Incidents List
-
Year Month Day Surname Forenames Location Contractor Client Depth Type of Diving Details -
2010 7 29 Dobrajc Ziga Italy 4 Rebreather Aged 31, Slovenian biologist working at the Piran Marine Biology centre, diving on a 'Trieste HBY' rebreather off Miramar, injured in the same incident that killed Samo Alajbegovich on the 25th July. He was recovered from the sea unconscious by rescuers 10 metres from the shore in less than 4 metres of water. On life support in hospital for 4 days, declared brain dead, life support switched off. Reported in Slowwwenia.enaa.com -
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 -
2009 4 4 Daniel Yvon France SARL Kerioica SCUBA Aged 50, commercial diver and the manager of SARL Keroica, under contract to Armour Travaux Sous Marins, La Trinite sur Mer harbour, Pontoon inspection, solo, no stand-by, -
1938 7 7 Mohamet Yusop bin Australia V. Kepert & Co. S/S Air “DIVING FATALITY. With its flag flying half-mast, the pearling lugger ‘Don Percival’ returned to port from the pearling beds on Friday evening with the body of Yusop bin Mohamet, 24, a Malay diver who had died from diver's paralysis. The lugger, which is owned by V.R. Kepert and Co., of Darwin, was operating 50 miles south-west of Bathurst Island. On Thursday, Mohamet, who was recovering from a previous attack of paralysis was, staged and recovered sufficiently to resume his duties as second diver. He went down and got a basket of shell. When he came on deck he complained of giddiness, a symptom of paralysis. He was staged for 15 minutes. Receiving no reply to his signals the, tender brought him on deck. He was dead. At the time of his death Mohamet was diving in corselet and helmet only, which dress is most favoured by divers�. Reported in the Northern Standard, Darwin, NT -
2021 9 16 Yulianto Indonesia PT Patra Dinimika OWA / PLTU SSDE Indonesian diver named Yulianto, working for Patra Dinimika, under subcontract to OWA, at the PLTU (electric steam power plant) in Jepara, Central Java. Delta P, with someone opening a valve or gate to an intake. Using SSDE, with umbilical and hat pulled off during recovery. -
2014 3 17 Khater Youssef Saudi Arabia Subtech 29m S/S Air Egyptian, aged 26, diving off the Zamil 403 (57 metres long, 4 metre draught, Bahrain flag, built 2012, China), four point moored, in the Persian Gulf, north of Al Jubail , lost communications, stand-by diver found him on the seabed with his helmet off, did not respond to treatment. Longstreath. Leak investigation on a live 12" water injection pipeline at between 800 and 900 psi. "The diver successfully attached the marker buoy to the pipeline but it became fouled under the vessel. In order to free the buoy the diver was asked to move it to the far side of the leak. At the time of the dive, visibility was reduced as it was approaching sunset; the diver used his hat-mounted light to navigate. In addition, the tremendous noise of the leak on the live pipeline severely hampered voice communications between the diver and diving supervisor. Once the diver had detached the marker buoy he started to move along the seabed beside the pipeline. He was on the same side as the leak. The diver appeared to look down at some debris and, as he stepped over this material, he was struck by a jet of the high pressure water coming from the damaged pipeline. All communication with the diver was instantly lost. The standby diver was deployed immediately using the second diving basket. Within 5 minutes he had located the stricken diver who was lying on the seabed. The dive helmet (KM37) was no longer on the diver's head but was lying beside him with the neck dam still attached. Both divers were recovered to surface. All attempts to resuscitate the injured diver failed; he was later pronounced dead by a doctor who had been helicoptered offshore. IMCA SF 6/14 -
1893 9 5 Buffett Young Australia S/S Air DEATHS AT THURSDAY ISLAND. THURSDAY ISLAND, Tuesday.-A Norfolk Island diver named Young Buffett, died last week. He had open diving off Darnley Island, and when the face of the glass was taken off he stopped the crew from taking off his sand asked to be laid down, as he was dying. He then expired. He went to the Darnley Island grounds strongly against his friends' wishes. Reported in the Australian Town and Country Journal, NSW -
1936 6 14 Wakino Yasujiro Japan S/S Air Akashi diver, had spent 20 hours a day in the water off Higashidecho, Kobe, for 14 days in an attempt to treat decompression illness. "…making good progress so much so that the doctor allowed him a little rice and beef on June 13. On the following day he was able to walk. While in the water the same afternoon, however, he complained of feeling bad again. He was again taken out of the water. By the evening he was unconscious, and he finally died". Straits Times -
1996 3 17 Teow Yap Hock Singapore SCUBA Aged 45, checking reclamation materials earlier laid on the seabed off Pulau Sakra, 'died after losing his mask and tank'. No other details. Straits Times -
1925 3 0 Suketaro Yamakado Australia S/S Air PEARL DIVER SUFFOCATED. PERTH, Tuesday. A Japanese diver, Yamakado Suketaro, lost his life while working on a pearling lugger at sea 200 miles from Broome. He was lowered to the bottom in a diving suit, with an air pipe and life line. When the line was severed by coral rock the air pipe was fully extended, and as the lugger turned to give aid the pipe broke about 100 feet from the engine. When the body was recovered it was found that the Japanese was suffocated inside the diving suit. Reported in the Argus, Melbourne, Vic. Inquest returned a verdict of accidental death. The Age. -
1996 12 4 Engel Yair Israel Navy SCUBA OC Navy has appointed an inquiry committee to determine the cause of the mysterious deaths in a routine training exercise of two IDF frogmen, whose bodies were found yesterday in Haifa Bay 16 hours after they went missing. The two, First-Sgt. Matan Polibuda, 20, from Mevasseret Zion and First-Sgt. Yair Engel, 19, from Kibbutz Ramat Rahel, were veterans of dozens of dives. They were approaching promotion to they were 16 months in the unit and approaching their graduation into the elite Shayetet 13 underwater commando battalion -
1940 8 11 Loy Wong Australia S/S Air Evidence given in Broome at the inquest into the death of a diver who died at sea 120 miles South of Broome. "What was believed to be a form of divers paralysis is really collapse caused by depletion of the natural salts of the body as a result of excesive perspiration while working at depth. The diver, after having complained of dizziness, was treated for what is known locally as 'half-caste paralysis'. The medical officer said that during the past 40 years many divers must have died from this complaint going on to explain that the symptoms were so similar those of actual diver's paralysis that the divers could not tell the difference with any ecrtainty". As a result of the evidence at this inquest, it is now thought that if divers drank salt liquid before the day's work, this would considerably assist in replacing the body chlorines and prevent collapse which are the symptoms usually preceeding death in these cases. Straits Times -
2011 10 15 Eger Wolgang Austria Police and Fireman 1 SCUBA Aged 43, based in Orth (Lower Austria, on the Danube), experienced diver and diving instructor, two divers in a boat tending the free swimming diver just below the surface during a routine 'flow swimming' exercise. Went motionless in the water, was immediately pulled out and given CPR but did not respond. No water in the lungs, posible heart attack (Waiting on autopsy results) DiePresse.com -
2019 12 27 Galletti Wolfrang Angola Rana Diving S.p.a. / Aquatic Deepwater Sonangol P&P 82m Sat Commercial Diver 42 years old born in Trieste . Italy on December 28th 1976. Working for RANA Diving S.p.a.onboard of the SBM Installer at Block 3 in Angola , blowdown on December 23rd 2019. When bell run 011 on December 27th 2019 working at seabed around 82 m.s.w. like Diver2 was smashed between a pipe (long ~10 meters/ weight ~ 1 tone) and one DMA in a fatal accident not yet clarified . 24 days to repatriate the corpse that arrive Italy on January 20th 2020. From the autopsy made in Angola and performed in Portuguese First: Wolfrang died of a shock resulting from a thoracic trauma that compromised the aorta. On the body there are also wounds and bruises on the head, in particular on the cheekbones and on the occipital part. Second: the Angolan coroner who performed the autopsy classifies the death as "accident at work". On Tuesday 11th February 2020 forty five days after his death was buried in Trieste his Italian city. No Company or IMCA information about this fatality yet. -
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 -
1934 9 20 Currie or Curry William Wallace Canada A M Maclean & Sons S/S Air Employed to plant dynamite underwater in the locks at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. On a stormy day, he decided it was better to dive and get paid than wait for the weather to clear. Lightning struck his equipment on the surface, travelled down his line and ignited the 6 pounds of dynamite and blasting caps he carried. His 21 year old son, Laughlin, acting as his diving assistant, witnessed the accident. Missaiiauga.net, Montreal Gazette -
1932 9 30 Stevens William Ramsey Hong Kong Hong Kong Government 6 S/S Air Australian diver employed by the Government on the Hong Kong Harbour Pipe. At the inquest, Senior commissioned Gunner George Hamilton RN, the expert witness, gave a demonstration of the working of the diving suit and helmet stating that the exhaust valve could be regulated by the diver to control the pressure of air in the suit. He also examined the topsides pump and found it efficient and 'needing about 25 turns a minute to keep a proper supply of air for working under any conditions'. The diver had only been in the water about three minutes when he ditched his helmet (including the two 40 pound lead weights). It was supposed at the inquest that there had been a mix up in the signals and when he asked for more air, he was actually given less and in desperation tried to ditch his helmet and reach the surface. The expert witness decsribed the diver's last act as "a very desperate act which I think, as an experienced diver, I would never dream of doing. It would drown him and fill up the suit with water. He absolutely committed suicide by taking his helmet off". Straits Times. -
2007 10 27 Luse William J USA 3 Aged 34, Trapped for about 15 minutes by water flow through a coffer dam 23/10/2007, lost air supply, initially thought to be recovering, died 4 days later “Luse got stuck when flowing water forced him into a void between the cofferdam and the gate, which was open and releasing water. A partner working with him was able to tie a rope to the trapped diver's equipment but was not able to pull him free. When Luse was eventually pulled up, the air hose he was using to breathe had been knocked from his mouth. Officials were uncertain how long he had been without air�. -
1904 4 13 Hoar William J USA 23 S/S Air Trapped by differential pressure on the mouth of a pipe in the Bointon resevoir (Jersey City Water Supply Co.), they kept pumping air to him for 96 hours. Led to calls for divers to be given telephone communications instead of signal rope -
1893 5 0 Madrill William Garvie Australia Topsides Queensland, Brisbane, Monday. "Still another pearl diver has died near Thursday Island after working in deep water there. William Garvie Madrill has been found in a culvert at Ipswich, lying face downwards in a shallow pool of water, with a small stone embedded in his forehead. Life was extinct. Reported in the Barrier Miner, Broken Hill, NSW -
1983 11 5 Crammond William Brown Norway Comex Houlder 0 Saturation British, aged 32. Drill rig "Byford Dolphin", Frigg field, explosive decompression of sat system when TUP clamp failed, 5 fatalities -
1896 9 30 Storey William - entry 3 of 3 UK John Gibney and Co. Master Divers, Chapel Street, Liverpool 4 S/S Air er was fast in some way, he called the man tending the air pipe even with his help it was impossible to raise the diver. He asked for assistance from a flatman with the combined efforts of the three of them they managed to raise the diver. Witness rapidly took off the diver's mouthpiece and saw STOREY was apparently dead. The deceased was at about 12ft under the water and from the time the signal came to pulling him up only minutes had elapsed. The Coroner elicited the information that the ship's hull was covered with a perforated metal rose, after the style of a rose on a watering can. Witness said, this rose was normally affixed to the skin of the vessel but in the present case it was affixed to the valve, this was important and the diver ought to have been told of it. Had witness known of it he would have used a wooden plug to stop up the hole instead of a pad to cover it. The hole was six inches in diameter. The post mortem results were that the skin of the deceased was a dusky colour. Blood had oozed from the right ear and there was a large bruise on the upper part of the left forearm and elbow. There were no broken bones or injuries that might have caused death. The vessels of the brain were congested but the brain tissue healthy. The lungs were very much congested and there was a good deal of mucus in the bronchial tubes. The small air vessels of the lungs were ruptured by the efforts to inspire. The heart was flabby and rather fatty, the valves being more or less closed, especially the mitrial and aortic. The blood throughout the body was a dark colour, a marked indication of suffocation. The cause of death was suffocation. The Coroner then addressed the jury, summing up the evidence and pointing out it was for them to decide whether any one was criminally liable for the death of the diver, they could express an opinion as to what led up to the suffocation which according to the medical evidence was the direct cause of death, or they could leave that point alone. After deliberation in private the jury found that death was due to suffocation, but how that was brought about they were unable to say. The funeral was reported as:- The remains of William STOREY, Diver, were interred yesterday morning in Toxteth Park Cemetery in the presence of a large number of friends. The deceased who was an experienced diver unfortunately met his death last Wednesday while working on the steamship Gulf of Taranto in the Hornby Dock. The coffin was covered with beautiful wreaths and the brass shield bore the inscription, "William STOREY, died September 30. 1896, aged 53 years� -
1896 9 30 Storey William - entry 2 of 3 UK John Gibney and Co. Master Divers, Chapel Street, Liverpool 4 S/S Air William Storey, the incident:- Liverpool diver William STOREY, of 8 Toxteth St, a man of middle age and great experience, was engaged in the pursuance of his risky occupation when he met with his death under strange and peculiar circumstances. STOREY was working with two other men at the steamship ‘Gulf of Taranto’ lying in the Hornby Dock. The valve in the hull of the vessel required repair, and to enable this work to be carried out it was necessary that a "pad" should be fixed on the hull, so that the valve might be removed for repair without risking the flooding of the ship. This is the work that STOREY had to accomplish. A platform was lowered alongside the vessel, and STOREY, properly equipped in his diving-suit, went below. He signalled to the man in charge of the life-line to lower the stage. The next signal called for the "pad" A few minutes after the "pad" was lowered, yopsides received the signal "All right" which meant that the valve could be removed any moment. On board the vessel was the superintendent engineer of the Gulf Line of steamers, and as soon as the word was received from the divers the valve was unscrewed he called attention to the fact that the "pad" was leaky. Water was spurting in then the next moment a portion of the pad and the diver's arm were forced through the aperture. About this moment STOREY signalled to be drawn up, but the pressure of the water increased tremendously by the suction through the now open valve, jammed him tight against the vessel, and hauling him to the surface proved a matter of great difficulty. Mr M'KAY forced the diver's arm out through the aperture again, but the combined efforts of three men, instead of the customary one were necessary before the poor fellow was got out of the water. Storey was then unconscious and apparently dead, the sleeve of his diving-dress considerably torn, having been damaged by the violence with which his arm had been forced through the valve hole. When his headgear was removed it was found that he had been bleeding badly from the ears. The Bootle Fire Brigade horse ambulance was promptly summoned and STOREY was taken to Bootle Hospital. Upon arrival he was examined by the house-surgeon, who pronounced life extinct. Appearances hardly point to drowning and it seems more probable the unfortunate diver was either suffocated when his dress was torn open at the sleeve, or that the life was crushed out of him against the side of the vessel when the valve was removed without the "pad" apparently being properly secured -
