Jump to content

Incidents List

  1. Year Month Day Surname Forenames Location Contractor Client Depth Type of Diving Details
  2. 1997 0 0 Edmonds Graham UK Stolt Comex Seaway Saturation Everest field, bell contamination by condensate flashing off (See IMCA SF 02/97)
  3. 1997 0 0 Not Recorded UK Subsea “Mudslide, circumstances unknown� Probably double report Gary Carey fatality in August 1996,
  4. 1996 8 10 Carey Gary A UK Subsea Offshore 100 Saturation British, aged 38. DSV "Discovery", Ness subsea manifold. Crushed by wellhead blown off base by locked in pressure Mobil/Cooper Cameron were fined £175,000 and £45,000 respectively.
  5. 1996 4 15 Lesley Vincent Charles UK SCUBA Professional scallop diver in Orkney (North of Scotland). No details PC
  6. 1995 7 31 Westell Bradley UK Stena 26 Saturation British. DSV "Orelia". Shallow saturation, DP, tied off umbilical released, caught in thruster. Head injuries and multiple trauma. Supervisor fined for erasing black box tape, family awarded £104,000 in compensation, Contractor fined £200, 000
  7. 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.
  8. 1989 11 8 Rig 'Interocean II' UK Whilst on tow to a new location in the Southern North Sea ran into a gale with 85 mph winds and 25 foot seas. Lost one of its towlines, the coast guard was notified and two helicopters were scrambled from Bristow's North Denes base in Norfolk to extract 43 of the rig's 51 crew. The first chopper reached the rig 30 minutes later to find the rig pitching and rolling, with the helideck tilted at 10 degrees. In driving rain, with the rig heaving up to 25 feet, the first 10 crew were airlifted and flown to a neighbouring platform. The second chopper arrived to find the rig corkscrewing in heavy seas, resulting in the need for the pilot to reverse his chopper onto the helideck. After two more extractions, only 11 men were left on board, of which eight were expecting to remain behind as a skeleton crew. The first chopper returned for the last extraction but was unable to find the rig as the final towline had parted, allowing the rig to drift away. It became obvious that this would be the last landing attempted and the remaining crew were advised to abandon the rig due to the increasingly difficult conditions. The last 11 men had to crawl across the helideck before the chopper departed. Several minutes later, the Interocean II capsized and sank as a result of structural failure and flooding. Helicopter pilots all received the Queen's Award for Gallantry for the courage shown during the rescue. Reported in the Times
  9. 1989 8 28 Foley David UK Topsides Aged 24, RN Submarine Base, Coulport/Faslane, Civilian diver, in a hut on a barge, preparing to dive, killed when a crane jib fell onto the hut. A fellow diver was seriously injured in the same incident. During the inquest, the court heard that a steel rope snapped, causing the steel jib to fall and crush a cabin on an off-shore barge where Mr Foley was changing into his wet suit. Mr Foley was killed instantly and another diver was injured. A pulley on the crane split and steel guide guards were later found to have been cut. Glasgow Herald
  10. 1989 8 28 Not Recorded UK Topsides Seriously injured at the RN Submarine Base Faslane, Civilian diver, in a hut on a barge, preparing to dive, his team-mate David Foley was killed when a crane jib fell onto the hut. During the inquest, the court heard that a steel rope snapped, causing the steel jib to fall and crush a cabin on an off-shore barge where Mr Foley was changing into his wet suit. Mr Foley was killed instantly and another diver was injured. A pulley on the crane split and steel guide guards were later found to have been cut. Glasgow Herald
  11. 1988 9 23 Bates Brian UK Saturation Post Alpha disaster salvage ops, blow back during cutting ops, cracked helmet, faceplate loosened, both eardrums perforated, sinus damage, concussion, pulled in by bellman, reported as third incident in under 36 hours. The Glasgow Herald
  12. 1988 9 22 Rig 'Ocean Odyssey' UK Arco Semi Submersible, drilling block 22 (Central Graben, Shearwater), HPHT well, blow out and fire, 1 fatality (Radio operator sent back from lifeboat to continue communications), 58 evacuated by TEMPSC, 8 jumped into the sea and were picked up by the stand-by vessel. Rig was subsequently converted into a satellite launch pad (Sea Launch) based at Long Beach, California
  13. 1988 7 6 Piper Alpha UK Occidental 167 of the 226 personnel onboard died in fire/explosions. Survivors included the entire night shift air diving team.
  14. 1987 2 0 Not Recorded UK . SCUBA BSAC diver died while working to clear debris fouling the propulsion units of a new ferry. "Water conditions atrocious in terms of visibility and cleanliness. Deceased's air supply had been turned off accidently underwater, it is thought by blow(s) against underside of hull of ship but he was also trapped by a surface rope and a flxed rope around the hull of the vessel. Deceased had been using normal sports diving equipment. No other details, not sure whether this was investigated by the HSE as a commercial fatality. Reported by Dave Shaw in BSAC incidents report fot 1987
  15. 1987 0 0 McNally Fred UK Saturation Trapped in a stranded welding habitat (with Kanute Monstra), became hypothermic, both were rescued by Neil 'Wiggy' Wiggins (who had previously rescued George Lawson after an oxy arc explosion on the Kingsnorth Explorer in May 1984). Neil Wiggins was presented with the Silk Cut award for Nautical achievements ( He died on 23 Dec at the age of 47), MCDOA website. Does anyone remember the details of this incident?
  16. 1987 0 0 Monstra Kanute UK Saturation Trapped in a stranded welding habitat (with Fred McNally), became hypothermic, both were rescued by Neil 'Wiggy' Wiggins (who had previously rescued George Lawson after an oxy arc explosion on the Kingsnorth Explorer in May 1984). Neil Wiggins was presented with the Silk Cut award for Nautical achievements ( He died on 23 Dec at the age of 47), MCDOA website. Does anyone remember the details of this incident?
  17. 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
  18. 1986 0 0 John Johnny UK SCUBA Tenby (South Wales), amateur diver inspecting the moorings of a pleasure craft for a friend. Failed to surface. Cause of death 'aspiration of vomit into lungs'. 'At work'? Yes, but 'at work for pay'? Probably not, just doing doing a favour for his friend. Personal communication, no other details
  19. 1985 1 8 Berlendis Claudio UK Saturation 31 year old Italian electrician from Bergamo working on the hyperbaric lifeboat of the DSV Wilchief (Sat system was built by Drass, Italy) in Aberdeen harbour killed in an explosion. Cause reported as build up of hydrogen and oxygen from the batteries in a non-ventilated compartment ignited by a electrical switch. The Glasgow Herald
  20. 1985 1 0 Rig 'Glomar Arctic II' UK Semi Sub, explosion in pump room, 2 fatalities
  21. 1984 8 16 Dawson Mark UK Oceaneering 43 S/S Air British, aged 22. DSV "Deurloo", Southern North Sea, Leman Field, using a drill, rope entangled in rotating drill, pulled off his KM 18 band mask, drowned
  22. 1984 5 4 Lawson George UK Comex 140 Saturation Diving off the DSV "Kingsnorth Explorer", oxy/Arc cutting, rendered unconscious by an explosion. Face plate blown in, ruptured eardrums, right side pneumothorax, rescued by bellman Neil Wiggins (died December 2003) who was awarded the Frank Dearman award for bravery and a Queen’s Commendation. (The same diver was again called upon in 1987 when he saved two hypothermic divers, Fred McNally and Kanute Monstra, from a stranded welding habitat). MCDOA website
  23. 1984 2 21 Bowmar Dave UK Subsea Offshore 9 Chamber Experienced air diver. Aberdeen, Chamber dive, low O2, Anoxia, Double fatality (Tom Mackey). 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
  24. 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
  25. 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.
  26. 1983 6 2 Wallace R M UK Mobell Marine 16 SCUBA British, aged 30. Diving from inflatable, body recovered with SCUBA mouthpiece out of mouth, drowned
  27. 1982 10 29 Phillips Derek UK Wharton Williams Taylor 15 S/S Air British, aged 24. ex RN ship's diver working off the DSV "Shearwater Aquamarine". Shallow DP diving, diver was undertaking a seabed survey, DP failure (active drive off), diver was dragged off the job and then apparently ditched his helmet (KB17), body lost, recovered 9 months later� As reported by a fellow diver “He was my room mate on the Polar Queen. The story goes he was diving from a basket when the Aquamarine ran off DP. Derek thought, or so we think he thought, that his umbilical was in the prop. He removed all his equipment and drowned. In the months before the fatality we had a near miss on the Polar Queen when another diver’s umbilical was caught in the prop. This diver removed his gear and was saved. However he was in a basket with spare air and had help. The feeling is that Derek was trying the same technique however he was on the bottom, on his own, with a hot water suit and not wearing fins. The result was inevitable�
  28. 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.
  29. 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)
  30. 1979 8 7 Walker Richard A UK Infabco 162 Saturation American, aged 32. DSV "Wildrake", Thistle field, parted bell wire, secondary means of recovery failed, screwed up rescue, died from hypothermia, Double fatality (Guiel)
  31. 1979 5 5 Eke B E UK Maritime Offshore Products 31 S/S Air British, aged 34. Southern North Sea installation 48/29C, Over inflated dry suit, entangled in water jet equipment, helmet came detached, drowned
  32. 1979 0 0 McKerlich Jock or Jack UK Northern Divers 6 S/S Air Inquest was held in Banf in May 1980, date of fatality not known. (Jack was the younger brother of Sarge McKerlich who died in a commercial diving accident in 1984). Aged 21 from Kyle of Lochalsh, working in Macduff harbour, post lunch dive (reported as havng had 2 pints of beer with a bar lunch), vomited, no suit inflation, negatively buoyant, could not stay on surface, tender continued to pay out slack, burst Aorta. Reported at the inquest that 'drinking and diving is common practice on civil engineering contracts'. A diving inspector claimed he would not have been allowed to go for a drink if stricter rules - "now under consideration" - had been implemeted. Fellow diver stated that the primary cause of him vomiting was the 12' jump into the cold harbour water. Reported in the Glasgow Herald
  33. 1978 11 36 Ward Mike UK Northern Divers 116 Saturation British, aged 25. Beryl Alpha, DSV "Star Canopus", DP incident inside anchor pattern, lost bell, double fatality (Prangley), hypothermia, drowning
  34. 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
  35. 1978 2 1 Rig Orion' UK Jack Up, broke loose during tow, ran aground on Guernsey
  36. 1978 0 0 Names witheld at the request of the diver UK Wharton Williams 145 Saturation DSV 'Tender Carrier', working diver fed pure helium from a McDermott blender (sensors failed) and became unconscious. Recovered by bell partner, (ex Royal marine) and brought to surface. Brain damage meant him having to re-learn how to walk. Off work six months but then continued to dive until 1986.
