Mine death

http://www.cbc.ca/clips/mov/calvert-...eath070205.mov

News clip of a diver diving in a submerged mine who passed away.

Deepest condolences

Matt

Thanks for this Zero. I mentioned this in the Canada Divers forum, and if any official info is released that we could all learn from, I'll be sure and pass it on. This happened in our backyard here so it is pretty close to home. The local dive community is pretty shook up.

Results of Autopsy:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundlan...r-autopsy.html

Air embolism killed Bell Island diver: autopsy
Last Updated: Wednesday, February 7, 2007 | 7:00 AM NT
CBC News
An American diver who died while exploring a flooded Newfoundland mine
suffered an air embolism, an autopsy has determined.

Joe Steffen, 51, was found Sunday afternoon near the ceiling of one of
the flooded tunnels in the abandoned iron ore mine in Bell Island,
about 35 kilometres west of St. John's.

Joe Steffen, 51, died because of an air embolism, an autopsy has
found.
(CBC) Members of Steffen's dive team attempted to revive him but
failed.

In diving, an air embolism can occur when a diver ascends too quickly,
and gas bubbles enter the bloodstream. An embolism can become fatal,
for instance, if a bubble rests in the heart.

Steffen was a member of an international team of divers who had been
invited to explore the No. 2 mine at Bell Island by Ocean Quest
Adventures, which is hoping to develop the site as an adventure
tourism attraction.

The team resumed its exploration on Monday.

Production at the No. 2 mine ended in 1949. The rest of the Bell
Island mine, which has been flooded since, closed in 1966.

http://oceanquestcharters.com/en/

I have found that typically although you might hear about a diving death, you don't usually get such a thorough report on the cause of death as this one, written by a diving medical consultant and member of the team. Use the scroll in the middle of the page . . .

Thanks for sharing that link seasnake, it does help a little bit in trying to understand how someone as skilled as Joe was could have suffrered an AGE. Joe was a fantastic diver and a great friend to many, and he will definitely be missed.