1896 9 30 Storey William - entry 1 of 3 UK John Gibney and Co. Master Divers, Chapel Street, Liverpool 4 S/S Air Aged 53, experienced diver, initially reported as 'Met his death whilst at wotk'. Hornby dock, Liverpool, working on the vessel 'Gulf of Taranto'. He was placing a sealing pad over a valve inlet diffuser on a vessel hull, differential pressure incident (arm pulled into hull when the valve was removed because the diffuser was mounted on the valve not the hull). They managed to pull him free but he was unconscious when recovered to deck, taken to Bootle hospital, but failed to respond to treatment. Coroner’s verdict:- Suffocated. Reported in the Liverpool Mercury. See following two entries below for more detail.<br />http://www.old-merseytimes.co.uk/deathsandinquests1896.html -
2008 7 27 Spencer William USA BIDCO 20 American, aged 42, working off the construction barge "Lone Star Horizon" (a 314' ong construction barge) on the Neptune LNG project (terminal and pipeline) 12 miles offshore Massachusetts. BIDCO (Buffalo Industrial Diving Company) were subcontractors to Caldive. Diver replacing air hose on stinger, reported difficulty breathing, stand-by divers brought him to the surface, CPR, medivac to hospital, later declared dead, heart attack. -
1989 6 5 Lamm William USA Sports diver SCUBA American, aged 45, spear fishing and then sucked into the inlet of a 16 foot diameter inlet pipe. 4 minutes and 1650 feet later later he surfaced inside a canal inside the Saint Lucie nuclear power plant run by Florida Power and Light. Completely unscathed. Ocala Star Banner. -
1987 5 30 Carr William Norway Stolt Nielson 104 Saturation British, DSV "Seaway Condor", Oseberg Norsk Hydro, Bell partner was M. Sullivan, Kirby Morgan 17 came off -
1983 3 31 Burgess William Australia Diver awarded $302,304. The Canberra Times Thursday 31 March 1983. Diver awarded $302,304 SYDNEY: A professional diver, critically injured when the direct-drive engine of a harbour ferry started as he was inspecting its propeller, was awarded $302,304 damages in the Supreme Court yesterday. The diver, Mr. John William Burgess, had his right arm cut off above…� Date of award, not incident. -
1974 3 30 Norris William UK 61 British, pipe-lay barge? Medically unfit to dive (no medical), died in DDC following a dive, reported as decompression illness -
1949 8 18 Kada William Australia 15 Indonesian Pearl diver aged 37, diving off the lugger Twixteen out of Thursday Island. Signalled to be brought to the surface but as he reached the surface his helmet and corselet came detached and he was swept away. His body was recovered by divers from another lugger later. Barrier Miner, NSW, Australia Another report states:- Pearl Diver Drowns. Thursday Island.-Two Indonesians tried pluckily to rescue a fellow pearl diver when he was swept away in heavy seas while diving off Thursday Island. Sgt. H. Mumford, of the Thursday Island police, returned with the story. The diver, William Kada, 37, who was also an Indonesian, was found drowned in eight fathoms of water at 1 p.m. on Thursday. The Indonesians went out from Thursday Island on the lugger ‘Trixteen’. Kada was down pearling about eight fathoms at 11.30 a.m. when he signalled to be brought to the surface. When he reached the surface his diving helmet and corselet broke loose. He called to the men on the lugger as he was swirled away. Two other divers, Enus Euan, 22, and Markus Oben, 42, went to Kada's rescue, but were unable to reach him in the heavy seas. A Torres Strait aboriginal from another lugger which arrived later recovered Kada's body. Reported in the Barrier Miner -
1932 4 8 Duval William Canada S/S Air Aged 26, New Liskeard, Ontario, reported as river dive (Wabi river) and that he “drowned when his suit burst�. No details. Reported in the Chicago Tribune -
1925 12 19 Parsons William UK S/S Air Reported as "Death of diver during tests at Collingwood docks, Liverpool" "Divers tragic Death. Death drom misadaventure was the verdict at Liverpool. Saturday on William Parsons, Liverpool, who died after...." "Death from misadventure was the verdict at Liverpool.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Post (Lanarkshire)/Aberdeen Journal/The British Newspaper Archive -
1912 0 0 Webber RN William Australia S/S Air "In 1912. William Webber, a darling of the British Diving Fraternity, lasted only 4 months in the waters off Broome before he suscumbed, apparently to the bends" One of 9 British Navy divers sent to Broome to "Claim the industry for the white man" White divers were not wanted, not because of goodwill towards the so-called Asiatics but because they threatened the wealth of the pearlers who could employ Asiatics for a pittance. His family were told his air hose had been cut and believe the master pearlers put a price on his head. Reading Eagle -
1907 11 2 Caley William UK "Hull diver dies mad in the asylum. William Carey, the hull diver who had been engaged in salvage work the…." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Hull Daily Mail/The British Newspaper Archive -
1899 8 18 Baldwin William USA 45 S/S Air Second attempt to reach the wreck of the British ship 'Andelana' lying in 190' of water near Tacoma Harbour. “Death was due to some accident in the pumping gear which supplied the air� Reported in the Evening Telegram -
1892 7 9 Robinson William UK Military S/S Air "Diver dies suddenly. An able seaman named William Robinson serving onboard Her Majesty's ship "Cambridge", gunnery ship at Devon Port…. No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Leeds Timesl/The British Newspaper Archive -
1877 7 5 Littlebody William UK Dalton Le Dale Waterworks 36 S/S Air Described as "a big stout man of about 18 stone weight", diver fron Tyne dock, diving in a pilot shaft at the Dalton Le Dale Waterworks, South Sields, (10' diamter, 312' from top to surface of water then to worksite a further 120' underwater to replace a plug). Reported as entering the water at 11:00, stopped responding to line signals some 3 hours later, could not be pulled up. Rescue diver Harry Watts, then aged 51, employed at the time by River Wear Commissioners, was recruited to help, dived at 9 o'clock in the evening and located the body head down under the working stage. Described in "Life of Harry Watts, 60 years a Sailor and Diver" by Alfred Spencer. The book, published in 1923, contains the following comment: Mr. Davis, Managing Director of Messrs. Siebe, Gorman & Co., Ltd., who kindly went through these chapters on diving with a view to correcting them, in commenting on the Dalton incident, says : - " You describe Watts as having been fully dressed before he went over the edge of the well. . . . Nowadays, we would, if at all possible, rig up a stage just above the surface of the water, where the diver would put on his heavy gear (boots, weights, and helmet), and thus be saved the labour of carrying all this deadweight. It is quite possible that Watts did carry this weight from the ground level to the water, and, in that case, all the more credit is due to him." -
1875 6 7 Keith William UK 8 S/S Air "Death of a diver underwater by drowning (Special Telegram) William Keith, 35 years of age, a professional diver (Or divers labourer) residing in Torry, employed by the Aberdeen harbour board, at the point of the pier laying some moorings. Descended in his diving dress on Saturday about noon, and reaching the bottom, depth 25'..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sheffield Daily Telegraph/Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive -
1948 8 1 Djawa Willem Australia 50 S/S Air "Diver's Death". Darwin - "Carrying the body of the third pearl diver to have died on this coast in eight days, the lugger 'Plover' berthed here. The diver, Willem Djawa, 28, died after four 45 minute dives to 28 fathoms of water off Melville Island. He complained of headaches after the last dive. He was weraring a full suit" The Barrier Miner, Broken Hill, NSW. DIVER LOSES GRIM BATTLE - DARWIN, Aug. 4: Fighting a losing battle for life a Koepang diver was suspended, staging, for several hours in his diving suit nine fathoms below the pearling lugger ‘Plover’ riding on the blue seas near Bathurst Island. The story of his fight was told in the Coroner's Court here today by Yussif Bin Hassim, No. I diver on the ‘Plover’. The inquest concerned the death of the second diver of the ‘Plover’, Willem Djawa (28), who died on her deck last Thursday. Hassim told the Coroner (Mr. C. K. Ward) that he was diving in 28 fathoms of water, the deepest he had ever been in. He could see Djawa in the clear water nearby on the sea floor. Djawa had never been below 12 fathoms before. Three times they went down together and stayed down each time, about 45 minutes. After the last dive Djawa complained of a "sore head." To counteract the effects of deep diving, Djawa and Hassim were "staged" nine fathoms below the lugger. "I watched Djawa hanging there for 41 hours," said Hassim. Two men pulled them up and Djawa, still sick, was lowered again in an attempt to fight off the effects of submersion. For another 2 hours he hung there while the lugger plant pumped down air. Pulled on to the deck again, Djawa said: "No more." The crew closed him up in his suit again and pumped air into the suit, but he died and the ‘Plover’ headed back, to Darwin. The Coroner found that no blame was attachable to anybody. Reported in the West Australian. Perth. -
1956 8 1 Edgerton Wiliam USA 4 Rebreather Aged 23, part of a 20 man, privately funded, team that had chartered the 60' diving tender 'Capt Samuel Jameson' engaged to take photographs of the sunken liner 'Andrea Doria' which lies about 45 miles south. He was undertaking a training dive in Nantucket harbour. Dr Christian Lambertson, the team physician who had developed a type of mixed gas diving kit for the US Navy, and who was diving with Edgerton at the time of his death ("diving in about 12 feet of water tp familiarise Edgerton with the type of 'mixed gas' cylinders that Lambertson had developed for Navy divers"), said that a valve on his diving equipment had somehow become partially closed ("Edgerton may have accidently struck the valve against the side of the boat or become confused and closed it himself"). Died from "Lack of oxygen in the blood". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. -
1948 10 20 Nimmock Wilfred Australia 16 S/S Air “Diver disappears� CAIRNS, Wed. ‘A Torres Strait native diver, Wilfred Nimmock, 24, dived into about nine fathoms from the pearler ‘Penguin’, He surfaced 50 yards from the boat without helmet or corselet, then sank. Some of the Penguin's crew dived but found no trace of Nimmock, his diving gear, or shell bag. Reported in The Courier-Mail, Brisbane, Qld. -
1995 2 14 Ayers Wendell USA Pacific Grove Marine Rescue One of a three man dive rescue team attempting to rescue two people from a 40' cabin cruiser that had run aground on rocks 100 yards from shore. The boat rolled trapping him against the rocks. In this case they swam to the boat so not strictly a diving incident but included in the list as this was a professional diver at work as part of a rescue group. Reported in the San Jose Mercury News -
1972 5 8 Stein Wendel Edward 'Del' British Virgin Islands 27 Rebreather Aged 24, diving from the oceanographic research vessel 'Neap Tide' off Peter Island. Reported as 'surfaced around 5 o'clock after apparently having trouble with the rebreather pack he was wearing' USCG flew in a doctor by helicopter from the air and sea rescue base on Puerto Rico but he was pronounced dead two hours after surfacing. No details. Reported in the Virgin Islands Daily News -
2015 12 11 Kuehn Wayne Douglas Jnr USA SCUBA Aged 48. married with a son and daughter, had a full time job, but as a side line sold second hand golf balls at a dollar each. SCUBA diving at night (Illegally) for golf balls at the Star Ranch golf course. Cause of death not reported ('waiting on toxicology reports'). His father reported him missing after finding his car at the golf course, took two days to find his body in the pond. Reported in Mystatesman -
1986 1 20 Spicer Wayne Iran Smit Topsides Australian, DSV 'Smit Maassluis' off Kharg Island, set on fire after Exocet missile attack from Iraqi war-planes. 10 crewmen also injured out of the 34 man crew (Two other Australian and two New Zealand divers injured). No details. Reported in The Age -
1982 2 15 Miller Wayne Canada Hydrospace Saturation Diver in sat onboard the Ocean Ranger which sank in a storm with the loss of all 84 personnel onboard. How many other divers were onboard? -
2000 8 13 Smith Warren C USA 21 SCUBA Fire-fighter, aged 28, Search and rescue training dive in a lake. Circular search, partner lost the rope and became separated, basic SCUBA gear only, no voice comms, Another diver saw the victim who was distressed and frantically screaming, the victim knocked out the other diver's face piece. The victim, who was entangled in the buoy line was pulled to the surface by the line, given medical assistance and transported to hospital by air ambulance where he was pronounced dead, The cause of death was stated as pulmonary barotrauma. NIOSH report -
2010 3 30 Han Warrant Officer Joo-Ho South Korea South Korean Navy 24 SCUBA Aged 53, a member of one of the underwater demolition teams attempting to rescue potential trapped survivors in the hull of the 1,200 tonnes Naval vessel “Cheonan� (Sank late 26th after an explosion split her in two 105 miles from the west coast port of Incheon just south of the disputed border line, 58 crew rescued, 46 missing). Reported as becoming unconscious in the water after a dive to 24 metres, brought up and transferred to a nearby US Navy hospital ship 'Salvo', but died. He joined the Navy in 1975 when he was 18, survived by his wife and two children. A South Korean fishing boat that participated in the search operation went into missing 01/04/2010, killing two people and leaving seven others missing. AP Later reports that the Cheonan was sunk by a torpedo. Strategy World, Los Angeles times, Telegraph etc -
1881 9 1 Duggan Walter? Ireland S/S Air Reported Tuesday 30th August and Thursday 1st September, but death probably occurred Saturday previously. Diver was 'engaged in examining the mooring tackle of the lightship off Daunts rock south of Queenstown.....". "Diver died from exhaustion in a harbour , made three descents from the Trinity steamer 'Alert' and on coming up the last time…." "Died in most distressing circumstances" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Portsmouth Evening News/Aberdeen Evening Express/Cornishman/The British Newspaper Archive -
2006 3 21 Seguel Walter Rodrigo Balboa Chile Ventisqueros SCUBA Salmon fish farm, Hornopiren, Commercial diver, Source: Ecoceanos, based on data from the Dir. of Labor, Directemar, Mariscope and the Tenth and Eleventh Regions District Attorneys Offices. No details -
1998 8 11 Cranfield Walter Guam Deep Sea Technologies SCUBA Paraphrased from OSHA reports:- “San Franciso. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fined a diving contractor $75,000 following the death of a diver who died from decompression sickness while working on a project to salvage artifacts from a Manila galleon which sank off the coast of Guam in 1690. After a six month investigation, OSHA cited Deep Sea Technologies, a subcontractor of The Pilar Project Ltd., for willful violations which led to the death, including failure to use two-way voice communication between a mixed-gas diver and surface crew; having no decompression chamber ready for use at the dive site; requiring employees using SCUBA equipment to dive deeper than 130 feet in sea water; exceeding the allowable service pressure on the compressed gas cylinders used by SCUBA divers, and lack of tables at the dive site which outline safe diving depths and durations. The violations are covered under OSHA's Commercial Diving Operations regulations.� The company was also cited for one less-than-serious violation for failing to notify OSHA of the fatality within eight hours. “OSHA will not tolerate this type of situation," said the enforcement director for OSHA in the western states. "This fatality could have been prevented. The employer knew they were diving too deep for the equipment they used, that they had no two-way communication, and that the tanks were over pressurized, and yet they continued to put the divers at risk, resulting in this tragic consequence." Ha also noted that another diver on The Pilar Project died in 1994, and another required emergency evacuation in 1993 -
1907 7 20 Trapnell Walter UK Military 45 S/S Air Reported as “A government diver� at an inquest held in Torquay. Diving operation on the wreck of the RN Torpedo boat 99 sunk off Torbay. Became entangled and was cut free by another diver (Leverett) after 2 hours and twenty minutes. Spent 2 hours at 50' 'staging' brought to the surface alive but 'died as a result of his long immersion' in hospital. Reported in the Nelson Evening Mail -
2003 3 21 Elela Waleed Abo Egypt Maridive 15 S/S Air "Maridive MD 300" on the East Face of 'Ramadan 1, Gulf of Suez, Diver 2 Superlite floated off, Diver 1 unable to redress/give air, diver was tied off to platform, no stand-by diver dressed in, dive basket was on the surface, it took 8 minutes to recover the diver to surface. Bent hat Pin on yoke. IMCA Safety Flash 04 2003. Appears pin was unlocked prior to incident. This incident led to review of other lost helmet incidents No conclusion as to whether maintenance issue, poor dressing procedures or underlying design issue, but KM issued safety notice and secondary securing mechanism for all new helmets (plus retrofit to older helmets). -