  37. 1978 0 0 White or Whitehouse? David UK Reg Clucas (Civil Engineering) Working for hydrospace in India, went on leave to the UK (via Sharjah) and was killed in a burning explosion underneath a small barge or tanker during his field break. PC. Has anybody got aditional details?
  38. 1977 10 17 Azzopardi P S UK Comex 91 Saturation British, aged 21. Semi-sub drill rig "Zephy I", ODECO, English Channel, KMD 16 helmet off (no safety pin), strong currents, bellman could not reach him, drowned
  39. 1977 10 3 Murphy R L UK Taylor Diving and Salvage 30 S/S Air Trench barge 316, dredging operation, Snagged subsea on stinger? Lost comms. Cut umbilical, bailout not activated, asphixia?
  40. 1977 8 20 Sansalone D UK Subsea Oil Services 23 SCUBA Italian, aged 29. Pipelay barge "Semac I", Working on stinger, 2 working divers plus stand-by, lost comms, continued working, Inexperienced in prevailing conditions, drowned
  41. 1977 5 10 Hoffman C H UK IUC 152 Saturation American, aged 22. Venture 1, conflicting reports, had finished dive, acting as bellman, either fell unconscious in the bell and drowned in trunking or fainted and fell through hatch, recovered by diver but he then drowned in trunking, possible pO2 issue? UPDATE: See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venture_One_diving_accident
  42. 1977 0 0 Pickering Mike UK S/S Air Civil engineering, Nigg dry dock gate, differential pressure, sucked up pipe, drowned
  43. 1976 12 24 Moore M R or H R UK Comex 0 SCUBA British, aged 29. Drill rig "Sedneth 701". Heavy swell, difficulty getting into basket, tried to swim to stand-by boat, presumed drowned, possibly run over by stand-by vessel, body never recovered.
  44. 1976 11 4 Meeham C V UK KD Marine 0 SCUBA American, aged 24. Semi-sub drilling rig "Ocean Voyager", night dive to connect anchor pennants, surface tending, rough weather (Outside KD policy, being pushed by Company man on rig), lines entangled in pontoon anodes, knocked unconscious? Double fatality (Spensley)
  45. 1976 11 4 Spensley H W UK KD Marine 0 SCUBA British, aged 24. Semi-sub drilling rig "Ocean Voyager", night dive to connect anchor pennants, surface tending, rough weather (Outside KD Policy, pushed by Company man on rig), lines entangled in pontoon anodes, knocked unconscious? Double fatality (Meecham), drowned
  46. 1976 7 14 Dupuy R UK ETPM 16 S/S Air French, aged 24. Barge "ETPM 701", mask fitting broke, common supply to main and bailout, drowned, cerebral annoxia.
  47. 1976 5 13 Dymott C UK SBM Anglesey 37 SCUBA British, aged 26, drowned. 2 divers reported in trouble, located by stand-by(s) on seabed. Dymott with mouthpiece out, dive time listed as 5 hours?
  48. 1976 5 12 Hubert Nicholas UK North Sea Diving Services 37 S/S Air British, aged 24. Pipelay barge "PT One Elfa Norge", looking for a broken transponder on the bottom of the TP1 under construction in Loch Fyne. After an uneventful dive he was approaching the surface when he died. It subsequently turned out that the transponder was not broken and the fault was on the surface. The cause of death was reported as AGE (Arterial Gas Embolism) through diving with a chest infection, lung collapse, pulmonary barotrauma
  49. 1976 5 3 Dobson Anthony (Tony) UK Comex 37 S/S Air British, aged 30. Pipelay barge "Orca", stinger checks, either umbilical snagged subsea, pulled out of basket during recovery, extended umbilical (OD), or fouling of long umbilical in tideway, lost mouthpiece (HSE), stand-by diver could not reach him, drowning
  50. 1976 1 17 Bannister Derek A UK Comex 73 Saturation PSV "Smit Lloyd 112", buoyant bell with the bell weights suspended underneath bell, this allowed the bell to sit on the seabed minimising the action of swell. Apparently the bell was moved and in the process the bell weights were ripped off. Bell bottom door open, uncontrolled ascent, pulmonary barotrauma.. His bell partner (Clay Ellis) died. He survived, but was very severely injured.
  51. 1976 1 17 Ellis Clay UK Comex 73 Saturation American, aged 20. PSV "Smit Lloyd 112", buoyant bell with the bell weights suspended underneath bell, this allowed the bell to sit on the seabed minimising the action of swell. Apparently the bell was moved and in the process the bell weights were ripped off. Bell bottom door open, uncontrolled ascent, pulmonary barotrauma. Died. His bell partner (Derek Bannister) survived, but was very severely injured
  52. 1976 1 12 Howell RN John "Scouse" UK Subsea 146 Saturation British, aged 27. He was still in the Navy, but on EVT (Spending time with prospective employees prior to leaving the armed forces). Semi-sub drill rig "Western Pacesetter 1". He passed out shortly after leaving bell, officially reported as suspected switched off own gas by knocking ball valve, drowning/hypoxia, but other sources indicate his gas was contaminated and he passed out on the seabed. His bellman could not (or would not) get him back into the bell and tied him to the outside of the bell and removed his helmet. The body was taken to RNPL for autopsy, cause of death, drowning.
  53. 1975 9 9 Baldwin Roger UK Oceaneering 119 Saturation British, aged 29, Ex RN CD2 ( not ex Royal Marine Corporal as reported elsewhere). Died in the same year he left the Navy. Semi-sub drill rig "Waage II", Bell Bounce diving, divers using dry-suits and known to be cold, end of bell run, TUP deliberately overheated to help compensate for potential hypothermia. After locking on, bell was isolated and decompressed. Single gauge for both bell and TUP, cross over open, Supervisor believed TUP was losing pressure and re-pressurised Excessive heat/depth, died of heat exhaustion. Double fatality (Peter Holmes)
  54. 1975 9 9 Holmes Peter UK Oceaneering 119 Saturation British, aged 24. Semi-sub drill rig "Waage II", Bell Bounce diving, divers using dry-suits and known to be cold, end of bell run, TUP deliberately overheated to help compensate for potential hypothermia. After locking on, bell was isolated and decompressed. Single gauge for both bell and TUP, cross over open, Supervisor believed TUP was losing pressure and re-pressurised Excessive heat/depth, died of heat exhaustion. Double fatality (Roger Baldwin)
  55. 1975 7 7 Walsh Peter UK Underwater Security Ltd. 37 SCUBA British, aged 25. "Celtic Surveyor", Scapa Flow, double fatality (Carson), 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
  56. 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
  57. 1975 3 22 Alvestad Aage Lasse UK 3X 140 Norwegian, aged 30. "Borgney Dolphin", Monsanto, heating failed, anoxia, hypothermia, exhaustion
  58. 1975 3 1 Wilson Kevin UK CUE 43 SCUBA British, aged 20. Southern North Sea installation 49/27B, Leman field, pulmonary oedema caused by cardiac myopathy, heart failure, natural causes (Reported by JW as the last 1974 fatality, TC)
  59. 1975 3 0 Horst UK Londive Inland British, civil engineering work on Anglesey, got into difficulties in the water, was picked up by crane but then dropped a considerable height onto the deck
  60. 1974 12 17 Howard-Phillips Jeremy L UK Comex 10 S/S Air British, from Hintlesham in Norfolk, aged 30. McDermott Jet Barge 4, Scapa Flow, Valve knocked off 48" the Occidental pipeline by jet sledge, differential pressure (100' to atmosphere) sucked him into 20cm/8" valve opening, died instantly Standby diver could not release body until pressure equalised.
  61. 1974 10 14 Clark John UK Comex 0 SCUBA British, aged 31, married, two children. Drill rig "Waage I", Acting as surface tender during attachment of a towing line. Swept under cowcatcher or cross member by swell, broken rib, vomited, drowned
  62. 1974 7 5 Dimmer John UK KD Marine 150 Saturation British, aged 27. Drill rig "Sedco 135F", suffered a pneumothorax. Was distressed during decompression and after treated with a therapeutic re-compression but died in the chamber. Diving supervisor initially suspected pneumothorax but was over-ridden by the doctor who diagnosed the symptoms as pneumonia (The doctor involved was inexperienced in hyperbaric medicine).
  63. 1974 5 23 Auestad B UK 61 Norwegian, aged 24. Died of natural causes in the DDC, Delay in getting him into DDC - obese – plus post mortem revealed history of heart problems, not medically fit to dive.
  64. 1974 4 11 Barthelemy Marc G G UK Comex 93 Saturation French, aged 24. Drill ship "Havdrill". Needed rescue, drowned in bell trunking, exhaustion. Alternative report that diver had lost/restricted gas, returned to bell with umbilical around guide wire, Swedish bellman pulled in umbilical which pulled diver away from bell, British support crew, reverted to native languages, in ensuing panic, bellman cut umbilical and shut bell door, told dive control to recover bell. Body of diver draped over bell weights.
  65. 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
  66. 1974 1 1 Rig 'Transocean III' UK Mobil, Transocean Built in Hamburg, Germany in 1973 as a 'self-elevating semi-submersible design'. Storms prevented the new rig from being moved to its first drilling location and the rig was anchored in 342 feet of water about 100 miles east of Shetland. Between 29 Dec 1973 and 01 Jan 1974, the rig suffered progressive structural damage resulting from the storm conditions leading to the evacuation by helicopter of 38 of the 56 crew at around 1800 hours on 01 Jan 1974. The remaining 18 crew were then evacuated by 2300 hours on 01 Jan 1974. The crew were transferred to the nearby Transworld 61 and Transworld 58 rigs. Four tugs were on stand-by to tow the Transocean 3 to Norway for repairs, but continued bad weather sank the rig in the early hours of 02 Jan 1974 before this could be performed. HSE documents state that a jackable leg broke away from the machinery house, leading to the subsequent capsize and later sinking of the vessel. Weather conditions at the time were winds of 21m/s with waves of 6m. Reported in the Times
  67. 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.
