Is this possible?

[Peripatetic]

No diving equipment involved.
You are a passenger on a ship. It sinks. You get dragged down deep in the wreck. You escape and make it to the surface. Could you be bent?

I am gently researching the wreck of HMS Hermes in Sri Lanka, one of three diveable aircraft carriers in the world. It was a victim of the Japanese Indian Ocean Raid in April 1942. Another victim was the heavy cruiser HMS Dorsetshire commanded by Augustus Agar VC. He suffered the bends in the sinking and I am wondering how that could be possible.

Augustus Agar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"During the engagement Agar was wounded in the leg by shrapnel. This wound turned septic as a result of being left unattended after the sinking. When the Dorsetshire sank, Agar was dragged down deep and suffered the bends coming up, doing serious damage to his lungs. On the surface he swallowed oil. These injuries affected his fitness for further seagoing duty. He was 52 and had completed 37 years of active duty. After a short stay in Bombay where his health took a turn for the worse, he was sent to hospital in South Africa. The leg healed, but lung trouble from the bends and oil he swallowed stayed with him for the rest of his life."

Any ideas?

More about the Hermes wreck here:
HMS Hermes 2007 - Ocean Discovery technical diving Forum

and here:
http://www.fleetairarmarchive.net/ships/Hermes.html

[MonkeyPony]

Originally Posted by Peripatetic

Agar was dragged down deep and suffered the bends coming up, doing serious damage to his lungs.

I guess they mean embolism?

[turbanator]

Yes, you could get bent.
You would be an unwilling casson worker.

r
P

[Lazlo]

Presumably, he was dragged down in an air pocket which was compressed as the ship descended. He breathed in the compressed air, escaped and held his breath on the way to the surface - hence lung over expansion.

Depending on how long he was trapped at depth, DCS would also be a possibility.

[Peripatetic]

Originally Posted by MonkeyPony

I guess they mean embolism?

But how could he get an embolism without breathing gas under pressure?

edited to say already answered!!

[Clare Gledhill]

It is a truely fascinating story though.

I have the chance to dive this wreck next year on a trip which is still being finalised (due to unrest in the area) but it would be a great opportunity.

[RogerViking]

very unlikely ..more like burst lung it sounds like to me though you dont have to be breathing compressed air for that. if he held his breath almost sure he would have...and what is deep in your o/p..traped air being compressed ...well i supose thats possibe.A cut on the leg wouldent do much to give you anything to worry about except for bloodloss and shock.

[big kev]

I used to teach offshore workers how to get out of ditched aircraft (like they'd survive the impact!) and yes, as the air pocket you are in descends with the sinking aircraft/vessel the ambient pressure increases - breathe it for long enough and then escape to the surface without doing deco stops and you will indeed get bent. They were taught to wait for the cabin to flood thus equalizing the pressure on the inside with the outside, then get out sharpish - worth remembering should you ever drive your car into a river!

Hope this helps,

Kev.

[B]

lung overexpansion surely....

very interesting history though, would be fab if you would post your findings etc in a thread, I find that cracking reading...

[zepp]

Originally Posted by Lazlo

Presumably, he was dragged down in an air pocket which was compressed as the ship descended. He breathed in the compressed air, escaped and held his breath on the way to the surface - hence lung over expansion.

Depending on how long he was trapped at depth, DCS would also be a possibility.

Spot on there....
On another note; dead whales were found washed up a while ago. After investigation, it was found they had suffered from DCI after ascending rapidly from depth when deep water explosion tests had been carried out.