowing the engine'). Blowing the engine', or turning the engine's drive shaft which is linked to the propeller, has to be done before the engine is actually started. Pleading for leniency, the lawyer stated 'It was reasonable for the accused to assume that there was an emergency.' Chief engineer fined $7,000. -
2008 8 22 Malubag Ryan Jay Carino Singapore Dive tech Marine Services SCUBA Filipino, aged 22, One of three divers working on a 7m diameter propeller (at Singapore Anchorage) on the tanker “Shetland Spirit�- when the propeller was turned on, cuts and bruises, one week in hospital. About noon, the captain ordered the engine generators and fuel pumps be started because a nearby ship was drifting and it appeared that there could be a collision if the Shetland Spirit was not moved. Chief Engineer, who assumed that the diving operation was over, also began 'blowing the engine' - without permission - to ensure that there were no leaks or debris in the engine cylinders. The process also caused the propeller to rotate. (He would normally have been required to make a request to the bridge and receive orders from the captain before 'blowing the engine'). Blowing the engine', or turning the engine's drive shaft which is linked to the propeller, has to be done before the engine is actually started. Pleading for leniency, the lawyer stated 'It was reasonable for the accused to assume that there was an emergency.' Chief engineer fined $7,000. -
2008 8 22 Not Recorded Singapore Dive tech Marine Services SCUBA One of three divers working on a 7m diameter propeller (at Singapore Anchorage) on the tanker “Shetland Spirit�- when the propeller was turned on, the two other divers were injured, he escaped with first aid injuries only About noon, the captain ordered the engine generators and fuel pumps be started because a nearby ship was drifting and it appeared that there could be a collision if the Shetland Spirit was not moved. Chief Engineer, who assumed that the diving operation was over, also began 'blowing the engine' - without permission - to ensure that there were no leaks or debris in the engine cylinders. The process also caused the propeller to rotate. (He would normally have been required to make a request to the bridge and receive orders from the captain before 'blowing the engine'). Blowing the engine', or turning the engine's drive shaft which is linked to the propeller, has to be done before the engine is actually started. Pleading for leniency, the lawyer stated 'It was reasonable for the accused to assume that there was an emergency.' Chief engineer fined $7,000. -
2008 5 22 Rudakov Roman Maldives Touring Maldives SCUBA Russian tourist, aged 41, diving off the “Baani Adventurer� died from contaminated air (reported as 150ppm CO in his tank), 9 others ill with 80ppm CO in their tanks. Complaints from previous day and requests to change filter ignored (cheap none-CO absorbing filter fitted on compressor), Medical O2 cylinder onboard dive boat was empty. -
2007 9 22 Titanic Key UK White Star Titanic sank 15/4/1912 with a loss of 1522 lives. Keys to the crows nest binocular locker auctioned in Wiltshire (In the possession of second officer who did not sail at last minute) A lookout reported at the enquiry that they would have been able to see the iceberg earlier if they had had binoculars -
2007 8 22 Antinanco Pedro Alvarado Chile Aserma, Marine Harvest SCUBA Diver, Cultivation Center of Puchilco, located in Lemuy Island, Central Chiloé, Source: Ecoceanos, based on data from the Dir. of Labor, Directemar, Mariscope and the Tenth and Eleventh Regions District Attorneys Offices. No details -
2007 7 22 DSV "Eclipse" UKCS Caldive Subsea 7 Saturation DSV "Eclipse" (Ex "Stena Seaspread"). Loss of pressure from the transfer trunk when preparing for the transfer of divers (TUP), HSE issued a prohibition notice to Cal Dive International Pte., the owners of the vessel, with actions required to be implemented prior to the continued use of the Dive System for Saturation Diving. The corrective actions are both mechanical and procedural, est. 3 days. HSE to witness the completed improvement. At the time the seal was lost on the trunk the divers were in the bell. -
2007 7 22 Wilson Stephen USA SCUBA Sports diver, aged 36, fatally injured when struck by lightning as he surfaced. Miami Herald -
2007 2 22 Birchedal Martin Gibraltar UCS or Gibunco/Scamp? SCUBA Danish, married with 2 children, died doing a hull cleaning job in Gibraltar, may have been a solo dive, no comms or stand-by diver. No details in the public domain. Inquest held in 2010 found that he had been using a single 80 litre SCUBA tank (Manufactured in 2003 with no test stamps since manufacture and containing 2 litres of fresh water) and an aga mask (recovered in 'destroyed' condition). Vox Gibraltar/Longstreath/PC -