  68. 1973 8 28 Havlena Paul J UK Taylor Diving 98 Saturation American, aged 29. Barge "LB Meaders", "Push pull" gas system, Supply closed off while suction open, embolism, pulmonary haemorrhage
  69. 1972 5 1 Taylor Robert UK Strongwork 13 SCUBA British, aged 25. Drillship "Britannia", big meal, vomited underwater, found entangled in a rope 11 hours later, drowned. Possibly no training
  70. 1972 3 7 Not Recorded UK "A diver died trying to plug an underwater sluice yesterday in Portsmouth Dockyard. He was trapped in the narrow sluice for 30 minutes", Reported in the Glasgow Herald
  71. 1972 0 0 AODC UK International Association of Diving Contractors founded
  72. 1971 11 1 Minn Hnutt UK Divcon Oceaneering 84 S/S Mixed Gas British, aged 31. Drill ship "Glomar III", "Standard gear", no bell, tangled in lines, overan dive, surfaced rapidly (suit malfunction), embolism, recompressed on air in DDC, died
  73. 1970 4 19 Not Recorded UK 11 S/S Air "..diver died the other day whilst six fathoms deep in the water at Southampton where some new apparatus taken from the womb...No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sheffield Daily Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive
  74. 1970 0 0 Not Recorded UK Humber Divers Diver killed in an explosion during salvage operations. Undated newspaper article
  75. 1970 0 0 Not Recorded UK Topsides Two divers killed (bodies never recovered) when their zodiac full of explosives exploded during the first phase of diving operations to disperse the wreck of the platform supply vessel 'Tropic Shore' (Sank after colliding with the Britannia Gas Platform) off Great Yarmouth. Contract was awarded by Trinity House. Diving contractor may have been based in Newcastle. No other details. PC
  76. 1969 11 25 Rig 'Constellation' UK Jack Up, sank during rig move/towing (caught in a storm).
  77. 1968 6 18 Cooper Derek UK Topsides Aged about 30, married with one son, one of a team of divers working on the demolition of Blackpool's North Pier for the previous 6 weeks, had already detonated over 40 charges, set a gelignite charge 30' above water, called for every one to get clear and take cover and then set the charge off. He was standing 20 yards away, was hit by a piece of flying metal and fell 30' into the sea. The Glasgow Herald.
  78. 1967 11 13 Greig John N F UK S/S Air Described as a senior diver at Aberdeen harbour, died after being trapped underwater whilst inspecting damage to the gates and bridge at the entrance to the port's deepwater basin (Damaged by the 800 ton Slite registered (Sweden) tanker 'Rauken' which collided with the gates and the St Clement's bridge). The gates swung in the tide and trapped his air lines. "His son, Brian, a diver's labourer who was working nearby, was summoned and watched as rescuers fought to save his father's life". The gates were pulled open and he floated to the surface and was lifted unconscious onto the dive boat, CPR and O2 administered, taken to hospital, but pronounced ead. The Glasgow Herald
  79. 1965 12 27 Rig 'Sea Gem' UK BP Converted barge with 10 legs, drilling on block 48, the West Sole field. At around 1345 hours on 27 December 1965, the crew were preparing to move the rig to a new location and commenced jacking down the main deck. A short time later, the passing freighter Baltrover witnessed the main deck lurch then fall towards port. The boat radioed for assistance at 1409 hours before coming to the aid of the Sea Gem's crew. Two of the rig's ten legs had apparently failed, causing the rig to fall sideways. Survivors stated that after about thirty minutes, the rig subsequently capsized and sank with one leg remaining above the sea. Some of the crew were able to launch a liferaft, which 14 of the crew managed to board. The rest of the crew were thrown or jumped into the freezing winter sea. Fortunately, the Baltrover was on scene quickly to pick up survivors. Other men were rescued by passing boats with an RAF and a civilian helicopter assisting. Of the 32 men on board, 19 were rescued, 13 died.
  80. 1961 10 11 Barron, RN Lt. Julian UK Military Aged 27, drowned at Rosyth Dockyard whilst trying to rescue a trainee diver. Trainee diver's lifeline 'appeared to be fouled and broke', Lt Barron was the standby and was sent into assist, gave a thumbs up and submerged. There was a terrific jerk on his lifeline and then his line broke too. It was later found that both men had been sucked through an open penstock (equalisation pipe between two docks). Diving instructor admitted no diving flag was being flown, civilian dockyard foreman in charge of the sluices stated that he was not aware of diving operations being conducted in the main basin and would have considered the dive site as hazardous because of the penstock (Diving in that area had been stopped two years earlier because of the penstock). No formal communcation link between divers and dock personnel. Following the incident Admiralty orders were put in place covering operation of diving in the docks and civilians in the dockyard also had definite instructions
  81. 1961 6 2 Ward James UK Kirkaldy Corporation 6 S/S Air Diving from a tug near the dock gates in Kirkaldy Harbour, alarm raised when tugman could not get response on lifeline. A team of divers from HMS Safeguard, Rosyth, raced to the harbour and located the diver trapped by his left arm under the sluice gates and by water pressure. In addition to his lifeline, a further two ropes were tied to him and the sluice gates lifted until he could be pulled clear. On deck, he was cut out of his suit and a doctor attepted CPR, but he failed to respond. Evening Times. His widow was awarded £3,487 and 10 shillings. The jury assessed the damages at £4,650 but held that the deceased was 25% to blame for the accident that led to his death. Unknown to the diver the sluice gates had been left partially open. As soon as he approached the bottom of the gate he was caught in the current of water passing through thr sluice and asphyxiatyed. The Corporation denied responsibilty and claimed Ward stumbled and fell. The Glasgow Herald
  82. 1958 7 0 Oppey John UK "Extraordinary Death of a Diver. An inquest was held at Dover on Friday (14th July 1958) on the body of John Oppy, a diver employed at the Admiralty Pier works...." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Birmigham Daily Post/The British Newspaper Archive
  83. 1957 7 14 Not Recorded UK Military Royal Marine taking part in a combined operations exercise in Portland Harbour, failed to surface after three and a half hours, found dead at the bottom of the harbour. "It was in no way associated with any explosion". "Naval authorities are satisfied that the man's death was an accident". The Bulletin
  84. 1956 4 19 Commander Crabb, RN, GC, OBE Lionel "Buster" UK Military Rebreather British Royal Naval diver, aged 46, disappeared in Portsmouth Harbour, rumoured to be spying on the visiting Russian navy cruiser "Ordzhonikidze" that had brought Khrushchev to the UK for cold war talks. Headless body washed up on Chichester beach 14 months later assumed to be Crabb. In 2007, Eduard Koltsov, retired Russian diver claimed to have killed him and cut his head off after he caught Crabb placing a mine on the hull. MOD admitted previous underwater surveys by RN divers on visiting Russian vessels. Other memos released in 2007 indicate that MI6 recruited Crabb for a separate mission and that he was not alone.
  85. 1956 0 0 RN, NEDU UK Military 183 Saturation RN diver reaches 600' in open sea on heliox, the same year the US Navy Experimental Diving Unit (NEDU) publish the USN Standard ecompression Tables
  86. 1952 0 0 Owen, RN, DSM Norman Warden UK British Rail S/S Air Holyhead, pier demolition using a hundred ton crane, sent in to unsnag wire, trapped two fingers of his right hand between pile and crane wire. "Unable to reach his exhaust valve to adjust the pressure in his suit or speak to the surface. With no chance of cutting the heavy wire, Owen reached for his diver's knife with his left hand and began to saw off his fingers, but as the blood billowed up past him he could not cut through the bone. In desperation Owen signalled to be pulled to the surface and two of his fingers "came away like pegs from a cribbage boar". He collected his tools and surfaced, where the men in the tender complained about his late arrival at the surface. Owen was rowed ashore and walked to the hospital 500 yards away: He remembered being told not to drip blood on the floor".
  87. 1950 3 15 Not Recorded UK "Diver killed in old warship". Diving on the wreck of the 'Warspite" (Went aground off Prussia cove, Cornwall in 1947 on her way to the breakers yard). Another six men were trapped below water in the hulk of the 30,600 ton baatleship for two hours. The explosion was an air blast that blew out an air lock as the men were making the vessel airtight for lifting operations. The Windsor Daily Star
  88. 1950 3 10 Bollard Petty Officer W. UK Military 163 Reported as "Petty Officer Wilfred Bollard recently set up a new world record when he reached a depth of 535 feet in a rubber diving suit. Petty Officer Bollard is attached to the Research ship "Reclaim" at Loch Fyne, in Scotland. The previous record of 440 feet was held by the United States of America. This picture shows Petty Officer Bollard, on left, being congratulated after he broke the world diving record by fellow officer W Soper, who himself broke the previous record with a depth of 454 feet." in the Horshan Times, Victoria. Curious as this is a repeat report of this same record being set in August 1948 but by 'Petty Officer W Ballard".
  89. 1948 8 28 Ballard Petty Officer W. UK Military 163 "Diver Descends 535 Feet". LONDON, August 28. "Petty Officer W. Ballard descended 535 feet from a submarine rescue ship into Loch Fyne, Argyllshire, and set up a new world record dive, which an American held at 440 feet. Ballard wore a specially adapted diving suit. His object was to enable naval technicians to perfect a diving suit in which rescuers can work at crash-dive depth of submarines". Reported in The Morning Bulletin, Rockhampton, Qld. Curiously, this record was also reported on the 10th of March 1950 in the Horsham Times (Victoria) with a photograph of Bollard being congratulated by fellow Royal Navy diver W. Soper who had also broken the previous record with a dive to a depth of 454 feet.
