Posted on: Wednesday, August 21, 2002

Firm suspends sea-helmet tours after death

By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer

A commercial diving company that has been the focus of a state and Coast Guard investigation has suspended its tours with underwater breathing helmets following the drowning death of one of its clients last week, a state official said yesterday.

Kane'ohe Bay Ocean Sports suspended its breathing-helmet tours immediately after the incident offshore He'eia Small Boat Harbor last Wednesday morning by request of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, which investigates incidents in state waters, said department spokesman Mike Markrich.

"As far as we know, they're voluntarily complying," said Markrich, who added that the suspension is indefinite until the joint investigation is resolved. The suspension is standard procedure in marine incidents involving a death, Markrich said.

An autopsy showed that the woman drowned, the medical examiner said yesterday.

The woman, identified as Mitsuko Fukuoka of Hamakita, Japan, was diving using a large helmet that allows its wearer to walk on the ocean floor while an air pump on a vessel above provides a constant air supply, when she ran into trouble and required assistance to get to the surface.

An ambulance took Fukuoka to Castle Medical Center, where she lapsed into a coma and died on Friday. Fukuoka's death is believed to be the first connected with use of the underwater breathing helmets in at least four years, the Coast Guard said.

If Kane'ohe Bay Ocean Sports did not suspend its operations, the state could have revoked its permit to use underwater breathing helmets, Markrich said. The suspension, believed to be the first for Kane'ohe Bay Ocean Sports, does not include other diving operators that use similar underwater breathing helmets, Markrich said.

Officials with Kane'ohe Bay Ocean Sports could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Todd Offutt, senior investigating officer at the Marine Safety Office in Honolulu, said Fukuoka's cause of death provides investigators with "one more piece," but does not complete the investigation. He did not say how long the investigation would take.

Investigators are exploring various scenarios on how the woman drowned, including the removal of her helmet or mechanical failure, Offutt said.

"It could be any number of ways," Offutt said. "That's what their investigation will look at."

The Coast Guard is working with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources' Conservation & Resources Enforcement investigators who interviewed the crew.

A tour operator who uses the shallow-water breathing helmets said they are popular and considered safer than other diving-related activities such as scuba or snorkeling.