Jim, You'll need to get in line I'm still waiting to hear the logic behind
teaching open water courses in a rebreather? Is that ok? If so, how does that
actually work and what is the purpose? 

-----Original Message-----
From: "Jim Cobb"<cobber@ci*.co*>
To: "Tom Mount"<TOM.MOUNT@in*.at*.ne*>, "Michael
Barnette"<aocfishman@ho*.co*>, FLTechDiver@mikey.net, "Tech
Diver"<techdiver@aquanaut.com>
Date: Sun Jul 01 18:41:13 PDT 2001
Subject: Re: accident

>I am confused about the part when is the best time to abandon your buddy.
>Tom, as I understand it you teach buddy abandonment in IANTD classes, as it
>is better for one person to die than for both. Personally I think it would
>be better to teach something more along the lines of its best for nobody to
>die in the first place, but I know that's totally unrealistic of me. After
>all this is technical diving and people are supposed to die now and then.
>
>Anyway, Did this buddy team do proper prior planning and decided that if one
>or the other drops into a hypoxic delusional state that the buddy then
>assumes the other is a gonner and gets the hell out of the way? Or did the
>situation call for abandonment for drysuit problems stemming from hypoxia
>induced hallucinations? What is the IANTD official abandonment plan for this
>situation with rebreathers or drysuits? Or in this situation with a known
>problematic rebreather and drysuit is the abandonment plan based on a
>combination of the two?
>
>I also notice that the abandonment plan continued on the surface. I don't
>understand why IWR was not practiced even though they had several hours to
>think the problem over.
>
>Please discuss the IANDT every man for himself policy and if it's just for
>underwater or really does extend to the surface.
>
>   Jim
>
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------
> Learn About Trimix at http://www.cisatlantic.com/trimix/
>
>> From: "Tom Mount" <TOM.MOUNT@in*.at*.ne*>
>> Reply-To: "Tom Mount" <TOM.MOUNT@in*.at*.ne*>
>> Date: Wed, 27 Jun 2001 11:54:51 -0400
>> To: "Michael Barnette" <aocfishman@ho*.co*>, <FLTechDiver@mikey.net>
>> Subject: accident
>> 
>> Accident Report in Regard to Garrets Death
>> This is one of the rare times we have a detailed accident report to review:
>> Saturday June 23, 19:05, Garrett and Claudia started a dive to 300 feet at
>> Mukilteo, WA. The dive included a swim of 15 minutes down a gradual slope to
>> the planned 300-foot depth where 5 minutes were spent. The dive was planned
>> with software dive tables. Both knew the dive site very well.
>> Both were diving their inspiration units that had passed all pre-dive
>> checks. Onboard tanks were full (8/60 and O2), scrubber fresh (see below).
>> Also, they were carrying an Al80 (10/50) and an Al40 (O2) as bailout each,
>> equipped with inflator hoses, gauges, and second stage.
>>> From descent to ascent, including the deep stops, everything went smoothly
>> like usual.
>> After leaving the 100 ft stop to 60 feet (20 ft/min) Garrett started to
>> display he was having a problem.
>> The Inspiration was functioning correctly and there were no PO2 problems,
>> nor other CCR related problems. The after-market ADV was disengaged as it
>> always was on ascent. No alarms, no malfunctions were taking place.
>> Claudia: Starting at 100 feet, he was suddenly behind me, not next to me or
>> slightly in front. I looked back and saw him getting rid of occasional water
>> in the breathing hose (normal, although he usually did not do it on ascent,
>> rather at the stop). He seemed to be struggling slightly with 'something'.
>> (When someone had problems of any kind, they would stop and the buddy would
>> stop as well. In this case, although slightly slower, Garrett did not stop,
>> and no other communication indicated a serious problem, yet.)
>> Claudia: Then, arrived at the 60 ft stop, the communication was strange to
>> non-existent. All I understood, other than that he was getting in more and
>> more distress, was that his dry suit was not as quickly deflated. He showed
>> me that with opening the wrist seal slightly and bubbles coming out. Because
>> of the warm neck hood, it's very hard to open the neck seal that way, and
>> Garrett chose not to. "
>> Garrett presented more problems with buoyancy and a look of distress, and
>> surprise. After we had spent some time trying to stop the ascent by
>> releasing gas and swimming down - I could not get to the dry suit inflator
>> to detach it (although nothing indicated a runaway inflator) and worked on
>> the BC inflator - Garrett stopped kicking and continued to the surface. He
>> was just floating up, looking down to me. That look said that he knew what
>> was going to happen, and I did too."
>> (The longest deco in my life (60 minutes according to tables), on top a
>> stomach barotrauma that made breathing very hard.)
>> Comment: This is what we actually talked about with Leon yesterday
