Deon Dreyer
Encyclopedia
Deon Dreyer was a South African recreational scuba diver
who lost his life in Bushman's Hole in South Africa.
set up conditions for a deep, technical dive
that was to take place later that week. According to first hand accounts from those diving with him, Dreyer was lost on ascent around 50 meters from the surface. It was claimed that this was probably due to a loss of consciousness caused by either oxygen toxicity
or hypercapnia caused by high work-rate of breathing at depth.
A plaque was erected at the entrance to Bushman's Hole in commemoration to Deyer. In the book, Diving Into Darkness: A True Story of Death and Survival by Phillip Finch, it was suggested that one of the reasons Dreyer's death created such an impression on the cave diving community was because of the plaque. Whereas most other divers who die, even whilst cave diving, their bodies had been recovered. However, for many years it was assumed that Dreyer's body would never be recovered from the cave because it was simply too deep, but the plaque was a continual reminder to cave divers that his body lay within.
. On January 8, 2005 an attempt made by Shaw to recover the body resulted in his death, and nearly claimed the life of support diver Don Shirley
. The bodies of Dreyer and Shaw were ultimately recovered.
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
who lost his life in Bushman's Hole in South Africa.
Death
Dreyer drowned while helping a team assembled by Nuno GomesNuno Gomes (diver)
Nuno Gomes is a South African SCUBA diver who holds the official current world record deep dive . He used self contained underwater breathing apparatus to dive to a depth of 1,044 feet...
set up conditions for a deep, technical dive
Technical diving
Technical diving is a form of scuba diving that exceeds the scope of recreational diving...
that was to take place later that week. According to first hand accounts from those diving with him, Dreyer was lost on ascent around 50 meters from the surface. It was claimed that this was probably due to a loss of consciousness caused by either oxygen toxicity
Oxygen toxicity
Oxygen toxicity is a condition resulting from the harmful effects of breathing molecular oxygen at elevated partial pressures. It is also known as oxygen toxicity syndrome, oxygen intoxication, and oxygen poisoning...
or hypercapnia caused by high work-rate of breathing at depth.
A plaque was erected at the entrance to Bushman's Hole in commemoration to Deyer. In the book, Diving Into Darkness: A True Story of Death and Survival by Phillip Finch, it was suggested that one of the reasons Dreyer's death created such an impression on the cave diving community was because of the plaque. Whereas most other divers who die, even whilst cave diving, their bodies had been recovered. However, for many years it was assumed that Dreyer's body would never be recovered from the cave because it was simply too deep, but the plaque was a continual reminder to cave divers that his body lay within.
Recovery of Dreyer's body
Dreyer's body remained in the cave until being discovered ten years later at a depth of 270 meters (890ft) by renowned cave diver David ShawDavid Shaw (diver)
David Shaw was an Australian scuba diver, a technical diver and an airline pilot for Cathay Pacific, who flew the A330-300, A340-300 and A340-600...
. On January 8, 2005 an attempt made by Shaw to recover the body resulted in his death, and nearly claimed the life of support diver Don Shirley
Don Shirley (diver)
Don Shirley is a world renowned English cave diver and Instructor Trainer and who currently resides in South Africa. He holds the license to International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers Southern Africa Region. Shirley has been involved in diving since 1974, conducting recreational...
. The bodies of Dreyer and Shaw were ultimately recovered.
See also
- Nuno GomesNuno Gomes (diver)Nuno Gomes is a South African SCUBA diver who holds the official current world record deep dive . He used self contained underwater breathing apparatus to dive to a depth of 1,044 feet...
- David ShawDavid Shaw (diver)David Shaw was an Australian scuba diver, a technical diver and an airline pilot for Cathay Pacific, who flew the A330-300, A340-300 and A340-600...
- Don ShirleyDon Shirley (diver)Don Shirley is a world renowned English cave diver and Instructor Trainer and who currently resides in South Africa. He holds the license to International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers Southern Africa Region. Shirley has been involved in diving since 1974, conducting recreational...
- Sheck ExleySheck Exley-Biography:Exley is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of cave diving, writing two major books on the subject: Basic Cave Diving: A Blueprint for Survival and Caverns Measureless to Man published by Cave Books, , and establishing many of the basic safety procedures used in cave and overhead...
- Cave divingCave divingCave diving is a type of technical diving in which specialized equipment is used to enable the exploration of caves which are at least partially filled with water. In the United Kingdom it is an extension of the more common sport of caving, and in the United States an extension of the more common...
- Deep divingDeep divingThe meaning of the term deep diving is a form of technical diving. It is defined by the level of the diver's diver training, diving equipment, breathing gas, and surface support:...
- Technical divingTechnical divingTechnical diving is a form of scuba diving that exceeds the scope of recreational diving...
Sources
- Finch, Phillip. Diving Into Darkness: A True Story of Death and Survival. New York, NY: St. Martin's Press, 2008