1940 7 31 Whipple W. O. USA Aged 32, rigger/diver employed at the Puget Sound Navy Yard, sucked feet first into a 40' horizontal pipe, around two right angle bends and then down 35 ' through a 24� pipe on a dry dock. His helmet was ripped off, possible broken neck, it took two and a half hours to extract him from the pipe. (dive was to cap the outlet of the pipe on the new dry dock). Spokane Daily Chronicle -
1970 8 16 Sims W. D. USA Aged 44, Rescue diver looking for the body of 16 year old sports diver Fred Schmitz (Apparently blacked out and then disapeared into the depths) who was diving with 31 year old Hal Watts (Who suffered a DCI and was treated in a DDC for 5 hours at Cape Kennedy during the SAR operation), both were members of the Orlando Otters SCUBA Club diving in a 400' deep sinkhole looking for equipment lost on earlier dives. Speculated that the rescue diver, Sims, suffered from nitrogen narcosis, got entangled in safety ropes, ran out of air and drowned. Rescue operations were then called off pending the use of deep diving equipment. Unclear if this was a 'professional' or amateur rescue attempt. St. Petersberg Times -
1975 7 6 Carson W UK Underwater Security Ltd. 37 SCUBA British, aged 20. "Celtic Surveyor", Scapa Flow, double fatality (Walsh), shore approach, pigging operation, diver sucked into pipe by wave action or incorrect valve operation, differential pressure, stand-by diver and second stand-by (third diver) also sucked in though second stand-by managed to get out, two divers drowned -
1993 1 8 Pashkosky Vladimir Singapore Russian, aged 37, diving from a barge working off Jurong, one o'clock in the morning, failed to surface. No other details. Straits Times -
2009 5 1 Pesce and Martinizi Vincenza USA 8 Topsides Ocean Hyperbaric Neurologic Centre, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Florida, 62 year old Italian woman with her 4 year old grandson, Francesco, undergoing hyperbaric oxygen treatment in a one man 'clam shell' chamber (Built by Vickers, 1967). they had flown over from Italy to get hyperbaric oxygen treatment (not available in Italy) for the boy who had cerebral palsy 100% O2 at 1.75 atm. 20 minutes into treatment, internal chamber fire. Decompressed in 90 seconds, 2nd and 3rd degree burns over 90% of their bodies, the woman died the following day, the boy died 6 weeks later. Ignition source may have been an internal speaker (no matches or electronic equipment inside the chamber) -
1996 4 15 Lesley Vincent Charles UK SCUBA Professional scallop diver in Orkney (North of Scotland). No details PC -
1921 8 39 De Gaetano Vincent USA Merrit and Chapman Wrecking Company S/S Air Harlem river, tangled in lines, did not respond to treatment -
2005 5 6 Karla Vijay Rajaram India Navy A naval Chetak helicopter crashed near Chennai killing all three crew members on board. Lt-Commander D Poddar, who was flying the Chetak, Sub-Lt B Manoj and leading air crew naval diver Karla were killed in the crash at 4 pm. The mishap took place near the Rajali naval air station at Arakonam, about 50 km from Chennai. Times of India. -
2011 6 13 Herrera Victorio Argentina Almiron Y Cia SRL Aged 32, Wife and 6 year old daughter. Pipeline (sewer) blockage work for Aguas Argentinsa (Argentinian public water utility), caught in strong current which pulled him 25 metres up a 50 cm diameter pipe, current prevented rescue. Pulled out alive but died some hours later, no real details but most likely was not in full gear, no life line. Reported by Diario Cronica -
2007 10 17 Contreras Victor Lemus Chile Empresa Salmones Antártica 49 SCUBA Amateur Diver (He only had a license to dive to 20 meters), died in the Mallahue Culivation Center, in Achao Source: Ecoceanos, based on data from the Dir. of Labor, Directemar, Mariscope and the Tenth and Eleventh Regions District Attorneys Offices. No details -
2010 9 27 Paillacar Victor Javier Chile Fisherman SCUBA Aged 24, scallop diver from the 'Luisa' 30 minutes transit out of Puerta Natales, brought ashore dead after what was described as a 'decompression problem'. No other details. Reported by Polar Radio -
1979 8 7 Guiel Victor F "Skip" UK Infabco 162 Saturation American, aged 28. DSV "Wildrake", Thistle field, parted bell wire, secondary means of recovery failed, screwed up rescue, died from hypothermia, Double fatality (Walker) -
2012 2 2 Amaro Canche Victor Mexico Aged 43, sea cucumber harvesting out of Puerto Chicxulub 'out of season' (Fishing season opens on the 22nd February), no permit, boat 'Dumbos' not registered, reported as the first fisherman/diver to die in 2012, came ashore, felt unwell, taken to the American medical centre, but declared dead, apparently died of DCI related injuries, may have cut short decompression stops to shorten dive/avoid detection by Naval patrol boat. SIPSE.COM Yucatan -
2011 3 10 Pendleton Vance Wayne Canada 14 SCUBA Aged 56, experienced diver and owner of a dive shop. Diving for Sea Urchins of l'Etete, New Brunswick, failed to surface, located on the seabed 'initial information is pointing towards drowning' but coroner to confirm cause of death, Worksafe and RCMP to determine whether the diver was working at the time. He was diving with 4 other commercial divers on a commercial harvesting operation. Lost sight of the group, they surfaced, at first nor concerned because he had a bigger air tank. When he failed to surface after 10 - 15 minutes, they went back in to look for him. He was found and brought to the surface but failed to respond to treatment. Reported in the Telegraph-Journal, Brunswick -
2010 11 18 Wilbert Valiente Zapata Peru SCUBA Aged 38, one of two shellfish divers (Roberto Villata Nolesolo was seriously injured) diving from the scallop boat 'Robert Alexander' off the island 'Lobos de Tierra' involved in a decompression incident. No details. Reported by GPS Diving -
1986 5 0 Bezpalov Valeri USSR SCUBA Engineer at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Pripyat, Uktraine, 26th April 1986. During tests reactor 4 went into meltdown causing the most significant release of radiation in history. During the immediate aftermath many workers were subjected to fatal doses of radiation in desperate attempts to mitigate the effects. At one stage, in order to reduce the risk of a steam explosion in the flooded baement area, three volunteers (Valeri Bezpalov, Boris Baranov and Alexei Ananenko) entered the flooded area in diving gear to open the sliuce gates manually. All three returned to the surface after completing the work but died later from radiation sickness. GPS Buceo/Wikipedia -
1893 5 10 Rosa Ullalio Australia 36 S/S Air Diving off the Thursday Islands from the lugger 'Monday' owned by the Wal Wear Station. After 5 dives removed gear and immediately complained of feeling unwell. Lay in bunk with a cup of tea having a smoke but his condition suddenly deteriorated, became unconscious and finally died. Inquiry concluded that he died of diver's paralysis. Reported in the Brisbane Courier -
1909 8 3 Hutton Tumbull UK Harbour board S/S Air Aged 60, living at 19 High Street, Burntisland, employed by the harbour board, lost his life while engaged in a diving operation. No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Angus Evening Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive -
2012 7 31 Van D Truong Vietnam Pearl or clam diver Aged 25, diver at a fish farm (pearls or clams) in Phu Yen Province. Resident in Ho Chi Minh City, returned to his home povince in July and went diving for clams. Developed high fever and headache on July 29th, the following day was hospitalised at the Nhan Dan Gia Dinh hospital in Ho Chi Minh city then transferred to the Tropical diseases hospital, treatment ineffectual as infection had spread from his nasal passages to the brain leading to Meningitis, fell into a coma, suffered three cardiac and respiratory arrests, was asked to be released on the 31st by his family, died in transit to his home. Subsequent tests confirmed he was infected with Naegleria fowleri. Amoeba was known to be endemic in Vietnam since in 1965, known as the 'brain eating amoeba', typically found in warm fresh water. Can invade humans and attackthe nervous sytem (rare) but when it occurs, typically has a 98% fatality rate. Of 121 cases reported in the USA since 1937, only one survivor. Reported in VietNamNet Bridge -
1983 11 5 Hellevik Truls Norway Comex Houlder 0 Saturation Norwegian, aged 34. Drill rig "Byford Dolphin", Frigg field, explosive decompression of sat system when TUP clamp failed, 5 fatalities -
1972 0 0 Bale Trevor Togo/West Africa Ocean Systems? S/S Mixed Gas Diving off the 'Shiloh', using surface supplied air swiching to mixed gas. No details, can anybody help? PC -
2010 10 13 Muller Travis USA Ron Perrin Water Technologies 9 SCUBA Paraphrased from press reports:- “A 28 year old diver from Arlington died at about 09:45 this morning while working inside a nearly full City of Richmond municipal above ground water storage tank in Richmond this morning. The diver worked for a contractor who was performing routine (Two yearly silt removal) maintenance on the 500,000 gallon tank, which is about 50 feet tall and was three-quarters filled with water. The diver descended into the tank in SCUBA gear (09:15) and went to the bottom (09:18) was vacuuming the bottom of it to clean it. His partner who was outside the tank on the top noticed the diver's tether line became slack (09:28). He then also put on scuba gear and went into the tank to find what was wrong. He found the man unresponsive with his mask off but started having regulator problems and surfaced. The Richmond fire Department responded and recovered the diver’s body (10:50)". Declared dead. Houston Chronicle. -
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 -
1940 4 3 Fijii Tosikuzu Australia 64 S/S Air Aged 26, pearl diver, youngest son of 8 sons and two daughters, lost his helmet, managed to ditch his boots and reach the surface but died from burst lungs, buried on Thursday Island (in a cemetary containing the bodies of 800 Japanese divers.) by his elder brother Tom who was diving just a 100 metres away but took 2 hours of in water decompression to reach the surface. The elder brother dived for pearls for 23 years until 1951 and had his own hoses cut by coral three times, luckily only at a depth of 11 fathoms and was hauled up each time, his helmet flooding, surviving by forcing his headback and breathing from the small air pocket at the top of the helmet. "A lot of divers died that way, the deck crews simply just didn't get them up before the air pocket ran out". There are reported to be a total of around 1,200 Japanese divers buried on the Tores Strait Islands. The Australian -
1939 5 28 Matromoto Torakichi Australia S/S Air “Diver Suffocated� PERTH, Monday.— “A message from Broome states that the Japanese sampan, ‘Arafura Maru No. 10’, arrived on Sunday with the body of Torakichi Hatromoto, 20, who, while fishing for pearlshell 17 miles off Wallal, fouled his air pipe in the ship's propeller�. Reported in The Courier Mail, Brisbane, Qld. -
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 -
2000 7 14 Poore Tommy USA SCUBA American, vesssel husbandry work on a vessel in the Houston Shipping channel, reported missing, body recovered two days l;ater. No commercial qualifications. NAOCD/cDiver -
1931 9 7 Kimoto Tomekichi Australia S/S Air Japanese pear diver aged 45, lugger Mars out of Darwin, diving 40 miles from Bathurst Island, signalled to be drawn to the surface. When hauled up,, it was"found that he was paralysed through working in deep water, and although efforts to revive him continued for 16 hours, he died.� After hearing medical evidence, as well| as the reports of Mr McKay and two Japanese from the boat, a verdict was given of death from divers' paralysis. (Other reports confuse his name as Tomekichi Rimolo) Reported in the Northern Territory Times and Gazette -
1953 9 15 Nellman Tom Jack Australia Duffield Brothers 37 S/S Air “PEARL DIVER DISAPPEARS. THURSDAY ISLAND, Fri. “A Torres Strait Islander, Tom Jack Nellman (30) disappeared last Tuesday while diving for pearlshell in about 20 fathoms off Bobo, near Daru Island, from the launch ‘Laura’, owned by Duffield Brothers of Thursday Island. The ‘Laura’ returned here late last night. The police are investigating�. Reported in the Northern Miner, Charters towers, Qld -
1984 2 21 Mackey Tom UK Subsea Offshore 9 Chamber Aged 28, Ex Glasgow shipyard welder, welding instructor for Subsea Offshore. Had just completed air diver training and was hoping to go offshore as a welder/diver. Aberdeen, Chamber dive, low O2, Anoxia, Double fatality (Dave Bowmar). Welding trials, initially reported as nitrox dive and that techs put CO2 on line instead of O2 during decompression, then reported to have been at the start of an air saturation at 30', but was most likely 'just' an air dive., LP air compressor was putting out too high a pressure (divers on AGA masks) and in order to adjust the pressure, the technician turned off the supply to dive control, supervisor switched to HP gas quad and then back to LP once the compressor was back on line, but divers were unconscious. Chamber surfaced, Tom Mackey dead on site, Dave Bowmar died in hospital. HP gas quad (pink but labelled “21% oxygen�) was actually virtually pure Nitrogen (gas in quad not analysed, panel O2 analysers not on line). Glasgow Herald -
1982 3 0 Heavnor Tom USA 70 S/S Air American , aged 39. Had chartered the salvage barge “St Peter� out of Port Townsend and were inspecting a sunken oil barge off the West Whidbey Island for recoverable metal when Heavenor's air lines became entangled, his standby diver, Doug Anderson entered the water to assist on SCUBA. Neither diver surfaced. Heavnor's body was recovered later by commercial divers from the tug “Constellation� which responded to distress calls. Double fatality. Unclear if Anderson's body was ever recovered. -
1949 12 22 Whap Tom Australia “Diver Finds £3000 Pearl� Darwin, December 28.— “The largest pearl ever found off Thursday Island was recovered last week by diver Tom Whap, in the lugger ‘Galton’, owned by Burns, Philp. It is worth approximately £3000, but owing to its shape it could be worth £4000. It is pear-shaped, of perfect lustre, weighs 40 carats, and is an inch long. The diver, a full-blooded Torres Strait native, will receive 75 per cent, of the value of the pearl�. Reported in the Kalgoorlie Miner, WA. -
1934 2 27 Not Recorded Tom UK Royal Society Lecture 15 S/S Air During a lecture in London, Sir Robert Davis (Inventor of the submarine escape apparatus) described how a diver "Tom," got drunk 50' underwater. "While salvaging a ship, found himself in a air pocket, free of water. He spotted a case of whisky near by, and promptly unscrewed the mouthpiece of his diving helmet and broached a bottle. He tied his lifeline round a stanchion to avoid his enjoyment being interrupted from the surface. We became anxious as Tom sent up no cargo for two hours. When at last he reached the surface he was dead drunk. If the air pocket had filled with water, or Tom had miscalculated his capacity and failed to replace the mouth-piece of his helmet he would have been drowned." Reported in the Brisbane Courier Mail. -
1936 7 11 Kumanoto Tokeo Australia E. J. Hennessey 29 S/S Air “DEATH OF JAPANESE DIVER�. BRISBANE, Sunday, - Tho pearling lugger ‘Keriri’ reached Thursday Island yesterday, with the body of a Japanese diver, Tokeo Kumanoto (28), who died while working in16 fathoms of water at Whappo Reef. The cause of his death was heart and lung trouble. He evidently felt an attack coining on, and discarded his helmet in an effort to reach the surface, but the pressure of water was too great, and he was dead when he came to the top. Reported in the Advocate, Burnie, Tas. -
1938 4 3 Fujii Tohikazu Australia Wyben Pearling Company 38 S/S Air Pearl Diver Killed When Coral Fouled Air Line. CAIRNS, Friday. — When his air line became fouled in a coral outcrop in 21 fathoms of water 10 miles from Darnley Island in Torres Strait, a Japanese diver, Tohikazu Fujii, 26, threw off his helmet, corselet, heavy boots and gloves. His dead body floated to the surface as another diver prepared to go down to free the air line. The tender was still pumping air into the discarded helmet. ' The story of the latest Barrier Reef tragedy was told by passengers in the Wandana, which called at Cairns yesterday. Fujil was number 2 diver in the Wyben Pearling Company's lugger ‘Panten’, pearling off Darnley Island on April 3. Fuji had been below for 25 minutes when the tender signaled him to rise. His reply was 'Wait a minute. Believing that he had come on a patch of shell, the tender continued pumping. Shortly afterwards the lifeline became taut, and the captain (Captain Jube Nakai), ordered another diver to go down and clear the line. As he was putting on his helmet Fujii's body came to the surface. He was placed in a diver's suit and taken 12 fathoms below and then brought up in stages over a period of 30 minutes. There was no sign of life when Fujii was hauled on board again, and the lugger immediately returned to Thursday Island, where a doctor certified that the man had died from diver's paralysis. The opinion of the other divers was that Fujil became panic stricken when he felt, the air line tighten and at tempted to rise without his suit. Reported in the Courier-Mail, Brisbane, Qld. -
