An investigation into the death of a British diver off the coast of Malta last year found the cause to be “diving-related pulmonary barotrauma.”
Sixty-six-year-old Darrel Pascoe died due to ascending too quickly with no safety stop, according to a hearing conducted this week at the Cornwall Coroner’s Court.
Pascoe lived in Truro, Cornwall and last October was diving an East German minesweeper 30 meters/98 feet below the surface off Cirkewwa, Malta.
The investigation also found that the last time Pascoe — a purportedly experienced diver — had dived was 18 months before, and an autopsy found a heart condition that hadn’t been diagnosed previously. Pascoe suffered a heart attack upon surfacing, but efforts to revive him at the beach and during his subsequent transport to a hospital were unsuccessful.
The investigation wasn’t able to determine exactly why Pascoe decided to surface so quickly, according to press reports, with a host of possible reasons being equipment failure to a medical incident while underwater.