  90. 1948 0 0 RN UK 165 RN diver sets open sea record depth dive to 540'
  91. 1945 9 10 Cook RN PO George Robinson UK Military Aged 25, "Diver died in dock/Diver dies underwater/suffocated" No other details (Pay for access archive) Hull Daily Mail/Derby Daily Telegraph/Evening Telegraoh (Angus)/The British Newspaper Archive
  92. 1944 10 13 Neller Horace UK Aged 62, :Diver died at work, adjusted air valves, signalled to…." No other details (Pay for access archive) Gloucester Citizen/The British Newspaper Archive
  93. 1944 3 11 McCann George UK S/S Air Aged 38, working in a diving bell at the bottom of the Clyde, killed in an explosion attributed to marsh gas from the silt at the bottom of the river, double fatality with George Wight McKenzie, Inquest recorded a verdict of "Death by drowning in the river Clyde after an explosion" The Glasgow Herald
  94. 1944 3 11 McKenzie George Wight UK S/S Air Aged 35, working in a diving bell at the bottom of the Clyde, killed in an explosion attributed to marsh gas from the silt at the bottom of the river, double fatality with George McCann, Inquest recorded a verdict of "Death by drowning in the river Clyde after an explosion" The Glasgow Herald
  95. 1944 1 21 Franklin Bernard UK S/S Air DIVER'S HEROISM. LONDON, Tuesday (A.A.P.). – “A depth charge, which fell from a seaplane in the fairway of a seaplane base was set to explode at a certain depth, and there was grave danger that as the tide rose the depth charge would explode, causing considerable damage to the base and aircraft and nearby ship ping. Bernard Franklin, who though officially a wireman is also a qualified diver, immediately went clown to search for the depth charge, which was located after 45 minutes and hoisted aboard. While he was working, the tide was rising, and any minute he might have been blown up if the charge had detonated. Franklin is awarded the British Empire Medal�. Reported in the Examiner, Launeston, Tas
  96. 1943 6 0 Not Recorded UK Military Chariot Reported that at the training base on Loch Cairbawn (Scotland), a charioteer died in an accident. No details. Underwater Trust, Wikipedia etc
  97. 1942 8 0 Not Recorded UK Military Submarine RN Base HHZ on Loch Cairnbawn, a British Navy diver died during training with the Mark I Chariot. No details. Wikipedia and other sources
  98. 1941 8 26 Grieve David UK S/S Air "Inspector gives life for diver. Two dead in docks mishap. Two lives were lost in a diving accident at the docks yesterday. Victims were David Grieve (aged 31)..." "Died trying to save trapped diver. Detective inspector W. Stewart of Methil, Fifeshire, gave up his life in a vain bid to save…" or "Cupar dver honoured in recognition of his gallantry in repeated attempts to save a fellow diver from drowning in methil docks. John....." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western daily Press/The British Newspaper Archive
  99. 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
  100. 1941 3 6 Tawn RN, DSM, BEM AB Robert George UK Military S/S Air British, aged 24, Rendering Mines Safe (RMS) unit (Pre-Port Part 'P' groups). - DSM awarded for coolness, courage and resource when dealing with a magnetic mine in a tideway. Performed first underwater RMS attempt (GC mine in Poole harbour) in 42 feet of water from Vernon echo-sounding yacht Esmeralda 14 Jun 1940. Mine exploded while being towed ashore by fishing boat. BEM awarded for gallant conduct and devotion to duty. Clearance diver with 'P' (Port Party) from HMS Vernon when 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). 5 or 6 other men also died in the explosion - Lt. JF Nicholson, PO Benham, RB Sutherland (another clearance diver whose body was never recovered), AB Wharton and one or two others, 5 of whom are buried in Falmouth Cemetery. MCDOA archives
  101. 1940 12 13 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "How Fife diver met his death. Cut his air pipe when it fouled. Efforts to rescue a diver whose air pipe became fouled while he was …" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive Same death as reported 1st November?
  102. 1940 12 1 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Fife diver drowned at work. Strenuous but unavailing efforts were made to save a diver whose life-line…" …" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive. Same diver as report for 13th December?
  103. 1939 8 23 Purdue, RN PO Henry Otho UK Military 45 S/S Air Aged 33, Reported as 'dying of the bends' during the salvage of the "Thetis" (Sank during sea trials in Liverpool Bay on the 1st June 1939 with the loss of 99 personnel). Because of the war, at the time, the entire tragedy was largely hidden from the public.Left surface at 06:33, On bottom 06:35 (At the stern to examine the propeller), returned to surface at 07:15, put into chamber for surface decompression. Surfacing had bbeen delayed by around 5 minutes when was fouled on a grapnel on his downline. Reported that he was unconscious when in the decompression chamber. The medics further reported that his lungs wrre congested (Diseased) and this had prevented him decompressing properly, cause of death listed as Asphyxia due to lack of oxygen during decompression owing to the diseased condition of the lungs. Thetis Families Association, navy archives, Glasgow Herald
  104. 1939 6 1 HMS Thetis UK Military 45 Submarine The “Thetis� arrived in Liverpool in May 1939, sea trials started on 1st June in Liverpool Bay with a tug in attendance. 59 crew, 2 caterers plus an additional 44 men aboard, bringing the complement up to 103. The boat began a dive but refused to go down. After other attempts and making some adjustments, with no other vessels in sight, the Captain ordered some of the Torpedo Tubes to be flooded. This action was not entirely successful, and suspecting that one tube had failed to flood, a valve on the tube hatch was opened to check for water. Nothing came out, and assuming the outer tube door had jammed, the hatch was opened. The valve was faulty, it was fouled with paint, and rush of water began to flood the compartment. The Torpedo room crew retreated to the next compartment and closed the hatch but it failed to work and the men from both sections retreated into the next chamber and the hatch closed. With two bow sections flooded and at a steep angle, they blew all the boats ballast tanks. The submarines bow struck the bottom, 150 feet below, leaving 18 feet of the stern above the surface. The nearest escape hatch, was just 20 feet below the surface, but following standard practice, it was not used until the vessel had been located. But the surface tug had lost track of the Submarine and it took over 17 hours for the Destroyer " Brazen " to find them, but with an emergency supply of air for just 24 hours, the extra men on board used it up at twice the rate. With rescue vessels on hand, 8 men evacuated (four drowned) before the hatches failed and the stern flooded forcing the tugs to cast off. Thetis sank with her remaining 95 men trapped onboard. Bad weather followed, making any attempt at salvage impossible. Salvage stated on 24th August (a navy diver, PO Henry Perdue, died during the operation 24/8/1939). The Submarine was recovered and refitted as the “Thunderbolt�, but suffered heavy damage during a depth charge attack in the Mediterranean and sank in over 3,000 feet of water. The only Submarine to sink twice, she cost the lives of 152 Officers and men in total. UK press and navy archives
  105. 1938 10 20 Slessor David Dunbar UK S/S Air "Diver drowned in Loch Long. Aberdeen man working on new bridge, resided at 67 Pittodrie Street, Aberdeen". "Father sees diver brought up dead, a father, at the shore end of a diver's lifeline at Dornie Bridge, ..." (Bridge was proposed as early as 1920 to improve the road west to Kyle of Lochalsh/Isle of Skye, opposed by people concerned it would ruin the views around Eilean Donan Castle a few hundred metres to the south, the Dornie bridge was eventually opened on 30th April 1940, it was replaced with a two lane structure in 1991) No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Aberdeen Journal/The British Newspaper Archive
  106. 1937 12 16 Stroud Fred UK S/S Air "Diver's Death. Engaged on operations off the Devon Coast, Mr Fred Stroud, diver employed on the salvage steamer 'Ophir' which has been…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western Morning news/The British Newspaper Archive
  107. 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
  108. 1934 7 31 Bee John UK S/S Air "Diver's death, John Bee, 54, of Queens Road, Portsmouth, a diver employed in salving of the sunken german fleet in the Orkney, died from heart failure on a salvage vessel…" " collapsed and died on deck of salvage vessel 'Bertha' after emerging from air lock." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Hull Daily Mail/The British Newspaper Archive. “DIVER DIES AFTER A JOKE� Mr. John Bee, a diver, aged 54, of Portsmouth, who was employed in the salving of the sunken German fleet at Scapa Flow for ten years, died suddenly after finishing work on the sunken warship ‘Bayern’ a few weeks ago. The diver had been joking with his comrades in the salvage boat Bertha after emerging from the air lock just before his collapse. The Canberra Times
  109. 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.
  110. 1933 4 19 Sutherland James UK S/S Air Reported as "Divers death on reaching surface, collapse while climbing ladder. A Kirkwall diver collapsed and died. No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive. Reported two months later (in June) in the New Zealand Press as "Aged 31, Working on the Kirkwall Harbour extension (Kirkwall, Orkney Isles, Scotland). "After signalling that he had finished the job, collapsed and died at the foot of the ladder before he could be hauled up". Evening Post, Papers Past, National Library of New Zealand)
  111. 1931 4 27 Long (or Lang?) Charles UK Gloucester Dock Company Topsides "Gloucester's only diver killed . Motor cycle collision with cyclist Chales Long (43), diver for the Gloucester Dock Company, was killed.." "Diver killed in cycle collision. Gl;oucester's only diver, Charles Lang (43) of Tuffley was killed in a collision near Hempstead..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Cheltenham Chronicle/The British Newspaper Archive
  112. 1931 3 30 Woodcock Percy Ingram UK Liverpool Salvage Company S/S Air "Diver's death at Salcombe. Mr Percy Ingram Woodcock, one of the divers working on behalf of the Liverpool Salvage Co. on the SS ….". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western Morning News/The British Newspaper Archive
  113. 1930 7 14 Meany Pat UK 9 S/S Air News Headline "Diver Fights a Sea Monster". Fishguard (Wales). A fight to the death between a diver under the sea and a monstrous black conger eel occurred here to-day. The man won with the aid of a hammer. a pick-axe. and a jack-knife. Mr. Pat Meany, a diver who is preparing the foundations of a slipway at Fishguard harbour for the use of the lifeboat, was thirty feet below the surface of the water when he saw through the window of his diving helmet a monster more than six feet long and of great girth writhing towards him. The eel attacked the diver by curling itself round his legs. The man, hampered by his heavy suit and by the pressure of the water, was in danger of being thrown on the sea bottom. “I struck the creature with all my strength on the head with a hammer." Mr. Meany told me. "It went of slowly but soon returned to the attack with its mouth open in an alarmingly ferocious manner. “I took a pick-axe and pinned the eel against the rocky side of the confined space in which I was working, and then with a long knife struck it deep under the gills. “It then wrlthed slowly away, leaving a trail of blood.� Straits Times archives
  114. 1929 6 0 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Scapa diver's death. From our own correspondent, Kirkwall, Thursday 20th June, 1929, Today Sheriff Brown and a jury held fatal accident inquiry into the circumstances attending..." "Diver who was working on the salvaged Kaiser." (Scuttled 21st June 1918, raised in March 1929, moved and broken up in Rosyth in 1930). No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Aberdeen Journal/The British Newspaper Archive
  115. 1926 11 0 Not Recorded UK S/S Air “How diver met his death. A Manchester ship canal accident� “How diver lost his life in Manchester Ship canal was described at the inquest in Irlam yesterday (29/11/1926)� “Diver's strange death� No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Post (Lanarkshire)/Aberdeen Journal/The British Newspaper Archive
  116. 1926 9 25 Lee John UK 21 S/S Air "Accident to diver. While working on a wreck in Morecambe Bay yesterday, Jihn Lee of Weast Hartlepool..." "Diver's Ordeal. Broken helmet 70 feet below surface interviewed yesterday in Fleetwood hospital, a diver named Lee who almost…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Aberdeen Journal/The British Newspaper Archive
  117. 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
  118. 1925 10 0 Not Recorded UK S/S Air ".. Weymouth diver's death. Crushed by motor engine. A fatal accident occurred Thursday afternoon…"No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  119. 1924 10 22 Gunn Morrison UK S/S Air "Diver drowned in Lyness harbour, ex petty officer Morrison Gunn of Victoria Sreeet, Kirkwal..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Derby Daily Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive
  120. 1924 9 1 Lovell Reuben UK "A diver for nearly 40 years at Portsmouth dockyard died recently. He brought up 200 bodies from the wreck of the training Frigate 'Eurydice' which foundered near Ventnor in a squall". Papers Past, evening Post, National Library of New Zealand. The training frigate 'Eurydice' sank off the isle of Wight when returning from a voyage to the Caribean with the loss of over 300 lives on 24th March 1878. She was refloated by early September in an extended diving operation using Sieve Gorman divers.
