Crews To Recover Bodies Of Divers On Saturday

[wreckdiver1715]

Divers Were Exploring The "Spiegel Grove" Wreck
Crews Will Search For The Bodies Saturday
(CBS4) KEY LARGO Four New Jersey men were diving from a commercial vessel called “Scuba-do” off the Florida Keys on Friday when something went wrong, and three of them never made it out alive.

The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said they were advanced certified divers, who were surveying the famous Spiegel Grove wreck when something went wrong. During the dive, one of the divers positioned at the entrance of the wreck was losing air, and according to detectives, surfaced safely. At the time, the other three were still exploring the inside of the sunken vessel.

Two divers from another boat immediately went down to look for them. They later surfaced with one diver who was in distress. That diver was taken onboard a Coast Guard vessel where CPR was performed all the way to shore. Paramedics met the boat and transported the victim to Mariner's Hospital in Marathon where he was pronounced dead.

The two other divers did not surface and initial searches of the area failed to locate them. After 2 p.m., a dive team from Key Largo Fire Rescue was searching the wreck.

The names of the divers are not being released pending notification of next of kin.

Search and Rescue crews will go back out Saturday morning to try and pull out the bodies. The search will be lead by Key West Fire & Rescue.

http://cbs4.com/topstories/local_story_075153527.html

 

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[Gypsy Heart]

Lord I Cant believ this.....I know a lot oif divers who have dived the Spegel. Here is a little info on it


Dive the Speigel Grove
The Keys’ Major New Wreck
By Terry Tomalin, Member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America


Leaning on the rail of a rolling deck off Key Largo, I stare into the blue-green water hoping to catch a glimpse of what lies below.

"If you look hard, you might just see the main deck," the dive boat’s skipper says. "But don’t worry, once you’re in, you can’t miss her."

The Upper Keys have long been a mecca for the nation’s small, but enthusiastic, wreck diving community. The Duane and the Bibb, two decommissioned U.S. Coast Guard cutters, rest nearby off Molasses Reef in slightly deeper water. These ships have been popular
Exploring the Speigel Grove
Stephen Frink

destinations for divers since they were scuttled in 1987.

But those wrecks are only accessible to experienced divers. Local charter boat operators had longed for a wrecked ship to be sunk in water shallow enough that even relatively new divers could touch a piece of history.

So, in 1994 a few members of the Key Largo dive community met at a neighborhood bar and hatched a plan to sink a vessel from the U.S. Navy’s "Mothball Fleet" in 130 feet of water six miles southeast of A1A.

The Spiegel Grove, a Landing Ship Dock (LSD) that once assisted in the splashdown of Apollo 14, would rise nearly 90 feet off the bottom, making her upper decks accessible to beginning divers.

The Spiegel Grove was nicknamed The Spiegel Beagle. Legend has it that the crew drew a picture of Snoopy riding an alligator on a passage floor, and then inscribed the words "Top Dog" over it.

It took more than seven months to prepare the ship to rest in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. On May 17, 2002, workers positioned the old LSD and prepared to open the ship’s sides to the ocean’s currents. But just hours before the scheduled sinking, the hull began taking on water, sending scores of workers running for safety. The Spiegel Grove then turned turtle, dumping thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment to the ocean floor.

The Key Largo Chamber of Commerce contracted to reorient the ship, which was now partially sticking out of the water, creating a navigation hazard. And by June 6, technical divers had installed 70 air bags, which would provide 500 tons of buoyancy, inside the hull. Four days later, with the help of two tugboats, the Spiegel Groverolled on its side and slipped beneath the surface. But the strange saga was far from over.

Six days after the historic re-sinking, officials announced the grand opening of the artificial reef would be delayed because an unidentified fluid was seeping from the sunken hull. Scientists from Louisiana State University were flown in to examine the wreck and determined the leak did not pose a safety or health hazard. Divers soaked up what fluid they could, then announced the leak was under control. Finally, more
Items recovered from the wreck

than a month after the premature sinking, the Spiegel Grovewas opened to the public.

On a clear day, the Spiegel Grove is easily visible from the surface. But on this July afternoon, conditions are less than ideal.

