Posted on 12/22/2005 2:44:24 PM PST by Steven W.
CARLSBAD – A surfer was pronounced dead after he was pulled from the water by three fellow surfers who found him floating unconscious just after noon today, state lifeguards said.
State lifeguards were called for help by three males surfing near Tamarack Avenue and Carlsbad Boulevard. The group was riding 6-to-8-foot waves in heavy fog and limited visibility, said Karl Tallman, a state lifeguard supervisor.
They pulled the unconscious surfer, who was face down and still leashed to his surfboard, onto their boards in attempts to pull him into safety. But they kept getting slammed by breaking waves and needed a lifeguard's help in getting to shore.
Rescuers performed CPR on him for about 30 minutes, then moved him from the beach to an ambulance in the parking lot near Tamarack, where he was pronounced dead.
The other surfers were not injured.
Apparently he was surfing alone, and the men in the water with him didn't know him.
The exact cause of the death was also unknown, Carlsbad fire battalion chief Kim Blaylock said.
But he said lobster traps, which are connected by ropes to floats, may have played a role. Floats connected to two lobster traps were visible at the break directly offshore from where a lifeguard and two surfers had dragged the man's body from the water.
Asked about the lobster traps, Blaylock said, "We heard that too – that his board or his leash was caught in a lobster trap."
Lifeguards urged other surfers to stay out of the water because about 50 to 60 lobster traps, possibly loosened from their spots but still roped to their floats, were spotted in that area.
Tallman said he doubted lobster traps contributed to the death. "That doesn't appear to be the cause in this case but it is still extremely hazardous," he said.
The heavy fog provided surfers with only 50 to 75 yards of visibility.
"These are extremely hazardous conditions," Tallman said. "This is as bad as it gets."
The surfer's name, age and hometown weren't known.
One local surfer said the big surf, kicked up by Pacific storms, didn't merit the risks.
"It's junk surf right now," said Marty Warren, of Carlsbad, who has surfed for 20 years. "It's not worth going out on something like this."
Very sad.
Especially this close to Christmas.
Another one of those, it ain't gonna happen to me, I have it all under control, I know what I am doing, types I guess. Heavy fog, very bad conditions. You stay home.
The conditions should not have been a factor. 50-75 yards of visibility is plenty, and 6-8 foot waves are no problem for an experienced surfer. The lobster traps could have been a problem, but my guess is the guy probably had a heart attack. The reason they had so much trouble getting him out was most likely compunded by the fact that the beach by Tamarack Avenue is not sandy, but covered with small, sharp stones that beat the heck out of your ankles.
The lobster traps excuse is probably a diversion. The West Coast waves this week are so big and tough that they've made the newspapers back East.
Eastern waves drop you into a couple of feet of surf. Pacific waves drop you on the ground. Then suck you back out fast.
Dejavu for me to read this, only at the time (age 16) it happened I had a friend watching from shore who swam out and pulled me in.
I was unconscious for six hours and came close to dying with a massive concussion, sprained neck, broken jaw and spent 3 days in the hospital. I've got the chipped teeth and screwed up jaw to remind me today.
It was a 10' unleashed Hobie that about did me in.
It really depends on where you are surfing. If you are surfing the outer waves at Huntington or Bolsa Chica, the waves drop you in water. If you are surfing the inner waves, or a steep beach such as Newport, you get pounded into the sand.
6-8 foot waves are large enough to be careful with, but they aren't too big for an experienced surfer. I learned to body surf in waves that size at the age of 12.
Carlsbad Beach at Tamarack has sharp stones for a beach, and some low bedrock reefs in the surfline. This guy could have hit one of those. Also, if the surf was 6-8 feet, there could be the occasional larger set which could have taken him by surprise.
Chances are he was either out of his league in the larger waves, or had a heart attack.
Old School!
I learned to surf at Nauset on Cape Cod, and only surfed once in California, around 1969, at Newport Beach. It was dumb of me to assume the Pacific Ocean floor and water depths everywhere are the same. Thanks.
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