2000 1 12 Washburn Todd USA Marion Hill Associates 18 “A New Jersey diver remained missing in the Allegheny River on Monday even after authorities reduced the flow of water over a dam to aid in the search. Officials said efforts to find the body of Todd Washburn, 33, of Trenton, would continue Tuesday, but water flow would have to be returned to normal. Washburn worked for a company, Marion Hill Associates, that was inspecting the privately owned Piney Hydroelectric Station near Reesedale, Armstrong County.� (Part of the report also states that “Last year, 90 of the nation's 2500 commercial divers were killed on the job�, also that “the diver had 18 months experience as a commercial diver�. His body was recovered 5 days later downstream of the plant. No details of the actual cause of the incident. 2 Citations/$3,000. Associated Press/NACOD/cDiver -
1994 12 11 Buckley Todd USA Puget Watermen 18 S/S Air American student at Evergreen State College aged 22, time off to earn money, harvesting sea urchins. Bubbles stopped, pulled to surface, lifeline and weight belt wrapped around airline, unconscious, respiratory arrest, hypothermia and decompression illness, died in hospital. -
1990 4 18 Buckley Todd USA Puget Watermen 18 S/S Air 22 year old student at Evergreen state College, taking a gap period between semesters to earn money, had been working for 2 months on a commercial operation harvesting Sea Urchins (“Geoducks�) using surface supplied gear from a 30' fishing vessel out of Olympia. Bubbles stopped, pulled to surface not breathing, weight belt and harvesting line wrapped round airline. Flown to medical centre, transferred to hospital, died. Reported as respiratory arrest, hypothermia and decompression syndrome. Spokane Chronicle -
1986 1 10 Boyle Timothy W USA DiveTech SCUBA Crystal River nuclear power plant run by the Florida Power Corporation, his team mate, Scott Wiker, was sucked 600' up inlet to grid, Boyle died trying to rescue him with the pumps still running at 28.000 gallons per minute. Drowned. Double fatality. OSHA cited the contractor with six violations and 'they were fined nearly $5,000'. Florida Power officials admitted the divers were not warned that the pumps were operating but were not cited because they were not involved in the dive. OSHA stated that had the divers equipment met federal standards they would not have been sucked through the underwater pipe “Should have been attached to lifelines, received their air from the surface rather than SCUBA tanks and been attached to a voice communications line� Also cited for failure to have a standby diver, failure to wear inflatable buoyancy, no person in charge at site, safe practices manual not including a copy of OSHAs diving requirements and no plan to recover an injured diver from the water. Reported in the Gainesville Sun<br />OSHA Report:- Accident: 14346597 -- Report ID: 0420600 -- Event Date: 01/10/1986. TWO COMMERCIAL DIVERS WERE KILLED WHEN THEY WERE DRAWN INTO AN INTAKE PIPE WHICH CARRIED COOLING WATER TO A NUCLEAR REACTOR IN AN ELECTRIC GENERATING PLANT. THE PUMPING SYSTEM HAD BEEN MISTAKENLY LEFT RUNNING WHILE THE DIVERS WERE ENGAGED IN CLEANING AND INSPECTING ACTIVIES. DESPITE THE POOR VISIBILITY AND THE RESTRICTED CONFIGURATION OF THE WORK AREA, THE DIVERS WERE USING SCUBA GEAR WITH NO SURFACE LINE TENDING. SINCE ACCESS INTO THE DIVE AREA WAS THROUGH A MANHOLE, NO ONE TOPSIDE COULD MONITOR THE LOCATION OF THE INWATER DIVER. WHEN THE FIRST DIVER FAILED TO REAPPEAR IN A TIMELY FASHION, THE SECOND DIVER ENTERED THE WATER TO BEGIN A SEARCH FOR HIM. THE RESCUE DIVER ALSO BECAME TRAPPED IN THE MECHANICALLY INDUCED CURRENTS. ONLY AFTER THE PUMPS WERE SHUT DOWN WERE THE BODIES RECOVERED -
1989 2 11 Wells Timothy L USA Police SCUBA American police officer aged 36, Williston, North Dakota, cold water training dive in the Missouri river, found under thick ice near the shore by colleagues, tank empty, drowned -
1996 12 15 McFadden Timothy J USA SCUBA American, aged 34, described as “a commercial diver from Ventura", died diving off the fishing vessel "Sea Worthy" harvesting sea urchins, flown to a DDC but died, Daily News, California -
1986 7 20 Baldi Timothy H USA Aged 27, with one other diver, had been employed by the skipper of the 350 foot long Spanish bulk cement carrier 'Encofrador' moored off Richmond to inspect the hull after they ran over a buoy. Killed by the turning propeller USCG reported they 'had recovered 'parts of the body'. No other details. Reported in the San Jose Mercury News. -
2011 12 20 Schock Timothy USA Police SCUBA Aged 41, Chesapeake police dive team training, taking part in a team underwater search and rescue exercise at Oak Grove Lale Park. Buoyancy vest inoperable (fault with inflation button prior to dive, during dive the inflation button fell apart so that vest flooded/would not inflate) surfaced and told his partner that he could not breath, during surface swim to shore slipped away from partner's grasp and sank, recovered by a resue diver but did not respond to emergency treatment. Had been a police officer for 16 years, in the dive team for 8, ex-marine, competitive cyclist. Investigation concluded that there was no stand-by/cover boat immediately available nor emergency responders. Accident initiated by failed buoyancy compensator and compounded by jammed weight belt release (Subsequent testing of the weight releases on the other 12 divers demonstrated that they all failed to release properly). Death ruled as an accident due to to drowning though the medical examiner stated that he had an enlarged heart that contributed to his death. Investigation also concluded equipment should have been serviced by a trained technician "Dive team members lacked the expertise". Post accident, team required to do 'buddy' checks, officers not allowed to dive if equipment is not fully functional. Chesapeake News -
1991 3 13 Wallace Timothy USA 8 SCUBA Aged 27, from Winter Harbour, one of 4 men onboard the scalloper 'Yellow Bird' trying to raise another scallop dragger that had sunk at its moorings in Gouldsboro bay the day before. Reported as diving alone, surfaced, told his companions - which included his father - that he had found the boat and asked for a marker buoy which was thrown to him. He didn't catch it but disappeared below water at around 09:00 and did not resurface. Reported in the Sun Journal. -
1973 12 1 House Timothy UK Strongwork 21 British, aged 24. Semi sub drill rig "Blue Water III", possible diving on SCUBA with a comms/lifeline or might have been S/S Air (Not clear), stand-by diver found surface line cut, body never recovered. Jackie Warner later concluded that the diver had cut his own lifeline, an illogical action brought on by hypothermia, other sources infer umbilical possibly severed by anchor wire/sheave. -
2007 10 30 Loveria Tim USA Poterdam 6 SCUBA 46 year old from Conklin, New York, diving contractor out of New York, drowned Tuesday in Panguitch Lake, Utah. Failed to surface at about 1 p.m. He was removing a temporary dam his team had installed to allow water to be pumped out of a channel that crews were trying to dig deeper, Garfield County sheriff's deputies wrote in a statement. Other divers on the team found Loveria under 18 feet of water. Reported in Deseret News -
2007 2 7 Crawford Tim USA State water dept 9 SCUBA Employee of the State water dept, part of a volunteer team of approx 12 divers who inspect/maintain the water system, died in an aqueduct, Dos Amigos pumping station, 5 mph current, tethered together, reported as not sucked onto the inlet grating, but no explanation, double fatality (Alvarado) fined $16,120 for the two deaths -
1999 7 21 Nordeen Tim USA Nowesco Died 9 miles inside a tunnel dry diving operation in New Deer sewage outfall, Boston, double fatality (Juse). Both divers died as a result of bad air quality that resulted from extremely poor equipment and equipment not made to be used in a tunnel environment. Over $200,000 in fines for wilful violations. Boston Globe and others -
2001 11 13 Bray Thomas M USA Police SCUBA American aged 52, Philadelphia police force, assigned to the marine unit, recovering a buoy in the Delaware river near Fort Mifflin in Douth Philadelphia, entangled in the line, drowned. Reported in the Philadelphia Inquirer. -
1976 8 20 Yore USN Thomas John "TJ" Denmark Military US Navy diver, reported as 'Lost at sea off Greenland 20th August, declared dead 30th September". No other details. Navydivers.net -
1878 9 0 Thomas Thomas James UK S/S Air "The diver engaged on the wreck of the sunken German ironclad, the Grosser Kurfurst, who died the other day through remaining…" (The Grosser Kurfurst was an ironclad turret ship that sunk off Folkstone 31st May on her maiden voyage with the loss of around 270 of the 500 men onboard. Turned to avoid fishing boats and was rammed by accompanying vessel SMS Konig Wilhelm). Inquest was opened at the town hall, Folkstone on the 29th August. No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Alnwick Mercury/The British Newspaper Archive -
1971 2 1 Lally Thomas "Mick" Norway Comex 71 SCUBA British (Not, as widely reported, American), aged 32. Noted as the first of 55 North Sea fatalities between 1971 and 1984 by Jackie Warner, “Requiem for a diver� (He had no knowledge of RJ Lyons death in the Norwegian sector in 1967 or the double explosion fatality in 1970 off Great Yarmouth), "Ocean Viking", surface jump in a wetsuit (SCUBA with heliox), no bell, at end of dive partner Bjorn Lilleand shivering violently surfaced 5 minutes early from 3 metre stop, put in single person cage and recovered, Lally died, drowned on surface, reported 20 minute delay in recovering him from the sea, probable hypothermia -
2005 1 6 Ohryn Thomas USA Fred Devine diving and salvage 3 S/S Air Salvaging a fishing vessel off California, crushed between FV and derrick, air supply cut off plus crushing injuries. -
1935 2 11 Hopkins Thomas UK S/S Air "Diver's death. Wreck of the 'Gladiator', Portsmouth correspondent, Mr Thomas Hopkins, retired Naval warrant officer who was awarded the...No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western Morning Nws//The British Newspaper Archive -
1893 12 9 Gray Thomas USA S/S Air Described as 'an inexperienced diver' working on the wreck of the Pelican off Ashtabula (A schooner that sank in May 1893, of the crew of 7, 3 were lost, two injured). Descended to the wreck at 2 pm, sent up distress signals an hour later, but could not be pulled up. Surface crew telegraphed for a rescue diver. Distress signals ceased around 6 pm. Rescue diver, Edwin Welsh, arrived and went down around 9 pm and found that Gray had fallen though a hatch and become entangled in wires. Recovered to surface but found to be dead. “The air connections were all right and there was no water in his suit. Gray either died of fright or chills� New York Times -
1886 9 29 Boys Thomas UK Wear Commissioners S/S Air "Accident to divers. One man suffocated. At South docks Sunderland, this morning, three men were engaged in diving operations,…. " "Accident to a diver. An inquest on the body of Thomas Boys, who was drowned at Sunderland on Wednesdsay in diving operations was held..." "..diving bell accient, sates that divers were wrking for the Wear Commissioners in damming the old entrance to the South Dock...." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Manchester Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive -
1881 10 28 Macpherson Thomas UK S/S Air "A diver suffocated on Friday. A diver named Thomas Macpherson of 1 Castle Street, Hull died under… " No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Derby Daily Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive -
1946 10 5 Lam Thin Yaw Singapore Paraphrased from press reports:- "Chinese diver who submerged in his diving suit off St John's Island to cut away a pillar preventing ships coming alongside and was hauled up dead. The air pump, air line and diving suit were stated to be in order at the time. In recording his verdict of 'death by drowning', the coroner remarked that evdence did not show definitely how Lam came by his death though he did not hold any suspicions about the incident". Straits Times -
1990 12 13 Julien Thiery France Comex Topsides Opened a regen pot that was still under pressure, massive chest injuries. An interlock would have prevented this accident. PC -
1989 9 15 Arnold Thierry Brazil Comex do Brasil Saturation Bell contamination incident. Purging water from pipeline prior to final bolt tensioning on subsea tree spoolpiece. Using product/gas lift from platform. bell atmosphere contamination (Probably condensate), diver returned to bell, bellman already unconscious, flushed bell, bellman drifting in and out of conscious but managed to take divers helmet off before both passed out again. After more flushing, the bellman regained consciousness but the diver had passed out in moonpool and drowned. PC -
1992 11 20 Mavrostomos Theo France Comex Saturation The deepest trial saturation dive on record, in Toulon with the Hydra programme reaching 701 metres using Hydreliox. The deepest Hydreliox working dive is still Comex with a simulated pipeline intervention in the Mediterranean in 1988 with the Hydra 8 dives to 534 metres (The 'Atlantis' trials (Duke University, USA,) reached 686 metres in 1981, Comex ran a series of deep diving programmes (Physalie, Janus, Sagittaire, Hydra, etc) mostly in France and finally Aurora at the NHC in Aberdeen reaching 470 metres in 1993In September 2010). In September 2010, 4 Chinese divers were reported to have reached a storage depth of 480 metres with an excursion to 493 metres on Heliox. -
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. -
1992 4 17 Navarro Terry USA ProDiver, Ottawa 15 S/S Air Aged 37, Lasalle, Illinois, Commonwealth Edison nuclear Power plant, contracted in to seal a valve. To reach the repair had to descend 60', penetrate laterally 20' and then ascend 20' to reach the valve. He finished the work but then appeared to be in distress. They tried to pull him out but the line snagged. Supervisor went in and pulled him out but he died in hospital the following day. Was diving a Desco with what appears to be an inadequate air supply resulting in high CO2 and asphyxia. Three man team, supv, diver, tender. Court proceedings in 1995 concluded faulty (low) air supply/high CO2 and upheld OSHA citations. -
1987 9 18 Gibson Terry Australia SCUBA Aged 47, described as a professional shellfish diver, diving solo off Marino Rocks, Adelaide, disappeared. Weight belt and ripped vest were found on the seabed, presumed to be a shark attack. No other details. Reported in the Ledger. -
2006 8 1 Cain Terrence Spain SCUBA British, aged 47, died on a holiday SCUBA dive off Benidorm from contaminated air (CO2 poisoning) -
2019 7 29 Linston Terrence Olmsted Lock, Kentucky USA Global Diving and Salvage PULASKI COUNTY, Ill. (KFVS) - A diver died while working on the Olmsted Lock and Dam project on Saturday, June 29. According to spokesperson with Moran Environmental Recovery, LLC, a commercial diver with Global Diving and Salvage died while working on the Olmsted Lock and Dam project. Terrence Linston reportedly had a incident while he was under water and did not survive. He had been employed with Globan since 2017 and had been working on the Olmsted project for two years. Global is contracted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released the following statement on Wednesday, July 3: “Our thoughts and prayers are extended to the family members during this difficult time. We are closely coordinating with all parties as the cause of the incident is still under investigation.” - Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville District According to the Moran Environmental Recovery spokesperson, they are cooperating with authorities and the investigation is ongoing. In May 2019, a massive crane specifically built to assemble, move and lift sections of the dam was demolished. In August 2018, a ribbon cutting was held for the Olmsted Lock and Dam project. The project, which replaced 1920’s-era infrastructure, hoped to make an easier navigation of commerce on the Ohio River. The Olmsted Lock and Dam is one of the busiest stretches of Illinois’ inland water system for commercial navigation. https://www.kfvs12.com/2019/07/03/diver-dies-while-working-olmsted-lock-dam-project/ -
1991 8 15 Dennison Terence South China Sea McDermott 18 Saturation British, aged 46, one of four divers in saturation who died when the McDermott DB 29 got caught in typhoon 'Fred' and sank in the South China Sea, POB 195, 22 fatalities. Diver's HRV was the bell, but the barge developed a list and the bell could not be mated to the TUP. Saturation system had been decompressed to around 60' before the barge capsized and sank. As the barge, upside down, sank, the pressure equalised with the TUP, the door was opened and three divers (Steve Hardy, John Lyons and Terry Dennison) swam for the surface but drowned (dragged down by the suction of the barge sinking?). Their bodies were recovered from the sea. Autopsy revealed no signs of decompression illness indicating that although decompression had been accelerated, the high ppO2 had been effective. Cause of death was salt water drowning. The body of Brian Shepherd was recovered from the flooded dive system (still complete, intact and attached to the upturned hull of the barge) by saturation divers some two months later. He was located still wrapped in a hammock slung in what would have been a gas bubble in the capsized system Autopsy revealed leg injuries leading to speculation that he was injured when the barge capsized, was unable to make the escape attempt with the other three divers. The barge was never salvaged and still lies upside down under the South China Sea. Telegraph and Argus plus Personal Communication. -
