........ ( I . __ ._-----_._---_._-- ',',,',,', ,h Vol. 12, No.3 2 UNDERWATER SPELEOLOGY - PROGRAM COORDINATORS - CAVE DIVING SECTION OF THE NATIONAL SPELEOLOGICAL SOCIETY, INC. Annual Sci/Tech Journal: WAYNE MARSHALL _ BOARD OF DIRECTORS - Winter Workshop MARK LONG Co-Chairmen: WES SKILES Chairman: STEVE ORMEROID 629 West 4th St. Safety Coordinator & MARK LEONARD Marysville, OH 43040 Abe Davis Awards: Rt. 14, Box 136 (513) 642-7775 Lake City, FL 32055 (904) 752-1087 Vice-Chairman: HARK LONG Accident Investigation HENRY NICHOLSON P. O. Box 1633 & Recovery Team: 4517 Park St. Leesburg, FL 32749-1633 Jacksonville, FL 32205 (904) 787-5627 (904) 384-2818 Accident Files: WES SKILES Secretary­ JOE PROSSER Treasurer: (for Section business) Scientific Investiga­ BILL FEHRING P. O. Box 950 tion & Conservation: 3508 Hollow Oak Place Branford, FL 32008-0950 Brandon, FL 33511 (personal) (813) 689-7520 7400 N.W. 55th St. Publications: H.V. GREY Miami, FL 33166 (305) 592-3146 WORKSHOP: Dec. 28-29, Branford, FL. Theme: "Science Training Chairman: WES SKILES and Cave Diving." More information in future issues. P. O. Box 73 Branford, FL 32008 (904) 935-2469 CHAIRMAN'S MESSAGE Two years ago, I attended my first NSS Convention, Directors: WAYNE MARSHALL to represent the CDS. I had been forewarned that P. o. Box 1414 the cave divers were looked upon as a strange group Seffner, FL33584 of individuals who called themselves cavers. My ,,:JEFF BOZANIC (813) 681-3629 personal acquaintance with dry cavers, up- to that If" ,.'~P._ O. Box 490462 time, was with the few members of the CDS who were \1 "T-Key Biscayne, FL DALE-PURCHASE active dry cavers and those that I had met the week .. 33149-0462 337 Plymouth prior to the convention at the NCRC workshop 'at Saginaw, HI 48603 Mammoth Cave. Following the presentations, I spent (517) 799-0973 ,several hours talking with many dry cavers about the CDS. It was apparent that a gap-of-sorts existed Under"'ater Speleology is the official news­ bet"'een the CDS and the NSS. While certainly not-on letter of the Cave Diving Section of the a level of indifference, a lack of understanding and National Speleological Society, Inc. Section communication of direction and goals needed to be membership, which includes subscription to the reconciled. newsletter, is open to all members-in good Recently there has been a significant rise in the standing of the NSS at $5 per year. Subscrip­ number of cave divers going dry caving and dry cavers tions for non-members are $7 per year. Member­ learning cavern and cave diving. As a result, many ship/subscription information, applications, and areas of direct communication have opened up betweerr status may be obtained by writing to the Secre­ the NSS and the CDS. In the last year, joint explo­ tary/Treasurer: ration trips with dry-caving experts and cave-diving equivalents have pushed ne'" passage in Roppel Cave J,oe Prosser. Treasurer NSS-CDS in Kentucky, Juan Nieves in Puerto Rico, and of P.O. Box 950 course, Huatla, Mexico. Branford, FL 32008-0950 The number of CDS members learning dry-caving All current news items, reports, articles, skills (including vertical rope techniques) increases photographs, and other submissions for the news­ constantly. Our training committee is presently letter should be sent directly to the editor: preparing a Sump Diving Course for scuba-trained/ active dry C3vers. This continued exchange of H.V. Grey, NSS-CDS Publications training will certainly increase all caving skills l' .0. 'Box 575 and safety. Venice; FL 34284~0575 All cavers, wet and dry, have developed a profound bus (813) 484-8150 respect for this unique portion of our world. It is res (813) 488-4672 a respect for nature that few sporting or outdoor organizations must realize, for caves can be very ~~~: unforgiving. Our continued quest for the unknown COVER: Rob Parker of Great Britain on a practice dive 1hlur between Olsen and Peacock in preparation for the big will never be satisfied. Our continued sharing of knowledge and skills will insure that the quest will push at ~ookie's Hole at the end of June. Original color slide by John-Zumrick. be done with safety as a constant. Good caving, Steve Ormeroid PRESS DATE: July 10, 1985 Vol. U, No. j UNUEl\WATEl< St't.LWLUGY j VORTEX SPRING DROWNING EMERALD-FISHHOLE CONNECTION MADE John Zumrick reported that he and Paul DeLoach laid According to John Crea, a new CDS member from the last couple of hundred feet connecting Emerald and Panama City, FL, there was a drowning at Vortex Blue J;i-!'1hhole on a multiple-stage scooter dive in early Spring near Ponce de Leon, on the morning of May 19, ~ :. The distance of the traverse is somewhere between 1985. IJVO and 8000 feet. Two