  121. 1924 8 25 Laurentic UK 27 Salvage of Gold bars off the wreck of the “Laurentic�, sunk off northern Ireland (off Lough Sully) in 1917 by a German submarine “Despite the perils attending what is said to have been the greatest salvage feat on record, there was only one accident, in which a diver suffered a broken leg�
  122. 1922 8 0 Williams UK "Diver's Accident in Tobermory Bay. While engaged in the search for sunken treasure, Mr Williams, the principlal …" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Evening Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive
  123. 1921 12 20 Torrance Captain william UK S/S Air "Diver drowned. Through air pipe becoming severed, William Torrance, diver, lost his life while…" "Weymouth diver's tragic end. Asphyxiated underwater through air pipe bursting. Weymouth, Wednesday. Verdict of death by asphyxiation was returned today.." "Diver suffocated. Fatal accident in Portland Harbour while diving operations were in progress from the tug..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  124. 1917 10 0 Not Recorded UK "Diver's Terrible Death At Avonmouth Docks. Mr. A. E. Barker (City Coroner) resumed an inquest yesterday (18th October 1917) respecting the death of a ..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western Daily Press/The British Newspaper Archive
  125. 1916 0 0 Not Recorded UK "Fatal Accident to a Diver. A fatality occurred at Chatham…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Manchester Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  126. 1915 8 2 Flannigan Harry UK Military S/S Air "Diver meets tragic death. The body was landed at the Royal Navy Hospital, Haslar, yesterday for inquest purposes of Harry Flannigan, a…"Diver suffocated by air pipe entanglement". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive
  127. 1915 6 9 Shaw Gilbert UK Military "Gorton diver drowned. Word has been received in Manchester of the death of armourer and diver Gilbert Shaw of HMS Espiegl.." e (A Cadmus class Sloop launched in 1900, sold in 1923). No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Manchester Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  128. 1915 3 25 Murphy James Joseph UK Topsides "Death of well known government diver who died in Dover from pneumonia at the …" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dover Express/The British Newspaper Archive
  129. 1910 8 26 Mathewson RN Able Seaman James Edward UK Military 20 S/S Air Diver based at HMS Vernon, diving off the Navy vessel 'Redwing' (Tender, previously the war department's 'Sir Charles Pasley', transferred to the Royal Navy in 1905, sold in 1931) to investigate a seabed obstruction in the solent near the site where the A1 sank in 1904 (First British designed submarine, first of the A class submarines - an enlarged and improved 'Holland' class - sank with the loss of all 11 crew during a practice attack on HMS Juno when the conning tower was breached when she was run over by the Mail Steamer "SS Berwick Castle". She was refloated the same year and returned to service), reached the seabed and the repeatedly signalled for less air, then lost communications. Surface crew tried to pull him up but his lines were fouled (Although only diving in 11 fathoms they had paid out 200' of hose because of high currents and wanting to give the diver freedom to move about). They then manouvred the vessel and freed the lines bringing the diver to the surface 15 minutes later, but he was dead. Believed that his lines caught round the stump of an old mast and in an attempt to free himself had dropped his weights at which time he had floated towards the surface then held upside down by his lines and suffocated from lost air supply. "If he had waited perfectly quiet in deep water he could have been saved". They had a second diving dress on board but only had 50' of hose left so could not reach the diver. Inquest verdict was 'death from misadventure' with the coroner commenting that the diver's shipmates appeared to have done all that was possible in the circumstances. Wanganui Chronicle/Papers Past/National Library of New Zealand
  130. 1909 12 3 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Fatal Diving accident. Engineer's sudden illness underwater. A sad accident which resulted in the …" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dover Express/The British Newspaper Archive
  131. 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
  132. 1909 3 8 Not Recorded UK Mersey Dock Board S/S Air "Diver drowned. Defective gear. The Liverpool Crown Coroner conducted inquest on Saturday concerning the eath of Mersey Dock Board …. " No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Mancheste Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser/The British Newspaper Archive
  133. 1909 2 1 Crane James UK Topsides Diver James Crane and five others died while trying to remove wreckage of the ketch “Good Hope� on February 1, 1909. The part sunken ketch posed a hazard, Trinity House decided to blow it up from the steamer Argus which reached the wreck on February 1. Conditions were too rough to send down its diver, James Crane, to plant explosives, and instead it was decided to lower and “fire them by electric current,� Diver James Crane and five crewmen used the ship's small boat to reach the site above the ketch and lowered explosives, the fourth charge was to prove disastrous. Unbeknown to the Trinity House men, the ketch Good Hope's cargo was 12 tons of gelignite and three tons of geloxie. The catastrophe left 23 children fatherless.
  134. 1908 9 12 Newton UK Military S/S Air "Navy diver killed, Air pipe cut by warship cable. Navy diver met his death in a strange manner at Cromarty Firth on Saturday. Chief Carpenter…" "..tide, the diver's gear came into contact with the ship's cable, and was completely severed. Newton must have died immediately from...." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Cheltenham Chronicle/Derby Daily Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive
  135. 1908 6 0 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Divers death underwater, fails to answer signal. Caledonian canal fatality. The authorities at Fort william have been appraised of a peculiar fatality which..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive
  136. 1908 0 0 Haldane John Scott UK Topsides Haldane, in conjunction with Arthur Boycott and Guybon Damant, publish "The Prevention of Compressed Airs", largely regarded as the landmark paper on the development of decompresion tables. Tables based on this paper were later adopted by the Royal Navy and used worldwide.
  137. 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
  138. 1907 8 27 Leverettt UK "The torpedo wreck off Berry Head" " …act of diver Leverett, he died the following day. Yesterday the boat was successfully raised by the Deveonport dockyard riggers..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in TheExeter and Plumouth Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  139. 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
  140. 1907 7 4 Tacoben or Jacobean UK "Diver named Tacobean (Faulty Scan? TC) died from sudden heart failure while he was underwater exploring the wreck of the Grosvenor, old..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  141. 1906 1 3 Mathie Jas. UK S/S Air " Diver's tragic death, diver Jas. Mathie, aged 60, while at work in the River Clyde Glasgow, last night, signalled for urgent attention. He…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive
  142. 1905 8 29 Kitson? (John?) Frederick UK S/S Air "Diver dies underwater. While underwater Hartlepool on Tuesday night a diver named Frederick Kitpsn" (Assumed to be a scanning error, Kitson? TC)." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  143. 1905 1 21 Leach Charles UK S/S Air Described as a 'Shipwright diver', descended to clear potential obstructions prior to placing a caisson next to No 2 Devonport dock gates. His life line snapped, they tried pulling him up by his airline - which snapped. Second diver could not descend as his helmet would not screw down correctly, they found him another helmet but lost 25 minutes. A third diver also descended from the opposite side of the dock to aid in the search. Downed. Married with three children.. Feilding Star, Papers Past, National Library of New Zealand
  144. 1902 4 18 Lawson Edward UK Mersey Dock Board S/S Air "Diver drowned. A diver, Edward Lawson, in the employ of the Merseydock board met with a terrible death on Friday. He was searching…." "Diver's Fearful Death. Inquest held at Liverpool yesterday upon Edward Larsen, 38, who met his death..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Cornishman/The British Newspaper Archive
  145. 1900 11 23 Not Recorded UK Military S/S Air "Naval diver's death. Diving in support of the Battleship Howe (Admiral class battleship launched in 1885), died shortly after recovering a…" Presumed to be a report on the death of Alexander Virco (TC) No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Portsmouth Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  146. 1900 8 14 Not Recorded UK "Diver Killed By Sluice Valve. In the Lady Windsor Dep Dock at Barry Docks. On Tuesday, a diver…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Western Mail/The British Newspaper Archive
  147. 1900 5 25 Not Recorded UK "Tragic death of a diver. Last night the steamer 'Fawn', which had been at the steam liner "Dewdrop" of Aberdeen, which was wrecked at the Swarf, Stronsay,..." (Fishing liner 'Dewdrop' went ashore at Linga Sound, Stronsay, in a storm, refloated and put back into service). No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Angus Evening Post/The British Newspaper Archive
  148. 1900 1 5 Helfricht Leopold Christian UK " The sinking of the Patria, Helfricht, a German diver, who was drowned in the sinking of the Patria on Thursday, Captain Spruth, who directed the salvage operation near Deal (Kent) said..." "..Chief diver has been drowned and the body recovered. Two of his attendants were drowned, and two Deal.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the York Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  149. 1899 10 23 Gorry UK S/S Air "Manx boating disaster, death of a diver, a diver named Gorry made a search off Port Erin for the bodies of Mr Hassall a Liverpool Stockbroker, his son and 2 boatmen whose boat capsised on Saturday off Port Erin..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Shields Daily Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  150. 1899 7 17 Richardson UK "The drowning of a Tyne diver. Salvage of a steam wherry ("Borthwick"?) near Breadnell. Yesterday, the body of a South Shields diver named…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Carlisle Patriot/Shields Daily Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  151. 1898 3 29 Richmond? Edwin Arthur UK S/S Air "Fatality to Dock Board Diver. Mr. Samson, City Coroner held inquest today into the death of Edwin Arthur Ruthrrtmd (Assumed to be scanning error, actually Richmond" TC), aged 39, diver..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Liverpool Echo/The British Newspaper Archive
  152. 1897 6 5 Jurson A UK S/S Air "Diver's death underwater. A diver named Jutson of Ramsgate, who was engaged for a considerable time on Saturday in operations in…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Hull Daily Mail/The British Newspaper Archive
  153. 1897 4 8 Harvey UK " A diver suffocated on Thursday, engaged in diving operations from the drillship 'Beta' in connection with the dredging of Plymouth harbour, had been under..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Portsmouth Evening News/The British Newspaper named Harvey Archive
  154. 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
  155. 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
  156. 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�
  157. 1895 11 29 Not Recorded UK "The wreck of the Dorian, diver was drowned whilst assisting the work of removing the cargo.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Shields Daily Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  158. 1894 8 0 Not Recorded UK Military S/S Air "Man of War Diver drowned, ..aid of divers, but several divers sent from various ships of the squadron were employed to search for the torpedo from the Benbow..." (HMS Benbow was an Admiral class battleship launched in June 1885 serving with the mediterranean fleet until 1891, held in reserve until 1894, then served as a guardship at Greenock, scrapped in 1909). No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  159. 1894 5 12 Gurr (or Gun?) Alfred Henry UK S/S Air "Shocking accident. A man named Alfred Henry Gurr, living in Buckland, who was employed at new harbour works as a diver, met with..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  160. 1894 1 22 Nelson David UK S/S Air Yesterday afternoon a diver, named David Nelson, elderly man, residing at Kings Wear met with a singular death whilst engaged in his occupation in Dartmouth Harbour..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  161. 1892 9 23 Jones UK "Extraordinary Accident to a Diver at Cardiff. A diver named Jones, residing in Cardiff, was engaged on Friday in .." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser/The British Newspaper Archive
  162. 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
  163. 1891 11 18 Luke (or Lukes?) Alfred Burton UK S/S Air "A diver drowned, a diver named Luke was examining some damaged moorings in Portsmouth harbour". "A diver named Luke went down to Portsmouth Harbour shortly after 9 o'clock on Wednesday to examine the moorings of the Corporation buoy near Portsea Pier,...". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Coventry Evening Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive
  164. 1891 3 0 Not Recorded UK "Serious accident to divers who were in a diving bell in Ayr harbour removing an…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sheffield Evening Telegraph/The British Newspaper Archive
  165. 1889 7 0 Not Recorded UK "The Fatality To A Shields Diver. Yesterday (18/7/1889) an inquest was held at the Police Station , Mill Dam, South Shields, before Mr. Coroner..." "Death of a diver. A fatal accident to a diver is reported from Breadnell..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Shields Daily Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  166. 1887 10 19 Cook UK "A Diver Suffocated. A diver, whose name was Cook, was engaged in diving at Devonport on Monday, near Her Majesties ship 'Cambridge'..". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sheffield Evening Telegraoh/The British Newspaper Archive
  167. 1887 8 1 McGhee Charles UK S/S Air "A diver suffocated. While a marine diver named Mchee was working at the wreck of a sunken yatch - the Cyrene - off Greenock this morning, the air...", "A diver drowned, the air pipe broke, and insensible when brought to the surface, dying…." "While Charles McGhee was engaged in passing chains round a sunken wreck off Greenock this morning, the air..." (The yatch was in a collision with another yatch - the Lorelei - against whom they were racing in the Firth of Clyde on the 9th of July 1887) No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sheffield Daily Telegaph/Shields Daily Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  168. 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
  169. 1885 9 25 Gregory George RN UK Military 15 S/S Air "Fatality to a diver, George Gregory of HMS Revenge. Was drowned last evening whilst engaged in examining some moorings 8 fathoms deep". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  170. 1885 7 16 Not Recorded UK "The Late Fatal Accident at Portsmouth Harbour. A diver went down this morning at the entrance of No 1 dock near…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Portsmouth Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  171. 1884 7 26 Moreton UK S/S Air "A diver drowned in the Firth of Forth setting up moorings for the Lord Waeden. Intelligence was received at Sheerness Dockyard on Saturday that a riggers diver….. ." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in The Lancaster Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  172. 1884 5 0 Gurr (Or Gun?) Alfred Henry UK "Dover. Shocking accident. A man named Alfred Henry Gurr, living in Buckland, who was employed at new harbour works as a diver, met with..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  173. 1884 3 5 Not Recorded UK "Fatal accident to a diver. A fatal accident occurred of Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, on Wednesday afternoon. It appears that the tug Tydemoth, of Portsmouth, having on board.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Gloucestr Citizen/The British Newspaper Archive
  174. 1883 8 0 Scott James UK S/S Air "Fatal accident to a diver" "…to be dead. The deceased was an experienced man diver, William Rowers stated that he was acting as signalman to the deceased, and it was..." "Fatal accient to a diver. On Monday evening (6th August 1883), Dr. Wynn Westcott, the deputy coroner for Middlesex, held inquest at the Three Compasses Tavern, High Street, Hornsey, concerning the death of James Scott, aged 40..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Alnwick Mercury/Tamworth Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  175. 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
  176. 1881 10 0 Fletcher George UK S/S Air “SAD DEATH OF A LIVERPOOL DIVER. The Liverpool coroner held an inquest yesterday upon the body of George Fletcher, 37 years of age, a diver residing in Toxteth Park. On Saturday last deceased was engaged to dive in the Salthouse Dock for a case of hardware that had fallen in the dock. The man who engaged him, whose name was Slack, was blind, and was the maker of the diving suit which was fifteen years old and had not been used since 1880, when the deceased used it in the Brunswick dock. In overhauling the apparatus on Saturday the deceased had found one of the tubes leaky and had it repaired. The helmet was also made water-tight with tallow instead of a “washer�. The dress then seemed to work all right, and the deceased want down in it, but soon afterwards came up, and said he felt “scared� He nevertheless went down again, and the men in attendance received a signal from from him for “slings� to be sent down to him for fixing to the hardware case. Soon afterwards they felt the deceased fall down. He was quickly hauled up out of the water, and his helmet removed, but be was then dead. The jury found a verdict of death from suffocation, caused by defective diving apparatus. Reported in the Manchester Evening News
  177. 1880 1 7 Not Recorded UK S/S Air London Times article on divers recovering bodies after the Tay Bridge disaster (Reproduced in the New York Times 26/1/1880)
  178. 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
  179. 1878 8 27 Not Recorded UK Military S/S Air "..body of a diver who died from syncope while engaged in diving practice from the gunnery ship 'Excellence' in Portsmouth Harbour, the..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Bristol Mercury/The British Newspaper Archive. Presumed to be another report into the death of Jeremoah Shanahan(27/8/1878)
  180. 1878 8 0 Shanahan Jeremiah UK "Fatal Accident to a Diver, an inquest was opened at the town hall, Folkstone, on Tuesday, on the .." "Inquest at the dockyard into the death of a diver". No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Portsmouth Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  181. 1877 12 18 Not Recorded UK "Shocking Accident To A Diver. Strange fatality occurred at Her Majesty's Devonport Dockyard yesterday. A heavy spar…." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Manchester Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  182. 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."
  183. 1877 6 0 Not Recorded UK "A diver suffocated. A diver engaged at Holyhead harbour met with fearful death last week. A number of men have been for employed a wreck.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Edinburgh Evening News/The British Newspaper Archive
  184. 1877 1 29 Robertson John UK Topsides Steam ship 'Alexandra', built in Stockton on Tees in 1863, en route from Cadiz to Dublin via Liverpool, with 420 tons of wine. Reached Liverpool and discharged 100 tons of wine, sailed for Dublin on the 3rd of January. 08:00 drive shaft broke, continued under sail, caught in a storm which left him with only fore and aft foresails, was being pushe onshore, dropped port anchor which immediately parted, starboard anchor jammed, ran aground in Clogher Bay. Cargo was discgarged by the 12th January, on the same day, the salvage vessel 'Seamen' arrived from Adrossan with three steam pumps and repair crew, including the diver and tender, and temporary repairs made including installing the three pumps on frames in the holds.before two tugs - "Kingfisher" and "Challenger' out of Liverpool - arrived to tow her to Belfast for overhaul with the salvage steamer "Seamew" attached to her stern by a tow rope to steady her during the tow and the three steam pumps running to keep her afloat. Floated off and tow started 10:00 on the 29th JanuaryAlso onboard was a repair crew including diver John Robertson and his attendant from Greenock. Caught in further bad weather from 18:00 hours, the pumps could not keep up, headed for sheltered water and situation improved, continued the tow but vessel began listing to starboard, then settled to the stern and then sank in under 5 minutes. It is thought that 7 persons were lost in the sinking - a shipright, a carpenter, 4 labourers from Clogher Bay and the diver, Anderson. Salvage Captains criticised for taking the vessels into heavy weather away from sheltered water. Plimsol.org/Old Merseytimes.co.uk
  185. 1876 9 20 Parker George UK S/S Air "MELANCHOLY DEATH OF A DIVER" An inquest was held at the Union Tavern on Thursday before the Borough Coroner (W. H. Payne, Esq.) on the body of George Parker, a diver who died suddenlythe previous day having remained underwater for hour and a quarter. The evidence went to show that deceased was subject to heart disease and vomited nearly every time before and after he ..." No other details. Reported in the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  186. 1876 4 23 Thomas George UK "Accidental Death of a Diver. In London last Thursday (2nd March 1876), Mr. Payne, the coroner, held an inquiry at the Essex Head, Essex Street, Strand, regarding the death of George Thomas.." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Tamworth Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  187. 1876 0 0 Fleuss Henry UK Rebreather Development of the firsrt working self contained oxygen rebreather using compressed oxygen and a closed circuit and caustic potash to absorc CO2
  188. 1875 8 12 Tippett John Hicks UK 9 S/S Air EXTRAORDINARY DEATH OF A DIVER. The diving cutter ‘Sir Francis Burdett’ has arrived at Hull with the body of James Tippett, diver, aged 37, The crew have been engaged for some time in preparations to blow up the steamer ‘Shamrock’, sunk at the entrance to the Humber in 30 feet of water. Yesterday morning Tippett went down under water fully dressed, when those on the cutter felt convinced something was wrong. He was hauled onboard but was found to be dead. The glass at the front of his helmet had been broken by some means and so had let in the water. He must have been dead long before he was got on board, Reported in the Bradford Observer
  189. 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
  190. 1873 7 21 Not Recorded UK Tyne Commissioners "Fatal Diving Bell Accident. On Monday night a fatal accident took place.." A diver drowned in Shields Harbour on Monday owing to the diving bell capsizing." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in Staffordshire Sentinel/The British Newspaper Archive
  191. 1872 8 12 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Diver drowned at the Aberdeen Beakwater. One of the divers at the new breakwater, Aberdeen,…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in Dundee Courier/The British Newspaper Archive