2005 8 22 Not Recorded Spain German Navy Aged 24, diving off the German Minesweeper 'Homburg' at anchorage off Ageciras (Vessel was en route to Crete to join a NATO task force), described as 'on a routine diving exercise for training purposes in the Bay of Algeciras', diver appers to have suffered a decompression incident, initially treated onboard the minesweeper which then took him to Gibraltar (Because there are at least two Navy decompression chambers wheras there are none in Algeciras), medics from the Royal Naval Hospital Gibraltar met the vessel when it docked at the South Mole but in spite of intensive efforts including the use of a deibrillator, were unable to revive him. Doctors concluded that he had died whilst the ship as still at sea (Onboard the FGS Homburg and therefore on German soil) and the coroner released the body to the German authorities who flew it to Germany on a CL60 military aircraft for a post mortem. No details. Reported by Panorama (Gibraltar) -
2005 5 22 Not Recorded USA 12 P & A job. No barrier cream on. Quote from second diver: "There was a bunch of red gooey stuff coming out of the pipeline at the cut I was making. It got all over my hat but I never got any burns. Once I saw it coming out I tried to stay away from it. I do know that it burned the hell out of him, and he couldn't dive anymore (on that job). He was in pain just turning his head". -
2005 1 22 Toisa Polaris UK SS7 Topsides During mobilisation of a Deep water ROV for West of Shetland a 440V supply was inadvertently de-isolated. No physical injury, but potentially lethal. Very open incident report from SS7 and one of the guys involved, good example of a working and positive safety culture -
2003 10 22 Watson Christina Mae Australia SCUBA American, aged 26, on her honeymoon, dive on the SS Yongala, off Queensland. Allegedly murdered (Turned her air off) by her husband, David Gabriel Watson, In June 2009, he was convicted of manslaughter in a Queensland court over the death of his wife who died while diving in his company on the Great Barrier Reef in October 2003. Tina Watson died after being seen, by other divers in the area, in a close underwater embrace with her husband. She sank to the seabed while he headed for the surface, having failed to attempt a buoyant lift, to inflate his wife’s BC independently, or dump her weight belt Tina Watson’s inert body was captured unwittingly on the sandy bottom by another diver taking underwater photographs. It was suspected that Watson had deliberately restricted his wife while turning off her air supply, and upon her loss of consciousness turned it on again before letting go of her. The motive was suspected to be an attempt to cash in on her life insurance policy. Watson’s story was that he had tried to help his wife when she experienced difficulty in breathing, had a panic attack and knocked out his regulator, and that he had elected to go to the surface in search of outside help. While his wife was an inexperienced diver, Watson was experienced and held a rescue-diver qualification. He was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail in Australia, to be suspended after 12 months. The lightness of the sentence caused an outcry, particularly since the manslaughter conviction came after a coroner’s report stating that there was a good case to charge Watson with murder. After appeal, the sentence it was ruled that Watson should serve 18 months rather than 12 in jail, extradited to Alabama in 2010 facing further legal action in the American courts -
2003 7 22 Rotaru Mircea Romania Stef and Fan SRL 30 SCUBA Paraphrased from reports :- Aged 54 years, lexNavy diver, leader of 6 divers onboard a vessel undertaking installation cleaning operations (Black Sea, Gloria platform). After they arrived in the area, two divers went a depth of 30 meters to check the platform legs, and because they were late to emerge, Mircea Rotaru jumped into the water after them, but as he went down, they surfaced. They noticed he was missing and searched for him. He was found face up to the bottom and brought to the platform where he tried to resuscitate him, but without any result. His body was taken ashore to the morgue in Mangalia. Experts say it is possible that he had a heart attack when he jumped into the water. The contractor stated he had a medical� Reported by Kappa.ro -
2003 3 22 Whelan Peter UK BNFL 3 S/S Air Umbilical sucked into support vessel jet propulsion intake, took 25 minutes to cut him free, on bail out, HSE prosecution, £30,000 fine. -