>> afternoon: Gary never really liked his deflator that does not have a rest
>> when fully opened, and together with the undergarment, it seemed difficult
>> to release the Argon in a timely manner. However, I have never seen him
>> having problems before.
>> 
>> According to a person at the surface that came to help, Garrett went to the
>> boat ramp and climbed out of the water. He then collapsed on the boat ramp,
>> and the guy pulled him from the ramp up.
>> 
>> Garrett said something about his dry suit to this person. He had him call
>> 911, told him about his buddy doing deco and to take care of her, and had
>> him help set up everything to breathe O2 until the ambulance would arrive.
>> He breathed oxygen until his onboard O2 was empty, and his stage / bailout
>> O2 to 1700 psi by the time the ambulance arrived to pick him up.
>> (Throughout the dive an ordeal. There was no alarm or even 'sanity break' at
>> any time. The scrubber was okay. Mine was new, his had 54 minutes on prior
>> to the dive.)
>> (Tom's comment) I think it is important that he made a conscious decision
>> not to descend back to his stop in the water and Garrett was fully aware of
>> the problems with an explosive decompression, so it would lead one to think
>> other factors many be involved. He also had adequate OC gas to do a deco
>> procedure, had OC gas been needed.
>> Claudia: We had talked about situations like that before and had he been
>> able to, he would have resumed his deco after fixing whatever problem he
>> had. I did not like the idea of leaving him alone when we discussed it, but
>> understand that otherwise we both would have been killed, and he never
>> wanted that to happen. In a similar situation, knowing that we were close to
>> the boat ramp on a Saturday evening with many people around, I would have
>> expected for him to stay down as well. A hard decision I never wanted to
>> have to make.
>> At the hospital where he also commented about his dry suit and then fell
>> unconscious after 5 minutes, due to his condition (good ECG at first, but a
>> drop to 40 over 20) he was treated for a heart attack (while explosive DSC
>> is life threatening, it was secondary to the seriousness of the heart attack
>> in the judgment of the attending physicians, and it is difficult if not
>> impossible to fully address the heart condition while in a chamber) for 5
>> hours prior to being placed in the chamber. 20 minutes into the chamber
>> treatment Garrett arrested and died.
>> Tom: Garrett was a really good friend and his loss saddens me greatly. He
>> had a tremendous amount of time on the inspiration (460 hours plus) and was
>> the most active instructor we have had on the west coast. And maybe the most
>> active inspiration instructor in the USA. We have shared many dives, deep
>> dives and recently he and Claudia went on a Blue Hole trip with several
>> others and myself. He was extremely competent and safety orientated. In fact
>> during a training program when he was doing his IT and Martin was doing his
>> instructors and Vicki her diver rating on the inspiration we hammered out
>> sequencing. On the skills that are now taught in the IANTD Inspiration
>> course. So he has contributed very much to our training programs and to
>> rebreather diving safety overall.
>> 
>> Patti, IANTD and I wish for Garrett the happiest after life possible and
>> know his energy will always be with those he cared for.
>> 
>>> From everything from observations to the medical reaction and diagnosis at
>> he hospital it would have lead one to accept that Garrett had a heart
>> attack.
>> 
>> True without the complication of an explosive decompression he may have had
>> a higher probability of surviving.
>> 
>> BUT after his body was reviewed by the ME the following was found
>> 
>> Claudia: According to the examiner, no enzymes could be built within the
>> time frame of 5-6 'alive' hours that would let trace a heart attack, and
>> they were not found. The final report may be shared with me in about 6-8
>> weeks. This morning, two friends of ours, and students of Garrett's, Ken
>> Rymal and Dave Hancock, and I were explaining the gear to the examiners to
>> shed some light for them on the subject. We tested the unit in front of
>> them, and everything worked properly.
>> 
>> Garrett and I were to get married 5 July, and had many good plans for
>> training and service, and just going diving all over the place. After
>> talking to Leon that afternoon, we produced even more ideas while driving
>> from the lunch place up North to Mukilteo. Except for the harsh and unfair
>> end, it was one of, of not the happiest weekend we had ever spent.
>> 
>> Tom: questions that remain:
>> 1. What caused Garret to make the decision not to solve the problem in water
>> (maybe due to physiological stress if fact he was having a physical problem