Scattered rain showers pepper us all day. The current rips hard out of the south and the captain stresses the dangers of the swift-moving water and poor visibility. I take a last look over the side before the sun slips behind the clouds and the wreck fades from view.

One by one, we step off the transom, then kick over to the safety line that leads to a buoy off the bow of the boat, then down to the wreck. The strong current pulls me, threatening to separate me from the safety of the mooring line and leave me drifting into the abyss.

As I work my way down the line I notice my knuckles are white. Nothing, not even Neptune himself, will make me loosen my grip until I reach the deck below. I gaze up and see the outline of the charter boat silhouetted against the sun as my fellow divers move slowly down the line.

A school of small fish as big as a house hovers over the port rail and pulsates with the current. Then, without warning, the school splits as a predator, perhaps a jack or a barracuda, shoots through in search of a meal. Then, as quickly as it parted, the bait school regroups, knowing there is safety in numbers.

With that in mind, I drop to the rail and wait for my dive buddy to join me. The hotel valet from Key Biscayne has been diving the Spiegel all week. It is his fifth visit in three days, and he has yet to cover one-third of the ship’s massive hull.

I’ve heard the wreck attracts spectacular marine life because of its close proximity to the Gulf Stream. The "Big Blue River" within the sea can swing close to shore and bring a variety of open ocean residents, including manta rays and hammerhead sharks. But while the Stream’s swift current brings clear water, it can also make things difficult for divers when the weather is poor. Fortunately, that’s not too
Divers swim in for a closer look

often in the Florida Keys.

I remember the captain’s advice as I glance at my dive computer – 50 feet and plenty of air. I motion to my newfound friend to kick down to the starboard rail. We work our way across the sloping surface, conscious of the algae, sponges and other marine animals that have already found a home on this man-made reef. It has been less than two years since her sinking, and already the Spiegel Grove is an island of life.

I peer back over my shoulder and only three of the 12 other divers on board have fought through the current to the main deck. Clutching the starboard rail, I search into the darkness for the sea floor.

Down in the depths, goliath grouper surely lurk. But the swift-moving current, combined with the low light, would make such a descent reckless at best on this summer afternoon. Today, it is far better to stay in the light. So we move along the deck and stop every few feet to peer into a hatch or porthole, looking for evidence of the men who once served here.

I point my flashlight down one of the cavernous passageways looking for some sign of the ship’s history. I venture in a few yards, then became slightly disoriented. Exterior exploration of the ship is suited for open water divers, but only divers with the proper training and equipment should attempt any serious exploration of the ship’s interior.

Re-emerging on the main deck, I check my supply of Nitrox and decide to head back toward the buoy line. I have been down for nearly 30 minutes, yet have seen barely one-tenth of the Spiegel Grove.

Days after my dive, I talk with Stephen Frink, a world-acclaimed underwater photographer who was instrumental in bringing the ship to Key Largo. What he says only strengthens my conviction to return. "You can’t do just one or two dives on the Spiegel Grove and expect to see it all," he says. "The wreck is so massive, and it is constantly changing. The amount of marine life is always increasing, and the way it looks today is not necessarily the way it will look tomorrow."

With its close proximity to John Pennekamp State Park and popular wrecks, Key Largo is world renowned to divers and snorkelers.

Spiegel Grove facts:
Type of Vessel: Landing Ship Dock (LSD)
Length: 510 feet
Beam: 84 feet
Tonnage: 6,880 tons
Speed: 22.5 knots
Commissioned: June 8, 1956
Decommissioned: Oct. 2, 1989
Cost of project: Exceeds $1 million
For more information, call the Florida Keys and Key West Tourist Development Council, 800-648-5510, or visit www.fla-keys.com/spiegelgrove.

 

[ScubaFinder]

What were they thinking exploring that far into the wreck without a penetration reel? It is a horrible loss, but often times it seems like over-confidence from an experienced diver is the true cause of death. We're all somewhat guilty of this...the more dives I get under my belt, the more confident I become in my own abilities, and the less I worry about the hazards associated with a particular dive. It's human nature, but we should all learn the lessons that this tragedy teaches, be SAFE, no matter how good you think you are.