  192. 1872 6 25 Warner George UK S/S Air Melancholy Fatal Accident to a Diver. It in our painful duty this week to report one of those melancholy accidents, which fortunately are not of frequent occurrence, viz., the death by drowning of a diver, named George Warner, while following his occupation. It appears that the unfortunate young man was on Tuesday last engaged at a ship sunk off Dungeness, and while searching in the cabin for a sum of money amounting to about £800, supposed to have been left there; the air pipe suddenly burst, the result being, of course, that the communication of air to the deceased was instantly cut off. Mr. Philip Warner, a brother of the deceased, was attending him, by whom the bursting of the pipe was felt, and he immediately took measures to raise him to the boat; this was accomplished in about a minute and a half, and on his being dragged on board he exclaimed “ Oh, my poor head; I am dying' and then breathed his last. The body was taken to Dover, where an inquest was held, the jury returning a verdict of “Accidental Death." On Wednesday the corpse was brought home to Whitstable for interment. The deceased was a very steady young man, and his untimely end in lamented by a large circle of friends and relatives. He was a son of the well known diver, Mr. Philip Warner, who, as many of our readers are aware, was employed for several years in the construction of the harbour of refuge at Alderney. Deceased was twenty-six years of age, and was, we understand, shortly about to be married. Reported in the Whitstable Times
  193. 1872 4 15 Siebe Augustus UK Augustus Siebe, designer of the 'Standard' diving dress died. He left his Company to his Son-in-Law, Willian Gorman, and the Company changed it's name to Siebe-Gorman, remaining in trade until 1998 when it was sold to Norcross, Norcross sold the company in 1999 at which time the company was renamed AMtec (Air Master Technology). AMtec stopped trading in 2001 and the owners sold the name to a Malaysian concern making breathing apparatus trading as "The Siebe Gorman Company (Malaysia)"
  194. 1867 10 28 Holt James UK River Tyne Commssioners S/S Air Sudden Death at North Shields. -- On Saturday afternoon, Mr James Holt, the River Tyne Commissioner' diver, died at his residence, in Rudyard Street, North Shields, of concussion of the brain, brought on, it is supposed, by the arduous nature of his vocation, after a, brief illness of twenty-four hours. Deceased, who was a native of Whitstable, had been in the employment of the Commissioners for the long period of twenty-one years, and was much respected for his genial and affable disposition by all who knew and came in contact with him. Shields Daily Gazette
  195. 1866 10 29 Jevons Ellis UK "Serious Accident to Diver. Yesterday morning, Ellis Jevons, aged 42, residing croftplace, one of the …" No other details (Pay for access archive). Reported in the Liverpool Daily Post/The British Newspaper Archive
  196. 1863 4 16 Not Recorded Richard UK S/S Air "A diver has been drowned at Lowestoft by water getting into his helmet while working at a wreck in the bottom of the sea" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the John O' Groat Journal/The British Newspaper Archive
  197. 1862 3 13 Wlliams UK Dock Board "…diver in the employ of the dock board who fell overboard at woodside on the 31st March last and was drowned, the body which was in fearfully..." Report from an inquest held in Birkenhead by Mr Churton over the body in June 1862. No other details (Pay for access archive). Reported in the Liverpool Daily Post/The British Newspaper Archive
  198. 1859 10 0 Alward Maurice UK S/S Air "Shocking Death of a Diver. On Tuesday an inquest was held at the town hall by R. J. Emmerson and a very respectable jury, touching the death of Maurice Alward, a ..." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Kentish Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  199. 1859 10 0 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Shocking Death of a Diver. During survey last week of the wreck of the Robert Garden, schooner belonging Dover, recently run down off the South Foreland by collision with the ..." "Last week, at Ramsgae, Maurice, a diver..."No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Dover Express/The British Newspaper Archive. (Possibly dual report for the death of Maurice Alward?)
  200. 1859 3 17 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Diver drowned whilst a boat's crew were engaged about the wreck of the barque Saxon King off Stranraer" "Diver Drowned. ...the diver, when they found him quite dead. The air pipe had got entangled among the steps of the ladder and air supply had..." (The Saxon King left Samarand with a cargo of sugar for the Clyde but ran aground on rocks off the South Rock Lighthouse (Off Ireland) on the 10th of January. She was refloated after three hours and made for the Clyde where she anchored off the Corsewall Lighthouse (Near Stranraer) where she foundered and sank). No other details (Pay for access archive). Reported in the Cambridge Chronicle and Herald/The British Newspaper Archive
  201. 1858 7 23 Affer UK S/S Air "Death in a Diving Aparatus. On Friday, a mason, named Affer, employed as a diver in building the new admiralty pier at Dover, lost his life by opening a valve in his diving dress. The unfortunate man had gone down for the ...." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Sherbourne Mercury/The British Newspaper Archive
  202. 1857 5 20 Barnicoat RE Edward Sgt. UK Military S/S Air "Death of a diver. A melancholy accident occurred on Wednesday morning to a colour sergeant of the Royal Engineers at Chatham named Edward Barnicoat...." No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Royal Cornwall Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  203. 1857 5 15 Not Recorded UK S/S Air "Naval and Military Intelligence. An experienced diver who died under mysterious circumstances while occupied in diving for the purpose of recovering a 32 pounder ..." Suspected duplicate report of the death of Edward Barnicoat (20/5/1857). No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Caledoian Mercury/Belfast Mercury/The British Newspaper Archive
  204. 1854 5 2 Not Recorded UK "Fatal Accident happened on the 2nd inst. to one of the divers employed upon the Portland Breakwater works. The man…" No other details (Pay for access archive) Reported in the Westmoreland Gazette/The British Newspaper Archive
  205. 1837 0 0 Siebe Augustus UK Siebe Ltd S/S Air Augustus Siebe designed the first completely sealed (watertight) diving dress. Though there were many refinements, the overall design was largely unchanged until replaced by SCUBA and modern surface supplied helmets in the 1960s. First used by the Royal Navy in 1840 to continue salvage of the "Royal George", the "Siebe Improved Diving Dress" was then adopted as the standard diving equipment for the Royal Engineers leading to setting up of the first Navy Diving School in 1843
  206. 1828 0 0 Deane Brothers Charles and John UK Developed their earlier design (1823) 'Smoke Hood" into a diving suit (Helmet not sealed onto dress so if diver inverted his helmet flooded. Was used successfully to salvage canons from the wreck of HMS "Royal George" (Sank in 65' of water at Spithead in 1783) in 1834 and 1835
  207. 1744 6 22 Day John UK 40 Submarine Day was an English Carpenter/wheelwright. With the financial support of Christopher Blake, an English gambler, Day built a wooden "diving chamber" without an engine. He attached his invention to the deck of a 50 ton sloop named the Maria, which Blake had purchased for £340. The sloop's hold contained 10 tons of ballast, and two 10-ton weights were attached beneath the keel which could be released from inside the diving chamber. An additional 20 tons of ballast would be loaded on the Maria after Day had been locked inside the diving chamber. Day bet Blake that he and his boat could descend to a depth of 130 feet (40 m) and stay underwater for 12 hours. On June 22, 1774, the Maria was towed to a location north of Drakes Island (off Plymouth), Day took a candle, water and biscuits on board. The boat was equipped with a hammock for the passenger. After the boat was locked, the weights were loaded and the boat sank forever into the depths. Day had the calculation of the trim completely wrong. There is speculation whether Day died from asphyxiation, hypothermia or just drowned following catastrophic structural failure of the Maria and/or the diving chamber due to water pressure. This incident is believed to be the first recorded fatal accident involving a submarine. Wikipedia
  208. 0 0 0 HMS Vernon UK RN Chamber 2 overseas (possibly Iranian?) Navy divers under training killed instantly when the castellated door on a one man chamber failed (blown through the mining shed wall by the force of escaping air). Rumours that incorrect depth/pressure gauges had been fitted and that the door had failed previously under test but no remedial action had been taken After the incident, the chamber door was modified with a simple 'padlock' to prevent the door opening. The same chamber was mobilised to HMS Bossington and used during Suez canal clearing operations in 1974. PC
  209. 0 0 0 Not Recorded UK Standard gear When working in the river Severn by Gloucester Quay, a diver was killed when an explosive charge was detonated prematurely.
  210. 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
  211. 1966 11 18 Robbie, RN PO George Uganda Military British naval diver, died at Jinja in eastern Uganda working on a new train ferry terminal when a crane lifting rock toppled over. No other details. Straits Times
  212. 2013 6 21 Sujan Singh Chauhan UAE Mutawa Marine 17 S/S Air Indian. Aged 53. SRP/zodiac dive at dive at Das Island. During dive stopped responding to communications, floated to the surface just as the stand-by was going in, given CPR but failed to respond to treatment. Initial hospital reports indicate a heart attack.
  213. 2012 4 12 Bogs Arsinas UAE Target Engineering 18 SS/Air Reported that a Philippino diver (Not IMCA certified, alledgedly refused certification by WCCD) was brought to the surface from depth without completing decompression (dive possibly aborted by supervisor because "diver was not performing adequately in the water"). After 10 minutes on deck, collapsed. Put in a DDC and treated (Table? Depth?) but did not respond. Transferred to hospital but died the day after. No investigation, reported to his family by the contractor that he 'died in his room of a heart attack' Possibly no medical, possibly not fit to dive. Reported by The Divers Association
  214. 2011 1 25 Castro Policcarpio UAE Amasco, Dubai SCUBA Personal Communication “A diver was killed carrying out a hullscrub on the offshore anchorage Fujairah – date of incident 25th Jan 2011. Filipino diver, one of four using brush carts, crushed on surfacing between dive boat and tanker 'Najm' (Maltese flag, Iranian National Oil Company) in rough seas� PC. Waiting on further details
  215. 2008 6 12 Qadar R. N. Abdul UAE SCUBA Kenyan, married with two children Gulf-news: Quote at the time :Sharjah: “A scuba diver working on a ship at Hamriya Port was killed while checking the ship's engine. The engineer was unaware that the scuba diver was working and switched on the engine, causing the scuba diver to get caught between the propeller blades. Police were unable to find most of the body parts and gave up the search after three days. The people involved in the incident were arrested, including an engineer and two assistants, who claimed that it was an accident and that they had no intention of killing him�. The Ukrainian engineer on the supply vessel 'Orel' who started the engine was found responsible and fined £34,000 'blood money' even though he claimed that he did not know the diver was in the water and had been instructed to start the engine by the chief engineer. Xpress online Note. The Ukrainian marine engineer was prevented from leaving Sharjah until he paid about US$73,000 “diya�, blood money, and a Dh6,000 fine. “I’m very sorry for the death of the man, who I know has two children. I feel for them as I am also a father of two,� He said the accident – which took place when he started the main engine – was not solely his fault as he was ordered by the chief engineer to start it not knowing Abdul Qader was still working astern. “Due to incomplete and inaccurate information and the lack of a translator [during court hearings], all responsibility was laid on me. I am not in a position to pay the amount. I cannot get a job as I don’t have my documents. My wife in Ukraine earns just $120 (Dh440) a month. He started working for the Sharjah-based Whitesea Shipping Company and Supply LLC in March 2007. “I haven’t seen my family since then. I want nothing more than to be home with them,� In August 2009, he received help from the local Russian speaking community, and was allowed home.
