Scuba diver dies after getting tangled in fishing net
Posted August 1, 2011 3:26 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
PORT ALBERNI (NEWS1130) – A scuba diver is dead after becoming entangled in a fishing net just off of Port Alberni’s Harbour Quay.
RCMP Staff Sgt. Kevin Murray says the 42-year-old man was being supervised by his wife around 8:50 p.m. Sunday night when she realized something was terribly wrong.
“He came to the surface and called out for help that he was in distress and I don’t know if there was any indication at that time that he was entangled in a net,” Murray explains.
The wife called 911 and a nearby Coast Guard vessel dispatched two crew members to the scene. RCMP, fire crews, ambulance and the Coast Guard auxilliary also responded.
“They were able to pull [the net] up with the diver. He was unconscious and not breathing at the time.”
Medical attention was provided and he was transported to West Coast General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Murray says the man was an experienced scuba diver, but may not have been familiar with the waters around Port Alberni. Police are now investigating whether the fishing nets were properly marked.
