Three accused following death of Chilean salmon farm diver
A diver working on a Chilean salmon farm died because the amount of carbon monoxide in his respirator was six times higher than the maximum allowed by the Chilean Air Quality Standard.
Leonardo Ángel Figueroa Barahona lost his life two years ago in the deep waters of the Skyring Sound, in the Magallanes region, while working for the contracting company Servicios Náuticos BRD Spa.
Three people have now been formally accused of the misdemeanour murder (accidental killing by negligence) of Figueroa, who was found to have 70 parts per million of carbon monoxide in his respirator.
Lethal gas
“This concentration of the lethal gas was produced as a consequence of the fact that during the exercise of their functions the safety measures required by the regulations for professional divers were not complied with,” reported regional news site Diario El Pinguino.
“In addition, he was only qualified to dive to 20 metres, however his team registered a depth close to 43 metres, exceeding the depth allowed for an intermediate diver by 23 metres.”
Three men - Rodrigo Alberto Chávez Villarroel, Carlos Faúndez Saavedra and Sebastián Álvarez Bórquez – are all accused of contributing to Figueroa’s death.
Air supply
The main mission for Chávez, who was in charge of the underwater monitor, was to ensure that Figueroa carried out his work safely, for which he had to make sure that the air supply equipment was fully operational.
It is alleged that he ordered Figueroa to enter the salmon pen without foreseeing the extremely dangerous situation that he faced when submerging in the conditions, a situation that ultimately caused the diver’s death minutes after entering the water, as he did not receive the correct supply of air for the depth he was at.
Álvarez, the dive supervisor, is accused of failing to provide Figueroa with the material means and infrastructure necessary for the diving tasks to be carried out safely. Faúndez, in charge of maintenance of the equipment, is alleged had not performed preventive maintenance work on a regular basis.
An investigation by the maritime government of Punta Arenas also determined that Figueroa was carrying out his duties with a compressor with multiple deficiencies, in addition to which the air filter was in poor condition and it did not have a brand nor serial number, so it was not in condition to be used.