  216. 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)
  217. 2004 4 11 Kneen Christopher UAE SCUBA International SCUBA British, aged 19, sucked into a pipe, desalination plant at Fujairah, UAE. Sports/tourist SCUBA diver doing a commercial dive, diving instructor who sent him to the plant was found guilty of causing death, plant operators were not held responsible for not turning off the pump that sucked him in.
  218. 2002 12 16 Arnold Christian UAE CCC Topsides Aged 29, fell from the 12th floor of the International Hotel in Abu Dhabi three days after arrriving in the Middle East. A fire gutted four rooms and set off the fire alarms at 03:00, smoke came under the door of the room he was sharing with a colleague who tried to calm him down (He had a phobia about being trapped by fire), but he jumped from the balconey. A large number of other guests, including 11 other dive team members, were treated for smoke inhalation. The Sun
  219. 2000 4 15 Rig 'Al Mariyah' UAE Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Co. Jack up. Located over wellhead platform 94 (Umm Shaif field), skidding derrick, collapsed (failed jacking system). POB 68, 4 fatalities. After lay up was rebuilt by Arab Contractors Bahrain (2006) for NDC
  220. 1999 1 11 Glazzard Robert UAE Oceaneering Topsides British, aged 28, missing overboard at night from Seabulk Hercules along with New Zealand dive tech Aaron Harper/Aaron Hopa. Suspected garrotted and dead before in the water. Stories of drug smuggling/debts, open verdict, no conclusion.
  221. 1997 9 17 Courcoux Dave UAE Crushed by an 'A' Frame
  222. 1996 1 0 Palin Carl UAE 18 S/S Air Apparently surfaced normally but lost consciousness, into zodiac, transferred to DDC (13 minute surface interval), at 60' no response, down to 165', partially regained consciousness, behavioural issues, sedated with valium, doctor locked in, gradual decompression, mated to a sat system two days later at 60', cardiac arrest, resuscitated but no brain stem, activity then suffered another cardiac arrest.
  223. 1993 0 0 Avillanoza Dandy UAE S/S Air Died inside a power stations intake pipeline at Jebel Ali D Station early 90's when the Kirby 10 Hood retainer / steel band came away from the hat as someone had not tightened it after service/drying the hood, local civils contractor.
  224. 1992 0 0 Palin Carl UAE CCC 0 Died in the DDC (Brain aneurysm)
  225. 1986 9 1 Wilkinson Guy UAE Ruwais, UAE, pulled unconscious from the water after an argon cylinder was tied into the gas supply, did not respond to treatment.
  226. 1981 7 11 Craig Gordon UAE Comex S/S Air Installing a welding habitat onto a pipeline in the Zakum Field. Habitat 'hung up' and the diver , wearing a band-mask, was looking for the cause when it dropped, head crushed, died instantly.
  227. 1979 0 0 Harrison Jim "Piggy" UAE Topsides Ex RN Clearance Diver, killed in a road accident in Sharjah on the way to work. PC
  228. 1976 2 0 Rig 'W. D. Kent' UAE Jack Up, off Dubai, hit by barge during a storm, sank
  229. 1975 9 0 Rig 'AMDP-1' UAE Jack Up, sank during rig move/towing
  230. 2013 12 1 Argoncillo Alex UAE Scamp / Gubunco 60m S/S Air One of two divers employed by Scamp Middle East reported as having died in November/December 2013 (The second was not named but was initially reported 'not diving related' but no details, waiting on clarification from Scamp. Later reported that the other death occurred on November 14th and was diving related). Philippino, Vessel husbandry job off Fujairah, unclear whether he got entangled in a brush cart umbilical or his diving umbilical was caught in the vessel propellor. No details, his best friend, Alex Tejedar, died in Italy in April 2013 (Costa Concordia salvage works, but death was not diving related). PC. Another report states that the incident occurred on surface supply when the divers umbilical caught in cleaning chariot brush, diver surfaced and removed band mask, chariot started to pull diver under water, standby diver launched ( in SCUBA) and gives second stage to diver in distress, diver bites off 2nd stage, rescue abandoned, diver pulled under water and drowned. PC
  231. 2013 11 14 UAE Scamp / Gubunco SCUBA One of two divers employed by Scamp Middle East (The other was Alex Argoncillo who died 1st December) reported as having died in November/December 2013. Initially reported as 'not diving related' but no details, waiting on clarification from Scamp. PC. A later report states that the incident occurred on 14th Novemver, three divers in the water on SCUBA, weather came up, divers sought refuge in the prop area, one diver ran out of gas, removed his cylinders and gave them to the other divers before surfacing, but was swept away. No lifelines.
  232. 2017 6 14 Sango Mervin UAE Atlantis Marine SCUBA Ex-Navy diver, hull cleaning the vessel 'Oil Runner' (Panama flagged crude oil tanker, 270m x 46 m) off Fujairah, evening dive (20:00 - 21:00), heavy swell, current running, apparently had a problem and disappeared from colleagues view. Later found floating on the surface, 'lips exploded and tongue bitten'. PC
  233. 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
  234. 2009 8 3 Plateau Rasul 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), killed in an underwater explosion during cutting sheet metal, second diver (Tamer Kasikcilar) was injured and taken to hospital. Reported in Netgazete.com
  235. 1998 7 29 Not Recorded Turkey Chamber Turkish doctor and 2 SCUBA divers killed in blast in decompression chamber  An explosion in a decompression chamber released a cloud of noxious fumes, killing a doctor and two scuba divers at a hospital, the Anatolia news agency said. The cause of the explosion Tuesday was not immediately known and officials at Capa hospital refused to comment. Associated Press
  236. 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'
  237. 1998 10 12 Not Recorded Tunisia Adriatica Subsea Services 75 S/S Mixed Gas Spanish, aged 33, Bounce diving, Galeazzi type bell, (no DDC, decompression done in the bell). The day before had passed out in the water, recovered by the bellman. Passed out during locking out, recovered dead. Ill fitting unisuit reported as a contributory factor
  238. 1984 0 0 Not Recorded Tunisia 67 S/S Mixed Gas During in-water decompression, supervisor on board the vessel shifted to oxygen supply at 6 m. 2 minutes later diver surfaced, become unconscious on being pulled into an inflatable (standing by) where he was recovered in seconds. Could not be resuscitated The oxygen supply line had a filter partly covered with teflon fibers from the fittings. Check showed oxygen supply pressure but reduced flow. Diver, very experienced, did not operate his bailout for unknown reasons
  239. 1972 0 0 Not Recorded Tunisia Cocean 57 SCUBA Ashtart field, installation of a shackle on an anchoring pipe. Diving SCUBA/Trimix from SBM Installer I. Descent along the chain - High swell, chain moving in chain direction in upper zone, vertically up and down (4 to 5 meters) below 60 m where it was almost horizontal in reduced visibility water. Chain hits Scuba tanks braking the attachment between tanks. Diver catches the chain to prevent further hit, movement of water removes mask and one fin. After releasing the chain, diver could replace mask and locate the fin and come up, the buddy diver was watching above in a zone with visibility (bubbles still coming up), both returned safely at surface.....
  240. 2011 10 17 Charles Rondell Trinidad Underwater Works Inc 5 SCUBA Aged 21, collecting seabed environmental samples from Port Lisa Harbour (Adjacent to the Methanex methanol plant on the Couva Industrial Estate), surfaced in distress at the end of his dive, took off tank but was still wearing weight belt. Slipped under water and failed to surface. Body recovered miles to the south three days later, No real details, waiting on reports. Trinidad Express.
  241. 2006 0 0 Not Recorded Trinidad American, rumour only, No details, thought to be ADC member Double report for Denis Cartright (Below)?
  242. 1972 0 0 Conover Harold Trinidad Possibly worked for Packer Diving and Salvage (Morgan city), described as being killed off the coast of Trinidad in 1972, no other details. Old Divers Notice Board
  243. 1960 0 0 Cartright Denis Trinidad Cartright or Carnright? Came out of saturation with "symptoms of pneumonia", died in a hospital in Trinidad.
  244. 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.
  245. 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
  246. 2012 10 30 Not Recorded Tonga SCUBA Diving illegally for sea cucumber on Tungua in the outlying Ha'apai islands, 'symptoms were consistent with decompression sickness'. SCUBA diving for sea cucumbers is illegal under the Tonga Fisheries Act. Two other free-diving sea cucumber fishrermen died in the previous seven days, one off the Northern coast of 'Atata island - leg caught in nylon line - the other from Patangata was found dead on the reef by other fishermen returning from Pangaimotu island. Reported by Matangi Tonga Online
  247. 2011 12 9 Not Recorded Tonga S/S Air Aged 43, illegal sea cucumber fishing (season closed in mid October), diving with two other fishermen using a basic hookah equipment near Luanamo island (Ha'apai), experienced severe abdominal pains but died before the health officer from Ha'afeva arrived on the island. Inquest concluded that he died from decompression illness. Police arrested two Asian men (reputed to have bought the sea cucumbers and then left the island and charged them with illegal havesting off-season and use of using illegal equipment) and three Tongan men the day after on the island of Nuku'alofa. Second illegal sea cucumber harvester to die on the island this year in virtually identical circumstances (the previous fatality was on the 1st of September). Vava'a Press
  248. 2011 9 1 Not Recorded Tonga Aged 54, reported as having died from decompression after diving for sea cucumbers near the island of Leleka in Ha'apai on the late afternoon of Thursday, September 1. Police confirmed that the deceased from Ngele'ia in Tongatapu died shortly after surfacing from diving. Tonga News
  249. 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
  250. 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.
  251. 2010 11 29 McCarthy Peter Joseph Thailand 80 Rebreather British, aged 47, diving instructor, disappeared on an 80 metre deep dive into the mouth of a submerged volcano off the Thai island of Koh Tao with a party of eight other British and Italian divers at about noon, local time, on Monday. The other instructor on the dive told Thai media that Mr McCarthy did not come up after the nine man hour-long dive. Each of the divers had two hours of oxygen. The other divers used up their remaining oxygen in searching for their instructor, reports said. The instructor was described as a very experienced technical diver - expert in a specialised type of scuba diving that uses a mix of gases to allow divers dive go deeper and for longe (Technical diving). The original diving group consisted of the two instructors, four men and three women. Mr McCarthy had a diving licence issued in the Gulf of Thailand province of Chumpon. Daily Mail UK
×

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.

  I accept