Dave Shaw
Dave Shaw | |
---|---|
Bushman's Hole, South Africa | |
Nationality | Australian |
Other names | David Shaw |
Occupation | Airline pilot |
Known for | Cave diving depth record |
Spouse | Ann Shaw |
Children | 2 |
Website | www |
David John Shaw (20 July 1954 – 8 January 2005) was an Australian
Dive equipment
Shaw's first rebreather was an Inspiration closed circuit rebreather, with which he eventually dived to depths beyond its purported capability. This prompted him to not only purchase a Mk15.5 but to replace its analogue electronics with the digital ones of the Juergensen Marine Hammerhead, resulting in a specially modified POD designed to handle extreme pressures. The Mk15.5 was his rebreather of choice for dives deeper than 150 metres (500 ft). For extended dives in caves shallower than 150 m,[citation needed] Shaw used his Cis-Lunar since he believed it had superior redundancy capabilities, but could not cope with extreme depths.
Diving records
On 28 October 2004, Shaw descended to a depth of 270m at Bushman's Hole, South Africa, breaking the following records:
- Depth on a rebreather
- Depth in a cave on a rebreather
- Depth at altitude on a rebreather
- Depth running a line
He used a Mk15.5 with Juergensen Marine Hammerhead electronics and the following gas mixtures: trimix 4/80, 10/70, 15/55, 17/40, 26/25, air, nitrox50, 100% oxygen. The cave elevation was 1,550 metres (5,090 ft) and the dive duration was 9 hours and 40 minutes.[2]
On this dive, Shaw discovered the body of Deon Dreyer, a South African diver who had died in Bushman's Hole ten years previously. The body was at a depth of 270 metres (890 ft).[3]
Last dive
Shaw died on 8 January 2005 while attempting to recover the body of Deon Dreyer.[3]
Shaw recorded his dive with an underwater
Shaw's close friend and support diver, Don Shirley, nearly died as well and was left with permanent damage that has impaired his balance.[3]
The dive on which Shaw died was the 333rd of his career. At the time of his world record dive, he had been diving for a little over five years.[7][8][9]
His death has been profiled in a number of documentary films, including the 2020 documentary feature Dave Not Coming Back.[10]
Personal life
Shaw was a
See also
References
- ^ "Deep Cave Diving with Dave Shaw". Deep Cave.
- ^ "Scuba Diving World Records - Deepest Longest - Dave Shaw - Nuno Gomes - Verna Van Schaik - Pascal Bernabé - Mark Elyatt - Johan Beukes". ScubaRecords.com.
- ^ a b c Zimmermann, Tim (1 August 2005). "Raising the Dead". Outside. Archived from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- PMID 17310877.
- ^ 47:50 @ TD2006 #1: Intro and Boesmansgat Expedition Don Shirley | YouTube
- ^ 10:45 @ The Big Black The last dive of David Shaw | YouTube
- LCCN 2008024271.
- ^ "Episode 515: Good Guys, Act 3". This American Life.
- ^ Washington, Glynn (31 October 2014). "Where No One Should Go". Snap Judgment. NPR.org.
- ^ Douglas Laman, "AFF Fest: “Dave Not Coming Back” is a poignant look at loss and risk". The Spool, October 25, 2020.
- ^ 4:00 @ "To Boldly Go" (2005) Dave Shaw's Final Dive | YouTube
- ^ Diving into Darkness, pp. 29-30.
External links
- DeepCave.com - Shaw's personal webpage, with his final updates regarding preparations for the fatal recovery of Dreyer's body.