September 2012    Download the Entire Issue (PDF)

Vol. 27, No. 9   What's this?

One Cavern Plus Panic Equals Four Deaths

from the September, 2012 issue of Undercurrent  

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Having studied hundreds of diving deaths over the years, I always shudder when I read about unsuspecting sport divers heading into a cavern, stirring up silt, getting deeper into trouble, and finding no way out. Sadly, four divers died near Palinuro Italy on June 30, and here are the reports from CNN and the Telegraph:

A British diver who had been living in Rome is believed to have been the leader of a party of divers who lost their bearings after kicking up mud from the floor of the "Blood Grotto," a popular destination with amateur divers because of its red walls, caused by a bacterial growth. According to Italian investigators, the group missed the exit to the cave after becoming confused, and instead entered a nearby tunnel, which led to a chamber with a dead end....