1977 3 5 Lock Teng Kwang Singapore Aged 23, cleaning dive on the vessel 'Kota Setia' at the western anchorage found under the vessel without his diving equipment -
2009 2 5 Barnes Ted USA Freedom Diving Corporation 1 S/S Air American, aged 48, working under the fishing vessel “Ocean pride III� in Gloucester Harbour loop, sustained head and other injuries when his air hose and tending lines entangled in moving propeller when engine was started by crew member unaware of diving operation while he was under the boat. Ended up unconscious and wrapped into propeller, cut free and recovered by coastguard. No stand-by, lifeline ot person in charge. Quote:- "The best thing about this accident is you get to appreciate everything you have more. I now look at my wife, children and grandchildren and my life and appreciate them all the more," Barnes said. "This was just a fluke accident." -
2000 11 11 Davis Ted USA Energy Partners or D & W Welding Services 23 South Pass 28, The diver was working on a severed pipeline when he lost communication with the surface. A second diver was unable to locate the first diver. Pressure differential, sucked into a pipe when dredging cleared blocked pipe opening, body reciovered the following day. -
1990 12 6 Gunhus Ted USA USN 20 Aged 37, Reserve officer with the Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Naval Reserve Mobile Diving Salvage Unit One Detachment 522 (NRMDSU-1DET 522) attempting to salvage flying boat PBM-5 (sank in 1949) from lake Washington. Described 'a weekend training exercise'. Seattle 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 -
2009 8 3 Kasikcilar Taner Asian Turkey Aged 40, Salvage diving operation on the wreck of the Ro-ro ferry 'Hayak N' (Sank 300 metres off Bandirma as it left port en route to Istanbul on the14th September 2008 with the loss of 5 truck drivers), injured in an underwater explosion during cutting sheet metal that killed diver Rasul Kasikcilar, second diver (Tamer Kasikcilar). Reported in Netgazete.com -
1939 3 14 Tsutsui Tanaishi Australia Gregory & Co. S/S Air News from the North. BROOME. From our own correspondent. Broome, March. BROOME DIVER KILLED. Tanaishi Tsutsui (26), a Japanese diver, was accidentally killed on Tuesday. March 14, whilst engaged in pearl fishing operations on one of Gregory and Co's luggers off the Lacepe Islands, some 80 miles north of Broome. Tsutsui was a young married man whose wife is in Japan and who himself had been in Broome for the past six or seven years. A very large gathering of his confreres paid their last respects at a solemn and spectacular oriental funeral on Thursday March 16th. Reported in the Northern Times, WA. -
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 -
2005 7 4 Yamashita Takahiro Japan Scientist SCUBA Aged 30, Research scientist (Marine invertebrates) at the University of Tokyo, taking water samples, failed to surface, searchers located his body on the seabed. University of Tokyo report -
2012 3 17 Yokoyama Taizo Japan SCUBA Aged 45, one of three divers (with Mitsui Shiotsuke and Saturo Yuge) who died on the same dive, removing submerged concrete blocks from a marine farm off Tsukumi in Oita Prefecture. The three entered the water at 09:30, located unconscious underwater at 10:00, all apparently with empty tanks. Coastguard suspect faulty procedures and awaiting autopsy reports. The Japan Times online -
1998 4 8 Wilkerson Tai USA Quicksilver International Inc 51 Rebreather Aged 41, treasure hunt dive on the wreck of the Spanish ship 'Juno' which sank 40 miles off the Virginia coast in 1802. Collapsed at depth, not breathing, sent to surface by fellow divers, heart attack. -
1980 3 8 Uehara Tadeo Japan Aged 36, Japanese prawn diver from Naha (Okinawa) died after a one metre long needlfish stabbed him in the neck "It was attracted by his light". The same press report notes that a fisherman on nearby Ishigaki Island was killed when a needlefish stabbed him in the chest in September 1979. Reuters -
1990 9 12 Dol Tadayoshi Singapore Japanese diver, aged 41, killed in an underwater explosion in an underwater pile cutting operation at a lighter berth (Location unclear, reported in the Singapore press but incident could have been Indonesia or Malaysia). Straits Times -
2004 9 15 Shinde T. B. India Technip Saturation DSV "Seamec III", Bell contamination, BIBS off, unconscious, through water transfer to bell of DSV "Samudra Suraksha", recovered OK. araphrased from a report sent privately:- DSV Seamec III (Formally PS III, Nand Rewant, Shearwater Topaz) chartered long term to ONGC, pipeline leak location dive. Diver T.B. Shinde locked out and located the leak (pin prick hole at 6/0c position on the pipe). Seabed contaminated by crude oil deposits resulted in the diver's excursion umbilical being smeared with hydrocarbons. Diver returned to Bell after about 4 hours, Bellman (S. Giri) retrieved his umbilical and having noticed the crude oil deposits went on bibs. Diver entered to bell and went on bib after removing his Gas Services Reclaim Hat. After consultation with supervisors, it was decided that the umbilical would be cleaned by Bellman and Diver with Bell at depth (Reports indicate that the cleaning took 40 minutes, method of cleaning not known). Having completed the cleaning, both diver and bellman removed their bibs and blacked out. Sat supervisor on surface watched Mr. Giri drop out of the bell while Mr. Shinde lay in the bell in an unconscious state. Nearby DSV Samudra Suraksha was called for assistance. ONGC rep. on Suraksha briefs superintendent who prepares for through water transfer as the means of recovery for the unconscious diver. DSV Samudra Suraksha reaches site of incident and recovers Mr. Giri from the surface on board after launching the Zodiac. Mr. Giri is recompressed immediately in Samudra Suraksha's saturation system. Dr. Kulkarni (Hyperbaric advisor) and Seamac project team fly to site of incident. Samudra Suraksha saturation divers lock out and perform Bell Through Water Transfer and recover the unconscious diver back from Seamac III bell to Samudra Suraksha's diving bell. Diver is taken into Suraksha's sat system being administered by Dr. Kulkarni who was blown into sat to administer support to Mr. Giri. Dr. Kulkarni pronounces Mr. Giri as clinically dead. Mr. Shinde survived and was decompressed on Samudra Suraksha. It is not known why the the divers took off their BIBS or why the Bell was not flushed by the divers or the supervisor. PC. No official report in the public domain -
1915 2 4 Horry Sydney Australia 10 S/S Air Paraphrased from newspaper report:- “BAIRNSDALE, Thursday. A fatal accident happened on the railway bridge construction site to-day to a diver who was working in the Mitchell River. The air pipe attached to the diver's outfit became disconnected, and an attendant named Reid immediately drew him up. On reaching the surface the diver was dead. There was no water in his dress, but the pressure of water at the great depth had killed him. He recently came .from England and had not much experiences of diving, he had no relatives in Australia.� Reported in the Melbourne Argus -
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. -
1989 8 9 Ong Swee Kheng Singapore Commercial Diving Servces Aged 33, clearing debris from a coffer dam at the Senoko Power Station, pulled out of the water when he failed to respond to tugs on his lifeline. "Might have got entangled in a net used to sift the debris". No other details. Straits Times -
2007 11 17 Pie-Chun Sun Taipei 30 S/S Air Aged 33, diving off the commercial fishing vessel 'Hsinlienfa 168' off Turtle Island. Two divers died and two injured. Authorities stated they would prosecute (occupational negligent manslaughter) the vessel operator, Tu Chuen-yi, for improper operation of the vessel and allowing the propeller to cut all four airlines leaving the divers at depth with no air supplies. None of the divers had licences, no standby or safety equipment. -
1942 12 31 Goss, RN Sub.Lt G Sardinia Military Submarine One of 10 divers trained in the use of the Mark I chariots at the HHZ training base on Loch Cairbawn (Scotland) who boarded the 'T' class submarine P-311 with their chariots in Malta to undertake operation 'Principle', an attack on shipping in the Port of Maddalena (Sardinia). Last signal was on the 31st December as the submarine approached Sardinia. Probably sunk by a mine, submarine was reported as lost at sea with all hands. Underwater Trust, Wikipedia etc -
1942 12 31 Sargent, RNVR Sub-Lt. J Sardinia Military Submarine One of 10 divers trained in the use of the Mark I chariots at the HHZ training base on Loch Cairbawn (Scotland) who boarded the 'T' class submarine P-311 with their chariots in Malta to undertake operation 'Principle', an attack on shipping in the Port of Maddalena (Sardinia). Last signal was on the 31st December as the submarine approached Sardinia. Probably sunk by a mine, submarine was reported as lost at sea with all hands. Underwater Trust, Wikipedia etc -
1991 2 8 Wells Sub-Lt Corey Portugal Canadian Navy SCUBA Aged 27, diving off the Canadian destroyer 'Margaree', visiting the Madeira Islands. It was stated that the propeller being started had nothing to do with the death of the two divers who were inspecting the hull who both drowned after being trapped in the engine room cooling water intake pipe. Double fatality (Master Seaman William Hynes). Reported in the Toronto Star -
1941 3 6 Sutherland RN, BEM Sub Lt. Reginald Bruce UK Military S/S Air RN Clearance diver with 'P' (Port Party) from HMS Vernon, killed in Falmouth inner harbour whist trying to defuse an unexploded parachute land-mine dropped by the Luftwaffe. Diving from a boat towed by 'The Mouse', a small motor launch fitted with a Hotchkiss propulsion unit (No Propeller). His body was never found. 5 or 6 other men also died in the explosion (Lt. JF Nicholson, PO Benham, AB Tawn (Clearance Diver) , AB Wharton and one or two others, 5 of whom are buried in Falmouth Cemetery. MCDOA archives -
1990 12 0 Warrender Stuart UK STS Topsides British, drill support, ROV launch via moon pool, fell out of latches hitting handrails, crushed against container, chest and neck injuries, pronounced dead offshore. -
2012 10 18 Lyng Stig Erik Malaysia Fugro Topsides Norwegian, aged 53, servicing a tsunami warning metocean (Fugro Oceanor Wavescan) buoy off Sipadan from the MV Pendamar. Buoy lifted onto deck for maintenance after two years in the water. The last of 16 bolts holding an access lid was rusted so IP used an angle grinder. The internal atmoshere had been contaminated by gases from the batteries, resulting in an explosion which caused the lid to hit him causing fatal injuries. Reported by the Sun (Malaysia). IMCA SF 5/13 issued April 4th 2013. with detailed eport. NB Buoy manuals did highlight danger and required purging prior to access (Not done on this occassion). Procedures modified and explosion potential warning signs now used on the buoys (Similar to those already used by NOAA on their buoys) -
1977 10 7 Gilliam Stewart Topsides Diving Supervisor, killed in personnel basket transfer incident, DSV "Seaway Falcon" -
1993 10 13 Locke Stewart UK J Allan Diving Services 3 S/S Air Hired by Customs and Excise to recover £20 million worth of drugs (Cannabis) from the yatch 'Ambrosia' beached on Scotstown beah (Peterhead, Scotland). Diving contractor was fined £1,200 after some kind of legal deal. Allegations during the inquiry that he committede suicide by cutting his umbilical, Sherriff determined it was accidental death with the most probable cause being that he got into difficulties and was forced to cut his umbilical and ditch his helmet. Diving conditions in the rough shallow water were described as 'hazardous'. Criticism by the Sherriff for it only a 3 man team (the diver, a supervisor who doubled as stand-by diver and an unqualified tender), lack of involvement/supervision by Customs and Excise, lack of communication with a police diving team on site. Widow intended to sue (defunct) diving contractor and Customs and Excise. No further details. Reported in the Herald Scotland -
2019 6 21 Wingard Steven F. Dahowa Hydro power plant, Greenwich, USA Commercial Diver Systems SS Air GREENWICH — State Police are investigating a fatal accident that occurred Friday morning at a hydropower plant on the Batten Kill that claimed the life of a commercial diver. The incident was reported at the former Dahowa Hydro power plant off county Route 53, near the hamlet of Middle Falls. The diver, Steven F. Wingard, 25, of Falls Village, Connecticut, died while underwater in a pool below the hydro plant. State Police said Wingard was working for a company identified as Commercial Diver Systems to clean an underwater drain valve at the hydro plant when some sort of accident occurred. How he came to be injured was still under investigation Friday afternoon, State Police Senior Investigator Robert Stampfli said. Stampfli said Wingard was the only diver in the water, and was connected to a crew on land via an “umbilical” cord with an oxygen line. “There was some sort of event that caused them to pull him back up” and he was unconscious, Stampfli said. Exactly what occurred remained under investigation later Friday, Stampfli said. But there was no indication of foul play. The accident was reported just after 9:30 a.m. Easton-Greenwich Rescue Squad members and Middle Falls firefighters responded, but efforts to revive the man with CPR were unsuccessful. Dahowa Hydro sold the 10.5-megawatt plant to Gravity Renewables earlier this year, according to an article on Renewable Energy World’s website. Numerous streams and rivers in the region were running very high Friday after Thursday’s rain, and the Batten Kill was running at nearly triple its median flow for June 21 as of Friday morning. Stampfli said it was unclear whether the drain issue was related to the rain or was regularly scheduled maintenance. Julie Smith-Galvin, a spokeswoman for Gravity Renewables, said the company was trying to figure out what occurred as well. “Our thoughts are with Mr. Wingard’s family, friends and loved ones,” she said in an email. “We appreciate the work of all those involved in responding to this morning’s emergency call. We are working closely and cooperatively with local authorities to investigate what caused today’s tragedy.” https://poststar.com/news/local/updated-diver-dies-at-batten-kill-hydropower-plant/article_75176eb1-cc99-53dd-9963-cbc3657242e4.html -
2009 5 17 Osburn Steven Dale USA 18 SCUBA Aged 58, member of Santa Cruz Underwater Recovery team, routine training dive in Patagonia lake, lost contact with team, located after 8 minutes, unconscious, brought to surface, failed to respond to treatment. -
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 -
2003 3 20 Moore Steven Allan Canada Courtnakyle Fisheries Limited SCUBA Canadian, aged 40, one of a three man commercial sea urchin harvesting diving team in Nova Scotia, failed to surface, body recovered 3 days later. Company charged with failing to ensure workplace safety by allowing Mr. Moore to dive without a knife, secondary air supply, standby diver, recall system, diver buoy and life-line; failing to ensure safety equipment was available; failing to follow a code of practice; and failing to ensure the propeller on the vessel Doug's Dream was adequately guarded -
2012 5 3 O'Malley Steven Germany SubC Partner 2 British, Aged 48. Diving on the Alpha Ventus windfarm (28 miles north of Borkum in about 30 metres water depth) from a Danish DSV, body taken ashore in Esbjerg. Reported as becoming unresponsive/ill in the water, recovered to deck but failed to respond to treatment. Initial reports indicated a possible heart attack. Reported in the Scotsman plus German Press -
2000 6 27 Winkler Steven USA SCUBA American, aged 27, from Bellingham, professional sea cucumber harvesting off the vessel “Silver sea�, Griffin Bay, off San Juan island, critically ill, intensive care in Seattle hospital after surfacing from dive -
1989 1 30 Murphy Steven Canada St. Lawrence Seaway Authority 10 Aged 29, Lock 1 on the Welland Canal.. Another diver, Andrew Dykstra was checking a valve on the lock but became trapped against logs, Steven Murphy, the stand-by diver went in the assist and also became trapped. Both were eventually brought to the surface, Steven Murphy pronounced dead on site, Andrew Dykstra died later in hospital. No other details. Reported in the Toronto Star. -
1985 0 0 Scott Steve "Joe 90" India Stena Topsides DSV Nand Shamik, Bombay High, launching zodiac, crane came up on load, no sensor, head-ache ball pulled into sheave, wire parted, head-ache ball dropped onto zodiac/divers legs, boat folded pushing divers head into head-ache ball, died instantly -
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 -