>> as thought by the doctors )
>> 2. Why once on the surface he elected not to return to the stops after
>> dealing with any other problems (again suggesting there was something else
>> taking place)
>> 3. Why was he not put in the chamber earlier, (as stated by the attending
>> Doctor a heart attack but according to the ME no evidence of a heart attack
>> 
>> So we may or may not discover the answers to these as well as what if any
>> role a problem with the dry suit may or may not have had on this accident.
>> 
>> We do know it was not CCR related. And it appears that there was a
>> physiological problem taking place that influenced Garrett to allow himself
>> to go to the surface and to elect not to return to decompression.
>> It is sad that he was not placed in the chamber immediately as that would
>> have definitely increased the probability of his survival of the
>> decompression issue. But  the attending doctors (s) had to make a decision
>> based on what they perceived to be most life threatening.
>> 
>> So we are still left with many questions
>> 
>> We do know Garrett was extremely competent as a diver and highly experienced
>> on the inspiration
>> 
>> Respectfully
>> Claudia Milz and Tom Mount
>>> From Leon Scamahorn
>> I am at a loss.  Garrett, Claudia, and I had just finished having lunch and
>> talking about the Meg. I was looking forward to working with Garrett and
>> diving with him and Claudia.
>> 
>> I wish everyone to know that I believe Garrett was a fine instructor and
>> probably the best one and diver in the country on the Inspiration. I will
>> feel his loss, and I think that we all will feel his loss in the diving
>> industry. He has been a positive influence to all those that understood him.
>> 
>> Claudia, you have my best wishes.
>> 
>> Sincerely,
>> Leon Scamahorn
>> CEO Innerspace Systems Corp.
>> 
>> 
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Michael Barnette" <aocfishman@ho*.co*>
>> To: <FLTechDiver@mikey.net>
>> Sent: Tuesday, June 26, 2001 2:04 PM
>> Subject: Update on Florida job announcement
>> 
>> 
>>> I thought this might be of interest to the list...
>>> Cheers,
>>> Mike
>>> Association of Underwater Explorers
>>> http://www.mikey.net/aue
>>> 
>>>> Important Update on Underwater Archaeology Employment Opportunity
>>>> 
>>>> The Florida Department of State position for an Archaeological Field
>>>> Supervisor within the Bureau of Archaeological Research that was
>> advertised
>>>> on 5/30/01 has been changed to Archaeological Field Assistant. Due to
>>>> recent
>>>> personnel changes and a clarification of policy, the Bureau of Human
>>>> Resources decided to delete the Supervisor position and add the Assistant
>>>> position.  Nonetheless, the starting salary will remain the same as the
>>>> Supervisor position ($22,045.68).  The new Assistant position is now
>> being
>>>> officially advertised.
>>>> 
>>>> This career service position with full benefits represents a rare
>>>> opportunity in Florida for a trained individual who seeks government
>>>> service
>>>> employment to pursue investigation, assessment, and documentation of
>>>> submerged cultural resources for the public benefit.
>>>> 
>>>> Important Note:  Those individuals who already have submitted
>> applications
>>>> for the now-defunct Supervisor position will automatically be considered
>>>> for
>>>> the Assistant position.  The applications have been retained for
>>>> consideration, and one need not apply again.
>>>> 
>>>> For those individuals who have not yet made application, there is an open
>>>> period of 14 days (June 25 through July 9) during which applications are
>>>> being accepted.  Interested applicants should fill out a State of Florida
>>>> employment application and send it to the address below as soon as
>>>> possible.
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> Bureau of Human Resources
>>>> Florida Department of State
>>>> 107 W. Gaines Street, Room 266
>>>> Collins Building
>>>> Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
>>>> 
>>>> Applications must be received by 5 p.m. on July 9th, 2001.
>>>> 
>>>> The official announcement can be viewed at:
>>> 
>>> http://www.myflorida.com/oraweb/owa/www_cv.jobvac.detail?pvac_key=1042&preg
>> i
>>>> on=W
>>>> 
>>>> The position announcement also will be posted on the Bureau's web site
>> at:
>>>> http://www.dos.state.fl.us/dhr/bar/jobs.html
>>>> 
>>>> This posting outlines (a) a description of the position, (b) minimum
>>>> qualifications  (c) preferred applicant qualifications, and (d) how to
>>>> obtain a State of Florida employment application by mail or from the
>>>> Internet.
>>>> 
>>>> (a) Job Description for Archaeological Field Supervisor
>>>> The incumbent is to assist in the management of state-wide submerged
>>>> cultural resources.  The incumbent will perform a range of functions
>> which
>>>> include conducting field surveys and site inspections; preparing and
