THE TRAGIC STORY OF DAVE SHAW AND DEON DREYER

[@deanny4101]

I've seen this story narrated from other youtubers. But I think yours is the best because of the details you've included in this tragic story that others did not. Keep up the good work.

[@fancyme.alter1311]

I agree, this was much more interesting.

[@socialitarobotica]

4:24 This is the first one I’ve seen that called Dave “Steve Shaw”

[@afatarra]

Trueeeeee.. I've been watching especially about mountaineer tregedy. I can watch same story from 3-5 channel even more, i find this channel telling the most detail with good structure story line, and one of the best voice over (esp the tone and the pace) at least for me as English is not my first language.

[@crusader.survivor]

This is the most detailed version of this tragic story! As usual, awesome job, Archie's Archive!!!

[@smachael07]

I cried watching "Dave Not Coming Back." As much as I don't understand the drive to take such risks, I really respect the discipline and passion it takes to be able to explore new worlds. Without bold folks like Deon, Dave, and Don, we'd never know the beauty our world is hiding underneath our feet.

[@lsudx479]

I agree. He deserves a postmortem men's butts discount.

[@MissTeaq]

I cried reading the description and I couldn’t watch it. I’m grateful for this video, that being the case.

[@hgrunenwald]

In addition to my compliments, I'd like to leave a suggestion/request for a topic: The dilemma of whether to retrieve or leave behind the remains of the people who don't survive dives/climbs, and the impact these decisions have. It struck me how Dave's widow wished his body had been left there. And loved ones of some lost mountaineers find comfort in the bodies still being where they fell. On the flip side, caves have been permanently sealed off as tombs, and Everest is so littered with the dead that it has contaminated the spring water that is the drinking water for the communities living at its base. They hold the mountain and the spring sacred, so it is a complex problem. I admit I have a morbid curiosity in this topic, but it is also intriguing to realize how complicated the decision is to retrieve or leave a body behind. It directly jeopardizes people's lives to retrieve bodies, if it is even a possibility, and it seems like there isn't a rule in place. Your videos have made me realize how subjectively this issue is treated, and I haven't seen a video by anyone yet that generally addresses how vast an impact these decisions make (on the communities of divers / mountaineers, the rescuers, the loved ones of the deceased, and the people and environments at the sites, themselves). And after any decision is made, it seems like there is at least someone who feels negatively about it. Anyway, sorry for such a long and rambling comment. Your videos are excellent and make me think about new angles and questions I hadn't thought as much about before. Amazing job with your choice of footage, edits, making it easy to tell which individuals you're referring to at which times, quotes, everything is five stars.

[@edwigcarol4888]

Not a rambling comment. A real good one. Actually there are often all too shallow points of views.. generally on videos.. Completing with one' s own documentation and including different perspectives is an enrichment

[@nabeelmohd8320]

glad that you're uploading regularly. keep it up bro 😃😃

[@ArmyGrunt1986]

Cave/deep water divers are freakin insane. When I was younger I wanted to take scuba classes but that changed after a underwater welder drowned while he was welding under barge the casino was on where I worked security. His tender called us and was still trying to pull him up when we got there. I immediately started CPR and another guard was setting up the AED. All I remember was his color and what seemed like gallons of bloody foam/water coming out his nose and mouth. Somehow we were able to get a light pulse. Paramedics arrived and took him to the hospital. He had severe brain damage and was basically a vegetable so his family made the extremely difficult decision to take him off life support and he passed away. I've seen so many other horrible and gruesome events from hurricane Katrina, suicides and deployments to Iraq and none of them really affected me or stuck with me like seeing that guys blue face and the bloody foam pouring out and the sound/feeling of his ribs breaking.

[@catbishop27]

Wow. Sounds incredibly intense 😬.

[@whitedragoness23]

Diving can be deadly, it’s a painful way to go. Plus you have to be careful because of water pressure, not getting tangled or panicking.

[@jokesonyou1373]

Wow. That's some grim shit mate. You did your best for him so, well done.

[@edwigcarol4888]

Yes experiencing a thing through one's bones and one's soul is quite different from the more shallow cognitive state of "knowkedge", of "information" You've made that pretty clear

[@tobymcgroby8967]

That was one hell of a comment.. Reading that hit me hard too, especially when you said the bloody foam & ribs breaking🙊 I'm staying above surface with you lol.. That was enough for me right there

[@jenniferk9242]

It doesn't matter how many times I've seen this story, I always watch new videos from KZbin creators I like. I'm guaranteed to find at least one new piece of information I didn't know, as no creator can put everything into a single video of reasonable length. It's such a tragic, yet in a way heartwarming story that it's worth of retelling.

[@jimreece7615]

Verna’s book fatally flawed covers this event best.

[@edwigcarol4888]

What about Wikipedia ? I used to check or complete facts in Wiki. This is only a source, but they do not seek attention, which does not spoil or twist facts.

[@djohnson9083]

I’ve heard about this and seen other versions of the tragic story. However, your video provided much more information than anything else I have watched. You do a very thorough telling.

[@pfadiva]

A sad but amazing story. I'm far too claustrophobic to dive, especially in a cave, and have no understanding of those who do. But I appreciate a good story.