2007 9 3 Acton Steve USA Caldive Saipem 54 Saturation Katrina' salvage ops. "Using a grinder on a fallen structure deck plate, heard a weird noise and that was it". Diver was using a hydraulic underwater grinder to cut a window into 5/8 inch steel plate. There was an underwater explosion. Deck crew on the S-355 barge reported hearing a boom and some individuals stated that they felt the shock wave of the explosion. The videotape that was recording the diver’s movements was non-operational. An unspecified number of minutes elapsed before bell partner reached unresponsive diver 1. Upon reaching diver, the standby opened the free-flow valve on his diving hat. This action caused the diving helmet to become completely detached leaving the diver’s head exposed to sea water, without access to any breathing apparatus. Diver immediately attempted to replace the helmet and hold it in place. During this time a surface standby diver was sent to assist. The bell partner, with or without the assistance of the surface diver, brought the injured diver into the bell, and following assessment while in communication with the diving physician, initiated chest compressions. Injured diver was raised to surface in the bell but pronounced dead.. Investigation ongoing. An interim technical report raised issue of potential for underwater explosion when cutting into a gas pocket with a grinder (underwater grinding 'sparks' not generally raised as an issue in risk assessments -
2006 9 4 Irwin Steve Australia Surface Swimmer Australian, TV presenter “Crocodile hunter� stabbed in the chest by a stingray during filming on the Great Barrier reef, cardiac arrest -
2006 8 17 Duque Steve Arctic USCG 6 SCUBA Diving off the USCG vessel "Healy", Alaska, under ice. Incompetence -
1997 9 12 Kielty Steve USA Magone Marine SCUBA In September 1997, a 47-year-old experienced commercial diver on an underwater pipeline construction project, who had made no dives during the previous 2-3 years used scuba gear while attaching a mooring line to a buoy anchor line. The equipment was not in good condition, and both the primary and alternate regulator were leaking and in need of repair. Shortly after he submerged, the tether line floated to the surface. After he was signaled without response, the team leader put on scuba gear, submerged, and found the diver on the sea floor with a weight belt on and both tether line and tank high-pressure hose severed. The diver was recovered, and CPR was unsuccessful. The investigation did not determine how the hose was severed, and the cause of death was listed as drowning. OSHA cited the employer for violations including inadequate training in using tools/equipment and in CPR, absence of a ready standby diver, diver not line tended, lack of a reserve tank, and rescue not conducted in a timely manner. NIOSH review of occupational diving fatalities in Alaska -
1991 8 15 Hardy Steve South China Sea McDermott 18 Saturation British, aged 33, one of four divers who died when the McDermott DB 29 got caught in typhoon 'Fred' in the South China Sea, POB 195, 22 fatalities. Diver's HRV was the bell, but the barge developed a list and the bell could not be mated to the TUP. Saturation system had been decompressed to around 60' before the barge capsized and sank. As the barge, upside down, sank, the pressure equalised with the TUP, the door was opened and three divers (Steve Hardy, John Lyons and Terry Dennison) swam for the surface but drowned (dragged down by the suction of the barge sinking?). Their bodies were recovered from the sea. Autopsy revealed no signs of decompression illness indicating that although decompression had been accelerated, the high ppO2 had been effective. Cause of death was salt water drowning. The body of Brian Shepherd was recovered from the flooded dive system (still complete, intact and attached to the upturned hull of the barge) by saturation divers some two months later. He was located still wrapped in a hammock slung in what would have been a gas bubble in the capsized system. Autopsy revealed leg injuries leading to speculation that he was injured when the barge capsized, was unable to make the escape attempt with the other three divers. The barge was never salvaged and still lies upside down under the South China Sea. Telegraph and Argus plus Personal Communication. -
1971 0 0 Hamblin Steve USA Taylor Diving and Salvage A tug was brought alongside unannounced on the opposite side of the barge from the dive station while the diver was unhooking davits. Heavy seas, barge was dragging anchors. 20' of dive hose was recovered from the tug's propeller, the diver's body was never found or recovered. PC -
1968 0 0 Asbury Steve USA Taylor Diving? Tender, drowned off the BAR 282 after a night dive stinger check'. OD -
1940 9 1 Maddison Steve Canada S/S Air Aged 70, "a diver for 32 years, met his death when he was sucked into the intake of a dam at the paper manufacturing town of Ocean Falls". Edmonton Journal -
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 -
1957 10 11 Williamson Stephen I USA Daspit Bros Marine Divers American, court case quote "engaged in the clearing of a pipe line of debris in navigable waters,and that an employee of Daspit was lifted too rapidly, causing a release of his diving mask and belt, that the vessel and its appurtenances were defective and unseaworthy and that these circumstances were the cause of decedent's death" -
2010 10 15 Allan Stephen 'Darby' Sudan Mine Action Group Landmine British, aged 52, ex marine clearance diver who had spent 30 years with the Royal Navy as a highly commended explosive ordnance expert, before joining MAG in 2006, with whom he led mine clearance teams in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Underwater Port Clearance), Lebanon and Sudan (Surface ordnance). The chief executive of MAG, said his team had cleared 1,500 explosive items in Sudan since last August and the work of the organisation had saved countless lives. (Included for information, a diver, but not working as a diver so not counted as a diving fatality TC). The News, Portsmouth -
2009 12 8 Kelly Stephen Australia Arafura Pearls Arafura Pearls pearling (farm) operation at Elizabeth Bay, about 50km northwest of Gove in Arnhem Land, 3.15pm on Tuesday. Aged 36, "He had come up from Victoria� (reported as new to the job, had started less than 12 months previously) and “was performing routine farm maintenance work, the water wasn't exceptionally deep but he went down, came up six minutes later, went down again and then when they pulled him back up he wasn't breathing." Transported 48 km to Gove Hospital failed. Doctors declared him dead on arrival in the emergency ward. Awaiting incident report. Reported by NT News.com.au -
2007 7 22 Wilson Stephen USA SCUBA Sports diver, aged 36, fatally injured when struck by lightning as he surfaced. Miami Herald -
2006 8 0 Southworth Stephen Tobago Topsides British commercial saturation diver aged 40, died suddenly in a bar on the island of Tobago. The West Lancashire coroner ruled that the father of two had suffered clogging of his coronary arteries and an enlarged heart, which caused his death. He said doctors had passed him fit to dive in May 2006 and had not picked up on any major medical problems and recorded a verdict of death by natural causes. His widow told the court her husband, a saturation diver since 1997, had flown to the Caribbean to take up a job working on pipelines. She said she had spoken to him on a daily basis in the days running up to his death and he had been complaining about pain in his leg which were stopping him sleeping. "In the 10 days before he died, they had not been diving, he had worked on the decks of the boat. That night in the bar he dozed off. When his friends tried to wake him, at closing time, they couldn't. He was rushed to Port of Spain General Hospital where he was pronounced dead. A post-mortem report, carried out in Trinidad found he died from sudden cardiac problems. A second post mortem, carried out in the UK, was unable to establish the cause of death. Reported in the Blackpool Gazette. -
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 10 14 Karamanlis Stephen Greece Aged 28, working on a dredger salvage operation in the new shipyards, accident occurred at 04:00 in the morning, transferred to hospital ashore in Rhodes but declared dead on arrival, reported as drowned. No other details. Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Islani -
2003 5 0 Harley Stephen Saudi Arabia ADAMS One of three divers (With Andrew Iles and Michael Hopley) allegedly exposed to toxic chemicals chemicals discharged from a vessel owned by Saudi Aramco, in May 2003. All three were admitted to hospital with rashes and nausea and were then readmitted for a further ten days after they experienced difficulties in breathing and became lethargic. None have been able to return to diving as an occupation. They are bringing a negligence action in the UK against the diving contractor and diving supervisor (March 2009). Details sub judice -
1997 8 0 Pickering Stephen UK SCUBA Aged 41, disappeared while salvaging cargo from a wreck off the Dorset Coast. His remains were recovered by a Dutch trawler in 2009, he was cremated in May of 2010 and his ashes laid to rest in the North Sea. Inquest held in September 2010 was told that a combination of heavy equipment and distress contributed to the death of the experienced diver on a salvage expedition on a sunken First World War ship carrying precious metals off the Dorset coast 13 years previously. “He was diving with new, heavier gas cylinders and ignored advice from fellow divers to ditch his weight belt before entering the water to make him lighter, the inquest heard. According to one colleague, Mr Pickering preferred to dive while weighed down heavily to enable him to work better in the depths of the sea. One of the four-strong team on the salvage vessel Marja said Mr Pickering appeared distressed after losing his mask when he jumped into the sea. After returning to the surface, they threw him a replacement, but despite falling a short distance from Mr Pickering, he made no attempt to grab it. They then threw a piece of rope into the water in the hope that he would reach for it. "He tried to grab for it and that's the last I saw of him." The pathologist said a cause of death could not be determined. "This would appear to be a combination of the loss of the dive mask coupled with the excess weight, which would have ended up with someone who has a degree of hypoxia through over exertion which has precipitated his collapse under the water." Dorset Police found nothing suspicious about the circumstances of the death: “The statements from the men, plus the disclosure of the new, heavier cylinders and the buoyancy problems Mr Pickering experienced, led to the conclusion that his death was an accident. Recording a verdict of accidental death, the coroner said: "I am satisfied with the accounts given by the experienced divers. "I will, on the evidence I have heard, rule out any suspicious circumstances." Yorkshire Post -
1997 0 0 Broom Stephen UK Stolt Comex Seaway Saturation Everest field, bell contamination by condensate flashing off (See IMCA SF 02/97) -
1979 10 17 Crouch Stephen UK Topsides Diving Supervisor on the DSV Star Canopus working in the Ninian Field, died in an accident "not involved in diving operations". I have still counted this as a diver at work killed offshore, but can find no details anywhere as to what the "accident" was that "did not involve diving" onboard a saturation diving vessel. Can anybody remember the incident? The only record that I have found so far was the brief announcement above in the Glasgow Herald. TC. -
1993 6 4 Bengloan Stephane France Military Rebreather Aged 26, double fatality with Eric Lechauve, night training exercise (Simulated attack) in Brest harbour. Both found entangled under a pontoon with empty cylinders. In 1996, 5 men (2 admirals, a Captain, the course lecturer and course director) were charged. Outcome unclear. Reported by www.liberation.fr: https://goo.gl/vGWrML -
2021 7 27 Walker Staff Sgt. Micah USA Military Surface Swimmer Soldier assigned to 10th Special forces at the John F Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (SWCS) in Key West, Florida, undergoing the CDQC (Combat Diver Qualification Course) drowned during pool training. "The Staff Sergeant was a student in the Special Forces Combat Diver Qualification Course, and was participating in a conditioning exercise in the pool, which stresses the students’ cardio, respiratory and muscular endurance,” the release said. During the training event, the Soldier submerged and did not resurface. The cadre immediately entered the pool and found him unresponsive, read the release. “The Dive Medical Officer attempted to resuscitate him, and he was transported to the Lower Keys Medical Center Emergency Room where he was pronounced dead following full medical intervention". Second CDQC fatality in under a year (Staff Sgt Paul Olmstead during pre-selection 'martime assessment' 23rd September 2020) -
2016 11 2 Whitcher Staff Sgt David USA Military Aged 30, from New Hampshire, died during a special forces training (Combat diver qualification course) dive off Key West, Florida. No details. Reported by CBS/AP. -
1933 9 0 Tacheuchi Sounoske Australia S/S Air Paraphrased report from the Courier-Mail, Brisbane “Japanese, master and diver of the lugger 'Ridgeon' met his death when an air pipe burst while he was diving for pearls near Cook's Reef, about four minutes after he entered the water, he signalled that he had reached the bottom, and almost immediately a distress signal was received. The engineer ordered the crew to haul up the diver. Another sharp distress signal was received. After assisting the diver aboard the crew thinking he was paralysed, after adding an extra length of air pipe, lowered the diver to five fathoms, according to the Japanese fashion of treating paralysed divers. A New Guinea boy went down twice to view the diver, and on the second occasion said he thought the diver was finished." the diver was hauled up and his diving dress was cut off. The body was conveyed to Thursday Island, where a post-mortem examination revealed that death was due to asphyxiation.� -
2012 2 10 Moneley Sorcha USA KESMARC Chamber Aged 33, from Ireland, at the facility as an observor with an interest in taking the hyperbariv treatment technology to Europe, seriously injured in the same explosion that killed Erica Marshall, airlifted to Shands (University of Florida) for treatment (head trauma). KESMARC (Kentucky Equine Sports Medicine And Rehabilitation Centre) Farm in Ocla. 12' diameter hyperbaric chamber built in 2009 by New Phase Construction used for treating horses with high ppO2. The horse from Virginia (Landmark's Legendary Affair, a 6 year old thoroughbred gelding), which was being being treated for tissue damage, was killed instantly. Two employees monitoring the horse said that about 22 minutes into the treatment, he became agitated and started to kick (conflicting statements as to whether the horse was sedated on this occasion, though it had received 4 or 5 treatments before without incident), they tried to activate an emergency decompression sequence but the horse had already kicked off a quarter inch thick protective coating. They saw a "massive spark inside the chamber and then flames", Ms Moneley left the panel to call the fire department, Ms Marshall began the decompression sequence. There was an initial explosion followed by a much larger blast that blew debris 1,200 feet, ripped off part of the roof and the side walls. The horse's steel shoes were not taped or covered "As the chamber had a irremovable protective coating that makes it unecessary". Star Banner, Florida -
2016 1 27 Birkland Sondre Norway AD Offshore SS/Air Aged 22, sucked into the bottom of a pontoon of the Transocean semi sub Henry Goodrich in the Westcom yard when a cement plug or cap lifted off the top of the pontoon as he was installing a blanking plate at the underside hull (IOGP Incident report 275) -
1929 9 10 Nabiki Sligoro Australia S/S Air "Japanese diver drowned, Perth September 17, a Japanese diver named Sligoro Nabiki was drowned while diving off Mardi Island, on the North-west coast, recently". Reported in the Mercury (Hobart) -
2010 7 21 Wesley Skiles USA 21 Rebreather Aged 52, Professional underwater photographer and explorer of underwater caves in Florida, diving 3 miles off Boynton Beach, found unconscious on the seabed by colleagues, did not respond to treatment. Gainsville Sun -
2007 1 12 Verma SK UAE Arab Tanker Services 31 S/S Air Switching gases at first stop, no gas (valve closed on HP bottle but with an 'open' tag) -
2003 1 14 Regnolio Simone Italy Fireman and Adriatica Subsea Services 10 SCUBA Italian, 33 years old. River Tiber near Rome, Castel Giubileo, power plant water intake partially blocked, S/S Air diver trapped by differential pressure, No appointed supervisor or stand-by, Fire brigade attended, rescue diver in SCUBA on lifeline, he drowned, trapped diver managed to free himself. Fire brigade supv on site, Fire brigade diving team leader (not on site) and director of diving contractor (not on site) prosecuted. La Republica.it -
2010 1 4 Renou Simon Italy Fireman 1 Paraphrased from Italian Press Reports:- “ROME - a diver was trapped underwater while working on the maintenance at the dam Castel Jubilee to the north of the capital, where he was working to unlock one of the four sluices which had been raised to drain the high water from recent heavy rains and had not closed completely His diving partner immediately gave the alarm and have started relief operations. 