open-water certified divers from Jackson, TN John says that Bob Goodman was responsible for most arrived at the Vortex Blue Spring facility on Sunday of the original exploration upstream of Fishhole to morning. They had dived the day before at Morrison the "Dropoff," and that downstream of Emerald was first Spring and planned to burn up the air remaining in done by Bob Goodman, John Zumrick. and Tex Chalkley. their tanks from the Horrison dive at Vortex. (The Emerald was explored downstream to Clear-cut Sink and Spring. owner told Crea that he thought the victim ultimately all the way to Promise, which was a mere 100 was YMCA certified; neither of the buddy team was yards away -from Fishhole on the surface. Propinquity cavern or cave certified.) suggested a likely underwater connection, however The victim, a 36-year-old male, was using curiously enough, there were times when Promise would borrowed gear. He had no submersible pressure gauge, be clear, but Fishhole,·quite black. no octopus second stage; only one light per diver.­ The connection had been pushed from both directions The victim was using a j-valve tank and also some by Sheck Exley, Paul DeLoach. and John Zumrick until kind of j-valve. reserve-mechanism regulator. The there was only an estimated 500 feet remaining. Bad tanks were only partially filled. visibility associated with regular rainfall held up The two divers penetrated approximately 100 ft. further exploration for a couple of years. The recent into the cave to a depth of 60 ft. When the victim's drought has been so severe that visibility cleared up tank pressure reached 300 psi, the reserve was acti­ and it was possible for them to lay more line. vated, but apparently, according to Crea, the regu­ On the final dive both John and Paul were plagued lator reserve mechanism didn't work properly (or the with scooter difficulties.· Replacement batteries diver didn't understand its use). The victim's resulted in 8-10 pounds of positive buoyancy for both buddy stuck him up in an air pocket (never offered to scooters, which greatly complicated the manipulation of buddy-breathe with him), and indicated that he would the stage bottles. Water visibility was approximately "~r help. He swam the wrong way for 80 ft. or so, 30 feet.• but because of the dark, light-absorbing- walls, "len he finally- got turned around and" headed in orientation was more difficult. AVerage depths ranged right direction, out of the cave, he came to the between 70-100 feet, with_a maximum depth of 195 feet. Jy'of the victim lying on the floor-of the cave. Bottom time was just under 2 hours, but with decom­ The buddy swam the 100 ft. to t.he surface; but by pression (using oxygen), total dive time was almost 6 the time anyone. else could get geared and into the (".rs. water, 15-20 minutes had passed.- The police found that the victim's tank still had 300 psi in it and NACD CAVERN WORKSHOP FOR OPEN-WATER INSTRUCTORS that the regulator reserve mechanism had jammed The 4th Bi-annual NACD Cavern Diving Orientation Course together. The buddy's tank still had 1400-1500 psi in it. for Open-Water Instructors will be held-Oct. 26-27 at Manatee and Ginnie Springs. Pre-registration fee is As John Crea observed in his short presentation at $60. For more information contact: Steve Gerrard, the Spring Workshop, this was hardly a case of "killer 5714 Ed White Court, Tallahassee. FL 32301, (904) cave strikes again," but more like "stupidity strikes again." The divers were not cavern or cave certified; 656-1223. they were not properly equipped; - and the avail.able means of rescue (buddy-breathing) was not even attempted. RESCUE/RECOVERY SEMINAR A cave-diving Rescue/Recovery seminar was conducted by ExU/sE. MI':, 6"'- ( FHL Henry Nicholson, R/R Coordinator for the NSS-CDS and TItA'-- IT~ MY purr"~ 'I IoI;;MSe./? (]F- -rile. H{R( Diving Officer of the NCRC, at Ginnie Springs on Sunday, ('IV,," DII/I"... RES'''e./ May 26. Henry was assisted by Sheck Exley and Wes- Skiles. RIf-<OW'-lIy Te-~M, To /ll1I~" There were lectures in the morning on standard aspects of you I>F TIle f)AN"'EJ{ 01' (AVE. PloI",(,-- HeIlI! WlYIIour cave-diving recovery (techniques, logistics, surface 7J.1e PAaPE-it "'Oii:.FilIJIA/(,- •• management) and water-work in the afternoon in Ginnie Springs and Devil's Eye. Henry said that emphasis was placed on the criminal­ investigation element, and that the practical exercises included Mark Long scribbling on his slate that Sheck had given him bad air (before being trampled by a herd of open-water certification students who seemed to find KAREN WARK SENDS REGARDS FROM VIRGINIA nothing at all unusual about having dead-looking divers lying around), a punctured BC, etc.