>>>> presenting reports of archaeological findings in written and illustrated
>>>> form; monitoring and supervising exploration and salvage contracts and
>>>> related files; maintaining underwater site information databases; and
>>>> maintaining boats, vehicles, and underwater equipment. The position is
>>>> located within the Tallahassee office of the Bureau, but requires
>> periodic
>>>> and extended travel throughout the state.
>>>> 
>>>> (b) The minimum professional qualifications require completion of a
>>>> training
>>>> program in scuba diving techniques and one year (or 30 hours) of scuba
>>>> diving experience; or one year of archaeological field experience; or
>>>> completion of 30 semester or 45 quarter hours of college coursework which
>>>> includes two courses in anthropology or archaeology.
>>>> 
>>>> (c) Preferred qualifications include an undergraduate degree with a major
>>>> in
>>>> anthropology, archaeology, or related field and two years professional
>>>> experience, as well as a divemaster or instructor diving certification.
>>>> 
>>>> Successful candidates shall be able to demonstrate their experience and
>>>> expertise in the  following:
>>>> 
>>>> Knowledge of underwater archaeological theory and methodology; of
>> cultural
>>>> resource management issues, policies, and laws; of underwater survey and
>>>> excavation techniques; and of remote sensing marine survey technology.
>>>> 
>>>> Skills in public relations through personal and professional contacts; in
>>>> underwater archaeological recording and mapping; in diving techniques and
>>>> equipment; in the use of remote sensing survey equipment to conduct
>>>> professional level work; and in small boat handling and general marine
>>>> maintenance and repair
>>>> 
>>>> Ability to work independently in the field and in report preparation.
>>>> Ability to work well with land managers, fishermen, sport divers,
>>>> exploration and salvage contractors, and the general public.  Experience
>>>> with remote sensing survey work and underwater site mapping.  Experience
>>>> and
>>>> skills in small boat handling.  Experience and skills in maintenance and
>>>> repair of marine-related equipment.
>>>> 
>>>> Ability to design and implement archaeological research of submerged
>> sites;
>>>> to conduct historical research; to use personal computer software; and to
>>>> write professional reports.  Desire to travel throughout the state on a
>>>> regular basis.
>>>> 
>>>> (d)  A State of Florida employment application form can be obtained by
>>>> calling or writing to:
>>>> 
>>>> Bureau of Human Resources
>>>> Collins Building, Room 266
>>>> 107 W. Gaines Street
>>>> Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
>>>> Phone (850)245-6550
>>>> 
>>>> or, after noting the deadline,
>>>> 
>>>> You may download the application form from the Internet by going to this
>>>> address:
>>>> http://www.state.fl.us/dms/hrm/jobsdirect/application.html
>>>> You also can apply online for the position at this address.
>>>> 
>>>> You may wish to send photocopies of the application form, a professional
>>>> vita, and any other supporting materials to the address below for
>>>> simultaneous review.
>>>> 
>>>> For further information, contact:
>>>> 
>>>> Roger C. Smith, Ph.D.
>>>> State Underwater Archaeologist
>>>> Bureau of Archaeological Research
>>>> 500 South Bronough St.
>>>> Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
>>>> (850) 245-6444
>>>> rsmith@ma*.do*.st*.fl*.us*
>>> 
>>> _________________________________________________________________
>>> Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com
>>> 
>>> ============================================================
>>> To contact the list administrator, email
>>> Mike Rodriguez at mikey@mi*.ne*
>>> To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, send a message to:
>>> listserv@mi*.ne*
>>> and in the *BODY* of the message type:
>>> unsubscribe FLTechDiver
>> 
>> 
>> ============================================================
>> To contact the list administrator, email
>> Mike Rodriguez at mikey@mi*.ne*
>> To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, send a message to:
>> listserv@mi*.ne*
>> and in the *BODY* of the message type:
>> unsubscribe FLTechDiver
>> 
>
>
>--
>Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'.
>Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.


___________________________________________________
GO.com Mail                                    
Get Your Free, Private E-mail at http://mail.go.com


--
Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'.
Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.

Navigate by Author: [Previous] [Next] [Author Search Index]
Navigate by Subject: [Previous] [Next] [Subject Search Index]

[Send Reply] [Send Message with New Topic]

[Search Selection] [Mailing List Home] [Home]