My girlfriend lost her brother to a diving accident today.

KevinP73 · 06-20-2013, 08:38 PM

Maybe not accurate to call it a diving accident. He was diving with a group off Catalina Island in about 20 feet of water and may have suffered a heart attack. We haven't heard the official cause of death yet but those who were with him said he was having trouble catching his breath and then just layed back and passed out.
My girlfried, not knowing where he was, called his cell to see if she could borrow his truck. A Sheriff answered the phone and explained what was going on. She called back about an hour later to tell us he was gone.
John was a nice guy, mid 50's. No signs at all that he was at risk.
R.I.P. John Stone

Bill Douglas · 06-20-2013, 08:43 PM

Sorry to hear that Kevin. Very sad.

diverdan · diverdan's Garage

Condolences. I love the water but it is not our natural environment. Good chance that one was Johnson's syndrome particulary if it occurred shortly after entry into COLD water. The resulting vasoconstriction puts a sudden load on the heart.

Diverdan

billybek · billybek's Garage

I am sorry to hear that as well, Keven.
My condolences to you and your girlfriend.

herr_oberst · 06-21-2013, 04:52 AM

Sorry for your loss, Kevin, my condolences to you and your gilrfriend's family.

KaptKaos · 06-21-2013, 07:16 AM

Sorry for your loss. Prayers sent.

KevinP73 · 06-21-2013, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by diverdan

Condolences. I love the water but it is not our natural environment. Good chance that one was Johnson's syndrome particulary if it occurred shortly after entry into COLD water. The resulting vasoconstriction puts a sudden load on the heart.

Diverdan

I'm told that the group had been in the water for some time. They took a break for lunch and then shortly after re-entering the water John became tangled in some kelp. His dive instructer helped free him and they surfaced. It was then that he said he was having trouble catching his breath. His instructor suggested he return to shore but John said he'd be ok and wanted to continue the dive. He was resting on the surface when he just rolled on his back and passed out. Details are a bit vague from there. At some point they put him in a decompression tank (I don't know for how long) but he was pronounced dead when he was removed.

crustychief · crustychief's Garage

I am sorry to hear about John.
Regards,
Sandy

Zeke · 06-21-2013, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinP73

At some point they put him in a decompression tank (I don't know for how long) but he was pronounced dead when he was removed.

Very sorry for your GF's loss. That does sound weird that he'd be in the chamber with no monitoring equipment.

KevinP73 · 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zeke

Very sorry for your GF's loss. That does sound weird that he'd be in the chamber with no monitoring equipment.

Thats where the details are a bit vague. Carolyn had called his cell having no idea that there was anything going on. The Sheriff said she could only say that there had been an accident while he was diving and that he was in a chamber and she had no other details at the moment. When the Sheriff called back to tell us John had passed Carolyn didn't think to ask for details at that moment.

rsrfan · 06-21-2013, 09:26 AM

I am truly very sorry for your loss Kevin...

KevinP73 · 06-22-2013, 09:17 AM

Yesterday was one long day. We left Rosemond at 11:00am with two hours to make it to the Catalina Express out of Long Beach. We made it with five minutes to spare. We were informed that the Sheriff's office couldn't transfer John's personal effects to the mainland so we had to go to the island to pick them up. As we stepped off the boat there were two officers on the dock so we asked the where the office was. They asked why we needed to find the office and once we explained they were very polite and walked us to it.

We met the officer that had answered John's phone when this whole adventure began. Two big thumbs up for this officer. She took the time to explain the whole series of events. And she explained the procedure that was to come with the autopsy and releasing the body back to the family. We weren't sure where he had left his truck or even how we would be sure which one was his. I thought he had left from San Pedro and was expecting to start the search there. She right away found his ticket from the boat ride over and let us know he had arrived from Long Beach. We'd still be looking for the truck if she hadn't helped. She also ran a DMV check and found his license plate number for us. Great service from the Sheriff's office. We'd have been screwed with out them.
We killed three hours waiting for the boat back to the mainland and found the truck surprisingly quick. We just drove thru the parking structure holding his alarm remote out the window. I couldn't find his parking stub but after explaining the situation to the lot attendant he charged us for the one day and we were off. Two hour drive back to Rosemond and we arrived home at 11:00 pm.
Thanks everyone for the kind wishes and words of support. The girlfriend still doesn't know crap about Porsche's but appreciates the support from everyone.

Hugh R · 06-22-2013, 10:11 AM

That's rough, I'm sorry sorry to hear this.

VINMAN · 06-22-2013, 10:15 AM

Very sorry to hear this Kevin. Condolences to your GF.

rusnak · 06-22-2013, 02:07 PM

That is so sad. May he rest in peace.

brock911 · brock911's Garage

Very sorry to hear of your loss. Prayers from Ontario, Canada.
Mike

Baz · Baz's Garage

Condolences on yours and your GF's loss, Kevin.

Life is short - gotta count our blessings every day.

Best wishes....

djmcmath · 06-22-2013, 06:06 PM

Condolences, that's really awful.

DavidI · 06-22-2013, 07:45 PM

Kevin, if you need any help or get stuck somewhere in the process, call me. I'll PM you my cell number. I am very sorry to hear about your girlfriend's loss, David

speeder · speeder's Garage

Sorry for your and her loss. Sudden deaths are always a gut punch but at least it sounds like he did not suffer. That would matter to me if it was my loved one.