Attempts to rescue the diver were made difficult by the water pressure that passes through the slot of the lock, pinning him against t. e wall. Initial rescue attempt failed and a rescue diver from the fire brigade went in with a rescue rope which he secured to the cylinder harness and the diver was successfully pulled to the surface (Hospitalised with hypothermia, but recovered). As the working diver was recovered, the fireman disappeared from sight (the torrent was rising) in a cascade of logs/debris. He was eventually recovered by pulling on his surface line. Might have been sucked into a suction pump that was put into operation to lower the water level or simply hit by debris. “Something had ripped off the mask and his face was cyanotic and blood was pouring from his nose." working diver might have had surface supply (he had comms and a lifeline, Fireman appears to have been on a lifeline but might have been on SCUBA gear. Reported in 'La Repubblica' -
1982 0 0 Andersom, USN SI Martin USA USN Died in a diving accident related to recovering a torpedo -
1933 11 13 Nishi Shotaro Australia Roy Edwards 33 S/S Air Japanese pear diver, aged 48, lugger belonging to Mr Roy Edwards working out of Darwin. 60 miles Northwest of Bathurst Island, spent 6 hours doing in water therapeutic decompression the day before, not fully cured, dived the next day to continue treatment (and gather pearls!). Apparently lost control of his air valve, major squeeze, pulled up bleeding profusely from nose, ears etc, died. Reported in the Courier Mail and Canberra Times -
1935 12 5 Miyao Shitarao or Ichitaro Australia Topsides BRISBANE, Saturday. — When the pearling lugger ‘Aldinia’ reached Thursday Island today she had on board two iead men. They were a Japanese diver, Ichitaro Miyao, 35, and a Mapoon native, Sammy Myquick, 17. The lugger was working at Warrior island with the diver down five fathoms. When no signals had been received for some time the captain went down and found Miyao dead in his driving dress. As the lugger was returning to Thursday Island Myquick was found dead in the hold. 'The Government officer at the island found that the diver had died from heart failure, while the aborigine had been poisoned by fumes from a broken exhaust pipe in the engine. The Mail, Adelaide, SA -
1903 10 1 Saki Shiro Australia 26 S/S Air Japanese, aged about 24, pearling grounds at Cape Keith. After a dive lasting about 20 minutes spent 5 minutes on deck before complaining of feeling unwell, died 4 hours later. Reported in the Northern Territory Times and Gazette -
1934 6 15 Ota Shigara Australia 18 S/S Air Aged 25, master of the lugger 'Torenia', pearl diving in the Torres Straits. He dived for 25 minures in 10 fathoms, sent up a bag of shell, but then his air line became trapped in rocks, he ditched his gear and surfaced without helmet and corselette, complaining of feeling weary and sick. Another diver, Tomoza Conokawa from a nearby lugger, was called to help as the crew believed he was suffereing from divers's paralysis and took Ota below for two hours. When they surfaced Ota was still ill, fell asleep and died. Later, a doctor concluded he was given incorrect treatment and had actually died from heart failure. The Sydney Morning Herald. -
1999 3 12 Tyre Shelley Tortola SCUBA American recreational diver aged 46, headmistress of a private school in Massachusetts, expert diver. Married David Swain in 1993. Federal prosecutor in Rhode Island wrote that there was "overwhelming circumstantial evidence proving that Swain murdered his wife�, evidence included Swain's "unusual behavior" after Tyre's death, his alleged financial motivation and the condition of Tyre's scuba equipment, which experts suggest "indicate that a violent struggle took place under water." A lawyer for Tyre's parents argued Swain killed his wife for money and had been involved in a romantic relationship with another woman. He said Swain knew he would not have been entitled to any money if he divorced his wife because of the couple's prenuptial agreement. Alleged that Swain cut off her air supply and held her in the water until she drowned. -
1998 4 8 Wright Shannon Lee USA Aged 27, commercial sea cucumber harvesting operation off the fishing vessel 'Marlin' (based in Port Angeles) in the Strait of Juan de Fuca . Apparently got into difficulties as he surfaced from his third dive of the day. No details -
2011 8 0 ?? Shafiq Qatar El Safwa Topsides Egyptian diver working on the Pearl Island residential development, working in a confined space, gas leak. Triple fatality with two killed on site, the third died in hospital. Initially not reported in the public domain but Qatari authorities now investigating. PC -
1998 0 0 Levi Sgt. Yuval Israel IDF SCUBA “12 years ago, the unit suffered personal tragedy caused by exactly this type of an incident. Sgt. Yuval Levi (dec.), who at the time was a diver in the unit, went with his partner on a routine mission to check a merchant vessel which has requested to anchor in the Haifa port. After descending into the water, the vessel activated its propellers, and Sgt. Levi was killed. His partner in the mission was saved� Quoted in an IDF article in August 2020 -
1983 6 21 Yeo Sgt. Soon Seng Singapore Commando Surface Swimmer Aged 22, First Commando Battalion, diver training circuit swimming exercise with 7 other trainees on 13th June. Surfaced in distress before sinking from sight, found unconcious in the sea and taken to Toa Payoh Hospital where he died 8 days later of bronchial pneumonia. Coroner recorded a verdict of death by misadventure. Straits Times -
1994 4 8 Eriksen Sgt. Morten Denmark Navy 8 Machine sergeant on the mineseeper 'Flyvefisken', reported as having died during a routine dive in Helnaes Bay. No other details. Reported by navalhistory.dk -
1960 7 15 Burris Sgt. Kiefer C USA Military SCUBA American police officer, Kansas, Missouri, died during a training dive -
2016 9 22 Winters Sgt. Kerry USA Police SCUBA Aged 51, 30 year veteran of the Ulster County (NY) Sheriff's office, died in a dive training exercise at Ashokan Resevoir. No details. Reported the Daily Freeman, Police news -
2005 3 15 Picallo Sgt. Justo Jesus Indonesia Spanish Navy SCUBA 36 year old Naval officer, part of tsunami relief force, conducting a routine hull cleaning and inspection dive on the MS “Galicia� off Band Aceh. No details -
2005 6 15 Ong Sgt. Jia Hui Singapore Army Aged 24, Army specialist, training exercise in marine counter terrorism off Changi Naval Base, discovered at around 17:40, stand-by diver sent in and 'found the diver in about 5 minutes'. He was given treatment at the medical centre before being evacuated to Changi General Hospital within half an hour of the incident but was pronounced dead around 19:00. No other details. Straits Times -
2016 7 14 Austin Sgt. Jason USA Paramedic SCUBA Aged 36, volunteer EMS paramedic with the Washington County-Johnson undergoing diver training at South Holiston Lake, 'working on diver certification', reported as non-work related but it was part of training to do deep diving and he was training with the team. Reported by Johnsoncitypress.com -
2009 12 7 Azoulay Sgt. Gal Israel Naval Commando 3 Rebreather Aged 19. Night training dive for Israeli Naval Commando, simulation of combat dive in enemy port. “The dive was a group exercise, carried out in pairs, simulating a combat dive at an enemy port. The divers had completed similar exercises dozens of times since the beginning of the course. The exercise was supervised by Navy commandos on boats as well as on the beach, and an ambulance and a medic were standing by. The dive was supposed to last two or three hours, and each diver was to take turns being the lead diver. Some 90 minutes after the dive began (Around 02:00), when Azoulay became lead diver, he stopped responding to the routine once-a-minute check. When his partner realized that he was not responding, he carried him to the surface and fired a flare gun to mark their location. Within seconds, a boat arrived and Azoulay was given CPR. He was pronounced dead on shore 40 minutes later.' investigation by Israeli Defence Force concluded that he died from oxygen poisoning. One press reports that this was the first fatal accident in training for the unit since 1995, another states that an 18 year old soldier from the same unit was killed during a training exercise designed to “test underwater breathing about three years ago� Jerusalem Post -
1987 11 18 Batuecas Sgt. Francisco Javier Arroyo Spain Army Army engineer died during a training dive at the Navy diving centre in Cartagena whilst on a diving course. Reported as 'death may be due to natural causes and not an accident' by the forces spokesman, but no details. Reported in 'El Pais' -
2010 5 18 Carvalho Sgt. Andre Luiz dos Santos Brazil Navy Navy diver, Rio Naval base on the Island of Mocangue, went missing during a diving exercise, body found by SAR team three hours later. No details -
2004 2 16 McLellan Sgt William Germany Army SCUBA REME Officer based at Osnabruck, routine exercise in the river weser with two colleagues, drowned, faulty SABA gear (SABA was condemned as unsafe by a 2002 MOD inquiry into two previous deaths by drowning) -
1942 12 8 Leone Sgt Salvatore Gibraltar Military Submarine Three Italian Navy divers were killed by depth charges by British harbour defences at Gibraltar during an attack by “Human Torpedoes� from a mother ship (the ‘Olterra’). Among the dead were Lt Licio Visintini, commander of the torpedo unit, Petty Officer Giovanni Magro and Sergeant Salvatore Leone, from Sicily. Sgt. Leone's body was never found, he was awarded the Medaglia d'oro al Valor Militare and a memorial was erected in the Community Gardens in Taormina (his home town in Sicily) on the 50th anniversary of the attack. The memorial includes a rebuilt torpedo ('maiale', Italian for 'pig', a reference to it's poor handling) and a description of the events. Wikipedia and other historical sources -
2009 9 16 McCloskey Sgt Ist Class Shawn Afghanistan US Special Forces 0 Topsides Aged 33-year-old , killed by a roadside IED, Special Operations Diver Supervisor (amongst many qualifications) serving in Helmand province. Enlisted into the U.S. Army in January of 2002 as a Special Forces candidate. He completed the Special Forces Qualification Course in May 2004. (Included for information, a diver, but not working as a diver so not counted as a diving fatality TC). Reported by Fayette County News. -
2000 6 2 Soffregen Sgt Alane USA Police 0 Female American police marine unit diver, aged 50, drowned during a training exercise 1 mile off Chicago waterfront. -
2002 10 14 Fedin Sergy USSR Topsides Village of Slavyanka, Diving compressor operator, cylinder failed during pumping operations, lost one leg, other severely injured. Undersea Review -
2013 8 6 Quiroga Sergio Daniel Uruguay Belfi-Techint or Stora Enso 7m Unknown Tuesday August 6th 2013 - Uruguay. Quiroga, Sergio Daniel, 2nd Corporal, aged 40, married, three children, Uruguayan Navy Diver with 21 years in the military, 16 as a diver, subcontracted to work for Belfi-Techint (working for main contractor Montes del Plata or for a Swedish company Stora Enso - conflicting reports or maybe just one of those multi-national organisations), on construction of a new dock in Puerto de Conchilllas (region of Colonia, 240 kilometres NW of Montevideo) , depth 7 metres, lifting/shackle operation, lines entangled, trapped underwater, drowned (not clear if S/S air or SCUBA plus communication line). -
2012 3 1 Not Recorded Sergio Spain 40 SCUBA Aged 21, student at the Alicante Marine and Fisheries Institute, enrolled in a profesional diving course at the college, was on a training dive with a teacher and three other students to 40 metres, took out mouthpiece, swallowed water, panicked and made emergency ascent without stops. Given oxygen therapy and transferred ashore to a hyperbaric centre and treated for ommitted decompression. The teacher and one other student who assisted him to the surface undertook another dive to complete their decompression stops. The report commented that tests to assess students prior to being allowed to take the diving course (Swimming, breath holding for a minute and an 18 metre free dive) were discontinued 5 years ago and that has resulted "in a huge deficiency in the quality of the students" Reported by Informacion.es -
2010 4 9 Bondrescu Sergeant-Major Emilian Marius Romania Fireman 5 Aged 35 or 36, had worked as a diver for 15 years with the Dolj fire services (ISU), on his day off, hired to work at the village of Radovan on the dam on lake Fantanele, asked to seal the entrance to a drainage pipe. Sucked under, drowned. Took two days to recover the body as nobody could safely get near the outlet. Diving solo, no team, no lifeline. Wife and four year old daughter. www.gds.ro -
2010 9 17 Loghin Sergeant Marius Romania Fireman Aged 32, diver in the ISU (Emergency services) with two colleagues went down into a well in the village of Radauti Prut to recover a man, overcome by CO fumes from a water pump, pronounced dead after an hour and a half artifical respiration. Two colleagues (Iulian Todirel aged 25 and the section leader, Major Narcis Jachal aged 33) were hospitalised first in Darabani City Hospital then transferred to Botsani County hospital. The 33 year old man they went to rescue also died. Discussion after the event centred on apparent lack of training (recognising a contaminated environment) and failure to intiate/use Hyperbaric Oxygen treatment (HBOT) for CO poisoning. Realitea.net -
1975 8 2 Boulay Serge Italy Comex Topsides Oilfield diving. Oxygen transfer inside a container on deck of the Glomar V, O2 leakage, possibly exacerbated by dust, flash fire. Hot weather, three crew were only wearing shorts. Died in hospital. Triple fatality (with Philipe Salvatori and Noel Shneider ). PC -
1900 3 5 Obashi Seihachi Australia S/S Air "The Under Secretary to the Treasury has been informed that the lugger ‘Nautilus’, which arrived at Thursday Island on the 10th, reports that a Japanese diver named Seihachi Obashi was drowned near Darnley on the 5th instant through the air-pipe breaking while he was diving". The Brisbane Courier, Qld -
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 -
1986 1 10 Wiker Scott W USA DiveTech SCUBA Aged 26, cleaning inlets of Crystal River nuclear power plant run by the Florida Power Corporation, cleaning filters on the cooling water inlets, pumps running at 28,000 gallons per minute sucked him 600' up inlet to grid, drowned. His team mate, Timothy Boyle, drowned trying to rescue him with the pumps still running. Double fatality. OSHA cited the contractor with six violations and 'they were fined nearly $5,000'. Florida Power officials admitted the divers were not warned that the pumps were operating but were not cited because they were not involved in the dive. OSHA stated that had the divers equipment met federal standards they would not have been sucked through the underwater pipe “Should have been attached to lifelines, received their air from the surface rather than SCUBA tanks and been attached to a voice communications line� Also cited for failure to have a standby diver, failure to wear inflatable buoyancy, no person in charge at site, safe practices manual not including a copy of OSHAs diving requirements and no plan to recover an injured diver from the water. Reported in the Gainesville Sun<br />OSHA Report:- Accident: 14346597 -- Report ID: 0420600 -- Event Date: 01/10/1986. TWO COMMERCIAL DIVERS WERE KILLED WHEN THEY WERE DRAWN INTO AN INTAKE PIPE WHICH CARRIED COOLING WATER TO A NUCLEAR REACTOR IN AN ELECTRIC GENERATING PLANT. THE PUMPING SYSTEM HAD BEEN MISTAKENLY LEFT RUNNING WHILE THE DIVERS WERE ENGAGED IN CLEANING AND INSPECTING ACTIVIES. DESPITE THE POOR VISIBILITY AND THE RESTRICTED CONFIGURATION OF THE WORK AREA, THE DIVERS WERE USING SCUBA GEAR WITH NO SURFACE LINE TENDING. SINCE ACCESS INTO THE DIVE AREA WAS THROUGH A MANHOLE, NO ONE TOPSIDE COULD MONITOR THE LOCATION OF THE INWATER DIVER. WHEN THE FIRST DIVER FAILED TO REAPPEAR IN A TIMELY FASHION, THE SECOND DIVER ENTERED THE WATER TO BEGIN A SEARCH FOR HIM. THE RESCUE DIVER ALSO BECAME TRAPPED IN THE MECHANICALLY INDUCED CURRENTS. ONLY AFTER THE PUMPS WERE SHUT DOWN WERE THE BODIES RECOVERED -