2002 5 22 Blackley Martin UK Seahorse Aquaculture 16 SCUBA British, Royal Marine commando, aged 26, Altbea Fish farm, Loch Ewe, entangled in rope, valve not fully functional, speculated that he hyperventilated, panicked, drowned. He was unqualified, 3 man dive team, no dressed in stand-by, no lifeline, no communications, no knife, no risk assessment, no dive logs, On medical leave with a leg injury, diving in exchange for a £300 drysuit -
2001 10 22 Gouveia Nereus Brazil Port of Paranagua, Petobras tanker 'Norma' hit rocks leading to discharge of 1.8 million litres of Naptha. Diver from a local diving contractor in Paranagua hired by an engineer from the Petrobras subsidiary 'Transpetro' died during operations to assess the damage (Reported as 'at 17:30 the diver suffered a sudden illness and was taken to hospital where he died at 19:00 hours'). Cause of death given as 'inhalation of Naptha'. Due to the escaped Naptha cloud, there were both marine and aviation exclusion zones, but they still allowed the diving operation on the leaking hull. Investigation concluded that the diver had standard equipment not suitable for polluted water operations. The Trtanspetro engineer was sacked and also accused of manslaughter, acting negligently and without knowledge of the technical rules thereby unintentionally causing the death of the diver. The courts eventually said the diving contractor was at fault for not assessing the situation correctly. Reported by Amigos de Terra and other Brazilian press sources. -
2001 6 22 Kin Chong Chee Singapore Aged 28, described as a 'seasoned diver', found floating face down during a tanker inspection dive off Tuas. Straits Times -
1999 12 22 Militello A USA Paraphrased from press reports:- "Lobster Man Dies After Getting Caught in Propeller Shaft. The man, aged 40 from Goucester was on the 'Dean', a fishing boat, near Bakers Island Massachusetts (about 3 miles from the entrance to Beverly and Salem Harbours, when he became caught in the prop shaft.. A nearby fishing vessel notified the Coast Guard which transported him to Manchester Marina. He was then moved to Beverly Hospital and pronounced dead from "multiple trauma". Not clear if this was a diving accident. Polson Enterprises list of propeller incidents/Associated Press -
1998 4 22 Rozhkov Andrei Arctic Moscow State University Diving Club 50 SCUBA First attempt at underwater exploration of the North Pole, Russian firefighter and diver with the support of the Diving Club of Moscow State University, inexplicably went limp and died minutes into a solo dive. Team members later said they'd seen mysterious spotlights and heard a deafening "sonar ping" right before his death, prompting speculation that a patrolling Russian submarine may have caused his demise. Not confirmed, Cause of death reported as heart attack). The next attempted dive at the North Pole was organized by the same club next year, on April 24, 1999, and was successful. The divers were Michael Wolff (Austria), Brett Cormick (UK) and Bob Wass (USA) -
1997 5 22 Rayment David William Canada Working at Ganges Harbour on Saltsprint Island (Between Vancouver Island and the mainland), died, trapped underwater, pinned against the broken wharf he was working on by his collapsed crane. Awarded the Medal of Bravery for his part in trying to save people trapped under an overturned boat in 1993. His best friend said:- "It's ironic he was killed in the same situation, by being trapped underwater". -
1988 9 22 Rig 'Ocean Odyssey' UK Arco Semi Submersible, drilling block 22 (Central Graben, Shearwater), HPHT well, blow out and fire, 1 fatality (Radio operator sent back from lifeboat to continue communications), 58 evacuated by TEMPSC, 8 jumped into the sea and were picked up by the stand-by vessel. Rig was subsequently converted into a satellite launch pad (Sea Launch) based at Long Beach, California -
1988 2 22 Rig 'Keyes Marine 302' USA Jack Up, Punch through, legs bent/collaopsed, total loss. -
1985 5 22 Tonkawa USA Temple Drilling 6 Drill rig with crew of 22, under tow overturned in 19' of water, divers cut two men out of the upturned hull 5 hours later, 6 fatalities. Los Angeles Times -
1984 2 22 Camejo Joao Lazaro Brazil Superpesa Brazilian. Semi-sub drill rig "Zephyr II", ODECO. No details -
1984 2 22 Rig 'Vinland" Canada Shell Semi Submersible, Blow out during drilling of Uniacke G-72 -
1980 10 22 Rig 'Dan Prince' USA Jack Up, sank during rig move/towing (caught in a storm). -
1975 3 22 Alvestad Aage Lasse UK 3X 140 Norwegian, aged 30. "Borgney Dolphin", Monsanto, heating failed, anoxia, hypothermia, exhaustion -
1969 11 22 Rig 'Zapata Scorpion' Spain Jack Up, sank during rig move/towing off the Canary Islands