An inquest into the death of a cruise ship crew member was held in Cayman because the vessel was in Cayman waters at the time of the incident.
Queen’s Coroner Margaret Ramsay-Hale read into evidence statements concerning the death of Alexander Bout, 27, aboard the Oceana on 11 November 2003.
The jury returned a verdict of misadventure last Thursday, on 19 October.
Mr. Bout was known as a healthy man who did routine exercises in the early morning. These included a brief walk, stretches, deep breathing and a few laps underwater in the crew pool.
He was seen sleeping on deck around 4.30am and someone was sent to check on him. He was well at the time.
Second officer Stephen Birt observed Mr. Bout doing exercises around 6.30am. Ten minutes later the officer observed Mr. Bout underwater not moving, although he had done this before.
A crew member tried to get Mr. Bout’s attention with a long rod. When there was no response, the officer jumped in and brought Mr. Bout to the surface and out of the pool. CPR was performed until the ship’s medical team arrived and took over treatment.
The ship’s senior doctor, C. M. Denny, pronounced Mr. Bout dead after 7.35am.
Detectives from Cayman boarded the vessel and took statements. A representative from Bodden’s Funeral Home boarded to receive the body, which was brought to shore.
Mr. Bout, an American citizen, was identified by passport and photo.
Dr. John Morgan performed the autopsy and found that Mr. Bout’s lungs were hyper-distended and more than twice the normal weight. The lungs also showed the type of congestion typical of drowning.
Tests for drugs and alcohol were negative.
Government pathologist Dr. John Heidingsfelder was present to explain the autopsy report to the court.
He said some swimmers hyperventilated – took deep breaths — before entering the water. But taking more than three deep breaths is extremely dangerous because it lowers the carbon dioxide in the blood. It is carbon dioxide that tells the body to breathe.
‘You can go unconscious before you have the urge to go to the surface,’ Dr. John said. Hyperventilation is a method by which even expert swimmers have met their death, he said.
The Oceana is operated by O+P Princess Cruise Lines of London, England.
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