Hay, the guy became a renewable resource. Good on ‘im....
Assumption of risk. Next!
Giving your life to “save” the ecosystem. Bet your name won’t be remembered beyond next week.
Should’ve read Harvey Mackays book. This was preventable...
Diving in the Keys is dangerous and is down-played because of the tourist trade. I’ve been spending time in the Keys now for over seventeen years, and it’s an on-going issue. Not for the unskilled or stupid.
At least he died doing what he loved best!
230 feet, definitely a tech dive, using mixed gas (helium replacing nitrogen).
Still, three times to 230 sounds excessive. Very complicated decompression schedule.
RIP, it wasn’t his fault, he was following his divemaster, who barely survived.
He was found on the bottom, 300 feet frm last known location. He was on the surface before disappearing. His first ever 3 dives with Rebreather, the 3rd was his last. Depth 260 feet.
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Stewart and Sotis dove the wreck three times that day. They were the deepest dives of Stewarts life. The two men surfaced for the final time just after 5 p.m. within sight of the dive boats crew members. Stewart gave the OK sign. Sotis, however, appeared shaky as he climbed aboard the boat. Moments later, he blacked out. The crew retrieved bottled oxygen to revive him. In the commotion, they turned their backs to the water, and when they again looked for Stewart in the water, he was gone. The crew radioed for help immediately. Within five minutes, a Navy helicopter was dispatched and Coast Guard cutter Sexton was diverted to the scene, along with a small boat crew and an HH-65 helicopter from Miami.
https://www.outsideonline.com/2154621/rob-stewart-obituary
They were likely using a heli-oxy mixture and something was wrong with the mixture. Both divers affected. Possibly contaminated.
And on top of that diving to 230 ft three times. Dangerous.
I don’t know about the decompression tables using these exotic mixtures but it sounds dicey.
I went down to 95 ft., once. Did not enjoy it.