Posted on 10/04/2019 9:15:11 AM PDT by BenLurkin
A 40-year-old Lakewood [CA] man died after free-diving for lobster off Totuava Beach, on Saturday, Sept. 28, the first day of lobster season, officials said.
The man, identified by the Orange County coroner as Ryan Huff, was diving with two friends in a cove just north of Thousand Steps Beach in Laguna Beach. OC Lifeguards, Laguna Beach Lifeguards, Laguna Beach Fire and police responded to the location at 7:15 a.m.
Huff’s friends told officials all three dove down 20 to 30 feet, but when the friends surfaced, Huff was not with them, said police Sgt. Jim Cota.
“They found him unconscious near the bottom,” Cota said. “They attempted to pull him up but he was caught on something. They eventually pulled him up and out of the water.”
The two men were struggling with Huff at the surface when Laguna Beach lifeguards arrived, said Lifeguard Capt. Kai Bond. The lifeguards brought the unconscious Huff to shore where paramedics found him in cardiac arrest and began lifesaving measures.
(Excerpt) Read more at ocregister.com ...
Can’t be sure, but in a panic, divers forget their BCD has quick release. Weights too.
My dear wonderful wife loves lobster
But I sure as hell ain’t gonna die for one of them bottom dwelling critters !
Read the article you posted.
My dad used to just trap them
Free diver. Go down hold your breath tickle stick them out of the hole into your net bag.
Did this many times in the keys.
RIP diver
He was free diving. I believe it is illegal to take any fish in the city of laguna to 3 miles offshore.
Probably tied a bag to his wrist or waist, and did not have a knife to cut it.
The fishing gear should have be attached to the BCD, not "his body".
ok, missed the free diving element...
Gezzz they eat stuff from off the coast in S. CA? They’ve got 278,000 toilets flushing who knows what to the ocean out there, every 20 minutes or so. Gak...
RIP. Sad way to go.
Permitted/Prohibited Uses: Take of all living marine resources is prohibited EXCEPT the recreational take of lobster, sea urchin, and finfish by hook-and-line or spearfishing below the mean lower low tide only and commercial take of coastal pelagic species by round haul net, spiny lobster, and sea urchin.
Yep. Done it many times in the canal behind my friends house in Islamarada. That and jumping out of the pontoon boat to grab conch.
California spiny lobsters must be taken by hand. That plus these guys were free-diving makes it a pretty difficult job.
Interesting. I had some friends get harassed when they started this. They were going diving and were told to not take anything because of the new law.
I guess they changed it or the LEO didn’t know the rules.
Thanks for the info.
Each area has its own rules and seasons.
They them in tanks at the store.
Today's snowflakes are taught that knives are bad. Why would anyone carry one? [Yes, I wear a knife or two every time I go in the woods or in the water, and most of the time anywhere else.]
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