1997 9 2 Loader Scott Marc Singapore From New Zealand, died in a diving accident whilst working on the hull of the vessel 'Sebastion Tong By' No other details, Straits Times -
2005 7 20 Shaw Scott USA USN Topsides Aged 29, U.S. Navy diver with 11 years decorated service was killed and another injured in a single-vehicle accident at Blackwater USA's training facility in Moyock Wednesday. The Gunner's Mate 1st Class and Aviation Structural Mechanic 3rd Class Alejandro Delapena, 23, were thrown from a Jeep as the vehicle rolled on a sharp turn after they had completed training. -
1999 8 9 Mercer Scott USA Titan Marine Underwater oxy arc explosion, improperly vented tank. Offshore Diver. Also reported as "Diver was killed from a build-up of gases while welding on a salvage operation. Diver had not vented for gases to escape. USCG Findings: 1) Mercer was the diving supervisor of this operation. He was diving at the time without leaving a designated individual as supervisor topside while he was in the water, directly against industry policy. Mercer was Titan’s representative on the ADC BoD and therefore should have especially known industry policy better than anyone. 2) All areas were suppose to be vented first before any welding started. However, there was no records kept and consequently, Mercer begin welding in one of those areas that had not yet been vented. NAOCD/cDiver -
1999 0 0 Lilly Scott USA Global American, kidnapped in Nigeria, he was released and then returned to America where he was attending LST training when he was admitted to hospital in Lafayette and subsequently died of malaria. Reported on Offshore diver website -
1989 1 15 Gassner Scott USA 12 SCUBA Aged 20, diving from the 'Char Lo II' out of Cortez, Had joined the vessel one month earlier (Temporary job, he wanted to join the police force). Had been in the water about an hour, signalled the surface to pull up his catch, apparently stopped breathing. Pulled up unconscious, failed to respond to treatment, reported as 'accidental drowning' but no explanation. Not clear whether it was a three or four man crew, but two divers were in the water simultaneously. St Petersburg Times -
1976 9 3 Critchfield Scott USA Aqua Hut 4 SCUBA Aged 22, Bowling Green Country Club Golf course, working on a submerged pump supplying a sprinkler system, colleague "Turned on the pump at a pre-arranged signal", about 30 seconds later the diver 'came struggling to the surface'. He went to get a rope but when he returned, the diver had disappeared. The diver's body was recovered about 20 feet from the shore. Possible electrocution, but no details. Toledo Blade. -
2012 3 17 Yuge Saturo Japan SCUBA Aged 45, one of three divers (with Mitsui Shiotsuki and Taizo Yokoyama) who died on the same dive, removing submerged concrete blocks from a marine farm off Tsukumi in Oita Prefecture. The three entered the water at 09:30, located unconscious underwater at 10:00, all apparently with empty tanks. Coastguard suspect faulty procedures and awaiting autopsy reports. The Japan Times online -
2008 11 21 Grewal Satpal Singh India ONGC Topsides Indian, aged 52, diver was working on deck of the MSV “Hal Anant� with a grinding machine, wheel disintegrated, pieces entered his left eye/scalp, medivac ashore but declared dead on arrival at hospital. -
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. -
1984 2 0 McKerlich Sarge UK ? 12 SCUBA (Elder brother of Jock McKerlich who died in the late 70s). Scallop diving? Ex sat diver, MFV "Boy John", Plock of Kyle. First dive after misunderstanding with diving doctor, he should never have returned to diving after a major deck accident offshore. -
1986 7 15 Anderson RE Sapper Vincent UK Navy Topsides Aged 19, Royal Engineer, one of three men undertaking a two day diver aptitude training course at Horsea Island, collapsed and died during a mud run, wearing a dry suit on what was described as the hottest day in July, his two companions were also hspitalised with heat exhaustion. The Royal Naval surgeon said that his interrnal temperature recorded when the body arrived at hospital was 42 degrees but that even so he might have been saved if he had been given intravenous hydration when he first collapsed. An aermy spokesman said that "It has to be remembered that this run was a normal part of the routine. Hundreds have gone through it before without any ill effects". The Glasgow Herald -
2009 1 31 Greenfield Sapper Sean Afghanistan Canadian soldier Topsides Aged 25, died after his armoured vehicle hit a roadside bomb about 40 kilometres west of Kandahar. He was a member of 24 Field Engineer Squadron, 2 Combat Engineer Regiment serving with the 3rd Battalion of the Royal Canadian Regiment battle group. He was described by Padre Roy Laudenorio as a dependable combat engineer and diver. His Commander described Greenfield as an exceptionally fit soldier who recently completed a combat diver's course and aspired to join Canada's elite JTF2 special forces team. (Included for information, a diver, but not working as a diver so not counted as a diving fatality TC) Reported by CBC.ca -
1930 6 9 Marumoto Sanzo Australia 38 S/S Air Japanese diver, pearling west of Booby Island (Near Thursday Island), "Air pipe burst in 21 fathoms" The Advocate, Tasmania. “Japanese Diver Drowned. His airpipe bursting in 21 fathoms of water on Sunday, west of Booby Island, in Thursday Island waters, a Japanese diver, Sanzo Marumoto, was drowned. There were no suspicious circumstances. advice to this effect has been received by the Cairns police authorities�. Reported in the Cairns Post, Qld. -
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 -
2011 1 19 Saes Sandro Brazil 26 SCUBA Aged 42, city of Florianopolis, carrying out survey for repairs to the Hercilio Luz bridge (Longest suspension bridge in Brazil at 821 metres long, built 1922) with one other diver but appears to have been a solo dive. Dive was meant to last 20 minutes, after 35 minutes partner asked for help. As fire brigade commenced search operations, diver's body came to the surface. No response to treatment. Reported as acute respiratory failure by drowning. Equipment reported as being in order. Work was resumed a month later with a new diving contractor (North Star) using three divers and a supervisor with a DDC on site. No other details. Reported by Terra Noticias -
2008 7 16 Huenante Samuel Arturo Nahuelhuaique Chile Fish Farm Chilean aged 38, Samuel Arturo Nahuelhuaique Huenante died after diving on a Mainstream salmon farm in Calaco near Calbuco, south of Puerto Montt. Dive should not have taken place (The port was closed for diving operations by the authorities for bad weather). According to the Santiago-based NGO Ecoceanos, he was the 56th salmon industry worker to perish in the past two and a half years (includes 17 divers), he was the 5th diver to be killed in 2008. Overall the industry employs an estimated 4,000 such divers. No details Patagonia Times -
1985 0 0 Yacob Samsi bin Malaysia BUE Malaysia SCUBA Diving off the DB Thor (8 point anchored crane barge, built 1972 from a 20-year-old vessel (The ‘Veedol’ built 1955) which was cut in half (The stern section was converted to a bulk oil carrier). Its old bow was towed to Rotterdam and used as the basis for a new vessel, ‘WS Thor’, IMO No 8626898, launched in 1974, a diving support derrick pontoon for operation in the North Sea. It was fitted out with, among other things, a diving bell, compression chambers, and pile-driving hammers. In 1982 she was renamed the DB Thor, in 1989 she became the McDermott DB 52, final fate of the vessel is not known ). The diver had swum a line under the barge and was being recovered to deck in a diving basket when it was hit by the swell and he fell out. He had used the line as a lifeline during his swim but had tied it off to the basket. Body never recovered. PC -
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 -
1935 12 5 Myquick Sammy Australia BRISBANE, Saturday. — When the pearling lugger ‘Aldinia’ reached Thursday Island today she had on board two iead men. They were a Japanese diver, Ichitaro Miyao, 35, and a Mapoon native, Sammy Myquick, 17. The lugger was working at Warrior island with the diver down five fathoms. When no signals had been received for some time the captain went down and found Miyao dead in his driving dress. As the lugger was returning to Thursday Island Myquick was found dead in the hold. 'The Government officer at the island found that the diver had died from heart failure, while the aborigine had been poisoned by fumes from a broken exhaust pipe in the engine. The Mail, Adelaide, SA -
2012 12 7 Kolo Samiu Tonga S/S Air Aged 30, fishing (illegally using hookah gear) for sea cucumber in Ha'afeva (Ha'apai island) from decompression illness. Noted as the third fatality using illegal diving equipment in the last year (The other fatalities ocuured on the 30th October 2012 and 9th December 2010) but the victims were not named). Reported by Matangi, Tonga online -
1980 4 16 Novello Sam A Turkey USN Topsides Enlisted in the United States Navy at the outbreak of the Second World War. After seeing heavy action aboard a destroyer in the Pacific Theater, he continued his naval service as a salvage diver, achieving the rank of Master Chief Boatswain's Mate. In the mid-1960s he began a 15 year partnership with the Turkish Navy, helping establish a professional school for Turkish naval divers after which he was assigned to the American Embassy in Istanbul as a senior naval representative. He and his driver were shot by terrorists as he drove to work (One was killed in the subsequent police chase, the other two caught, tried and executed later). Washington Star and naval records. Included here as a he was a career professional diver 'at work' -
1997 5 19 Kudin Salleh Singapore Aged 41, one of two experienced divers (the other diver was Aminnuddin Kassim) killed clearing debris from the cooling inlets of the petrochemical plant at Pillau Ayer Merbau on the same afternoon. Differential Pressure incident but no details. Straits Times -
1904 12 18 Hatrickichi Sakamoto Australia Topsides Apparently murdered by two Malays. Data to add, TC -
1935 11 1 Yachie Sahden Bin Australia 37 S/S Air "Malay Diver's Death While Pearl Fishing". Perth, Friday, "Sahden Bin Yachie (24), a Malay Pearl diver, died off the coast of Broome after having operated at 20 fathoms from 7 am to 4 pm. When Yachie was pulled up he complained of paralysis symptoms, and for several hours after was subjected to three further stagings at various depths to counter the effects. It was thought that he had been cured, but four hours later he died after a convulsive fit. Word of this tragedy, which happened on November 1, was received by police today (3rd January, 1936). reported in The Barrier Miner, Broken Hill, NSW. Another report sates "MALAY DIVER'S DEATH. The report of the death of a Malay diver, Sahdan Bin Yachie, apparently from paralysis due to deep water diving, was received from Broome by the Commissioner of Police (Mr. D. Hunter) yesterday. The diver was engaged on the pearl lugger Esquimaux, and replaced the first diver, who was sick, on October 31. He came to the surface at 5.30 pm, complaining of sickness. The first diver ordered him to be staged.' This process was continued until midnight, when the diver stated that he was feeling well. He suffered a relapse, however, and after an unsuccessful attempt to equip him for further staging he died" The West Australian. -
2011 8 0 William Sabri Qatar El Safwa Topsides Egyptian diver working on the Pearl Island residential development, working in a confined space, gas leak. Triple fatality with two killed on site, the third died in hospital. Initially not reported in the public domain but Qatari authorities now investigating. PC -
1982 1 16 Shelton, USN SA Leslie C USN US N Submarine “Grayback�, converted for SEAL deployment with diver lockout and SDVs (Swimmer Delivery Systems). Onboard decompression chamber accident during launch/recovery cycle, five fatalities, one survivor. The Bulletin -
2008 11 13 Barklay S. USA Global Industries Saturation DSV “Sea Lion� sinking off Fourchon, 4 divers in saturation at 375', no HRV, deliberately grounded. All 4 divers transferred to bell, bell lifted to deck and transferred to “Global Pioneer� and locked onto Pioneer sat system. Transfer took 90 minutes. -
2004 9 15 Giri S. India Technip Saturation DSV "Seamec III", Bell contamination, BIBS off, unconscious, fell out of bell, floated to surface, died. Paraphrased from a report sent privately:- DSV Seamec III (Formally PS III, Nand Rewant, Shearwater Topaz) chartered long term to ONGC, pipeline leak location dive. Diver T.B. Shinde locked out and located the leak (pin prick hole at 6/0c position on the pipe). Seabed contaminated by crude oil deposits resulted in the diver's excursion umbilical being smeared with hydrocarbons. Diver returned to Bell after about 4 hours, Bellman (S. Giri) retrieved his umbilical and having noticed the crude oil deposits went on bibs. Diver entered to bell and went on bib after removing his Gas Services Reclaim Hat. After consultation with supervisors, it was decided that the umbilical would be cleaned by Bellman and Diver with Bell at depth (Reports indicate that the cleaning took 40 minutes, method of cleaning not known). Having completed the cleaning, both diver and bellman removed their bibs and blacked out. Sat supervisor on surface watched Mr. Giri drop out of the bell while Mr. Shinde lay in the bell in an unconscious state. Nearby DSV Samudra Suraksha was called for assistance. ONGC rep. on Suraksha briefs superintendent who prepares for through water transfer as the means of recovery for the unconscious diver. DSV Samudra Suraksha reaches site of incident and recovers Mr. Giri from the surface on board after launching the Zodiac. Mr. Giri is recompressed immediately in Samudra Suraksha's saturation system. Dr. Kulkarni (Hyperbaric advisor) and Seamac project team fly to site of incident. Samudra Suraksha saturation divers lock out and perform Bell Through Water Transfer and recover the unconscious diver back from Seamac III bell to Samudra Suraksha's diving bell. Diver is taken into Suraksha's sat system being administered by Dr. Kulkarni who was blown into sat to administer support to Mr. Giri. Dr. Kulkarni pronounces Mr. Giri as clinically dead. Mr. Shinde survived and was decompressed on Samudra Suraksha. It is not known why the the divers took off their BIBS or why the Bell was not flushed by the divers or the supervisor. PC. No official report in the public domain -
2001 10 4 Udalov S. USSR 4 S/S Air Aged 44 While working on unloading the cargo from the wrecked ship "Volgo-Don-145" Air hose, cut by the piece of metal, diver died. No details. Undersea Review -
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. -
2012 4 5 Craig Ryan USA Triangle Diving, Bermuda 3 Rebreather Aged 25, Canadian, described as an experienced commercial and technical diver, working as a diving instructor in Bermuda, died whilst using a closed circuit rebreather in 9' of water off Grotto Bay. The owner of triangle Diving Bermuda - his employer - is quoted as saying "Technical divers are used to losing people. We're on the cutting edge, exploring new frontiers and with any type of new frontier you will always have losses. We are experts in technical diving and have all the certifications, but accidents can happen". Bermuda Sun. -
2006 8 1 Erter Ryan USA 44 Vermillion VR 250, Remington Oil and Gas No formal reports are available yet. Diver apparently died in the deck chamber after recompression for suspected DCS ( on surfacing, complained of headaches and blurred vision) following a normally executed dive to approximately 150 FSW. Employer has released no information regarding the accident and the diving community awaits the reports from the Coast Guard and the MMS