05-26-2004, 06:37 PM
The victim was trying a 10/90 rebreather mix in a swimming pool.
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Saturday, May 22, 2004
By SAMANTHA HENRY
HERALD NEWS
CLIFTON - A Clifton man using scuba gear was found unconscious in a
neighbor's pool Friday and was later transferred to a New York City
hospital with what police described as a case of the bends.
Peter Wohlleben, 42, of Spring Hill Road apparently was testing
sophisticated scuba gear in the swimming pool. He was first taken to a
Paterson hospital but was then transferred to a facility with a
hyperbolic
decompression chamber.
"He was an experienced scuba diver, and he was doing something in the
pool,
but then was found unconscious, and he needed rescue breathing," said
police Lt. Paul Hartel, who said Wohlleben had been diagnosed with the
bends.
A diving expert disagreed with that diagnosis.
"Bends is impossible in a swimming pool," said Jackie Phillips, a
master
instructor at Blue Water Divers in Ramsey. "It is a result of
excessive
exposure to pressure and is a function of depth and time. There's
simply
not enough depth to cause it."
Phillips said Wohlleben may have been a victim of an air embolism,
which
has similar symptoms to the bends.
A piece of diving equipment with coiled hoses protruding from either
side
was still by the edge of the pool Friday evening. Upon hearing a
description of the device, Phillips said it might be a "re-breather"
machine, which is used in dives of deeper than 130 feet.
"Technical diving is like comparing an expedition to Mount Everest
vs. the
casual hiker in Harriman Park," Phillips said. "You can't just
participate
without formalized training."
St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center refused to comment on
Wohlleben's
condition or say where he had been transferred.
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Saturday, May 22, 2004
By SAMANTHA HENRY
HERALD NEWS
CLIFTON - A Clifton man using scuba gear was found unconscious in a
neighbor's pool Friday and was later transferred to a New York City
hospital with what police described as a case of the bends.
Peter Wohlleben, 42, of Spring Hill Road apparently was testing
sophisticated scuba gear in the swimming pool. He was first taken to a
Paterson hospital but was then transferred to a facility with a
hyperbolic
decompression chamber.
"He was an experienced scuba diver, and he was doing something in the
pool,
but then was found unconscious, and he needed rescue breathing," said
police Lt. Paul Hartel, who said Wohlleben had been diagnosed with the
bends.
A diving expert disagreed with that diagnosis.
"Bends is impossible in a swimming pool," said Jackie Phillips, a
master
instructor at Blue Water Divers in Ramsey. "It is a result of
excessive
exposure to pressure and is a function of depth and time. There's
simply
not enough depth to cause it."
Phillips said Wohlleben may have been a victim of an air embolism,
which
has similar symptoms to the bends.
A piece of diving equipment with coiled hoses protruding from either
side
was still by the edge of the pool Friday evening. Upon hearing a
description of the device, Phillips said it might be a "re-breather"
machine, which is used in dives of deeper than 130 feet.
"Technical diving is like comparing an expedition to Mount Everest
vs. the
casual hiker in Harriman Park," Phillips said. "You can't just
participate
without formalized training."
St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center refused to comment on
Wohlleben's
condition or say where he had been transferred.