[@CMDMedia94]

Awesome. Been diving for 20yrs.... have always avoided caves! Great work across the board Archie. Thanks for taking the time to produce & share.

[@Noneck1999]

A year late and a dollar short, if you are still alive, be careful 😊

[@ZombieSazza]

I’ve heard this story many times, but never heard someone cover it in such perfect detail, even covering Dave’s torch and those implications.

[@ereynoldful3974]

I highly recommend the documentary from earlier this year called "Dave Not Coming Back" and it's a very in depth doc of this tragic dive.

[@quigglesmaguire9518]

Even though I've heard this sad event before, I thought your video was the best and most informative about it. I learned a lot more details about the divers and it was lovely to hear his wife speak also. Really look forward to your new videos Archie, well done

[@andreluislimaa]

i know it may sound stupid saying this but....for me it almost feels like Deon wanted company down there (even calling Dave via dream) but Dave said, "no way lad, we're going back up one way or another..." hope they're both in peace now :|

[@thexxit]

I felt this too, actually, as strange as it may seem. If he really did have the dream and then just suddenly see him in th exact way by accident while diving... it seemed as if Deon did call him - whether to bring him up and it tragically went wrong, or to join him at the bottom of the cave, who knows. I wish their families peace and acceptance.

[@whitedragoness23]

That’s dark

[@gr8thingz12]

Yeah, that part about the dream was creepy.

[@hydrohasspoken6227]

Yeah, that sounds stupid

[@jeremeymiller3406]

So you think after you die your consciousness stays in your lifeless stationary body destined to star the same same thing forever? 🤣

[@dudlydjarbum2045]

Well done. This is a complicated story and you covered just about everything.

[@bf5209]

Great video. You respectfully showed how much planning and preparation Dave Shaw and the team went through for the retrieval process and that it wasn’t just based on poor judgment. And with that, you earned a subscriber! Thank you.

[@tobymcgroby8967]

This was fascinating, thanks for this👍👍

[@hgrunenwald]

This is another of several of your excellent videos that I just watched, having already been very familiar with the general story from other videos, but felt like I was learning new information. I think it is no small feat to present new information to viewers who enjoy learning about true expedition tragedies, since many of these unfortunate stories have already been told. You tell them far better than anyone I've seen yet, and I have watched MANY of these.

[@teddyboukagain9985]

Dave Shaw was the goat of cave dive rescue. RIP.

[@Cath_frost.]

Excellent coverage 🎖

[@PutRandomNameHere]

I like that this guy doesn't seem to sensationalize the stories like some of the others. Does anyone know where he's from? I've never heard that accent before

[@stee8345]

All this for a dead body that's been lying down there for the better part of a decade. Wild.

[@Noneck1999]

He had a ❤for the young man’s family 😢 sad for both families

[@giftedfox4748]

I really like how the documentary of Dave Not Coming Back was done. It was pretty clear how Dave died and I do blame the helmet that the director wanted to be attached to Dave. I don't blame the director, he isn't a skilled diver. Dave saw the risk but wanted to move forward with the plan.

[@Јуњи]

Excruciating detail, thank you so much!

[@edwigcarol4888]

This is high technical with a lot of jargon... good for the viewers with diving experience... For laypeople like me, it shows how high the requests are, that our body has for its gas exchange. It seems to us so natural, because all these requirements are met on earth's surface . Gosh!

[@kdfulton3152]

I LOVE ❤️ your stories! Yes, keep up the great work and your Subs will grow! 👍👏☮️💟🌻

[@tbars1]

This was an extremely great video it contained more details of Dave's and Dons strategic plan to recover Dion. Of course I'm fortunately Dave did not come back😢 I like watching videos from your channel you do a great job describing events!

[@Tina06019]

I understand the appeal of mountain climbing but not the appeal of deep cave diving. Interesting story, thank you.

[@FixyASMR]

that deep dive seems so frightening :S Everything that goes into it is insane.

[@nicholasporter1417]

I know this story very well but this by far is the best video. Very very specific, nice1 Archies Archives

[@Rils1star]

Not all wet suits are waterproof. Dry suits, most often used in caving due to temperatures, are waterproof. Wet suits do not keep you dry, hence the name wet. It took Dave 12 hours to resurface according to Dave Not Coming Back. It is very important to know exactly where your equipment is located and that it is not hanging. Very sad how this dive turned out.

[@saar144]

NO wetsuits are waterproof

[@edwigcarol4888]

32:11 psychologically highly interesting .. David's wife wants his body to get back into the cave.. So my fantasy "he goes away diving further... Death as dreamt peacefully" Smoothly, "If the body is brought back, then it must hit her like a stone. Death as a shock, brutal." But no, thus is my fantasy. she says in fact his death is experienced spiritually... dealing with a body is too trivial and troubles her very experience.. knowing him in heaven .. ... For the parents of Dion, this is just the opposite.. they find the loss less painful by having their son's body back How interesting

[@knockeledup]

I’ve seen the documentary “Dave Not Coming Back” and it’s fascinating.

[@MMMNemesis]

I always watch your videos even when I already know the story, simply because of the excellent research. You always find small gems that makes the story easier to understand when it comes to for example peoples motives, and I like the respectful tone of things. This might be nit-picky, but you lost one vowel in the title. His name was DREYER, not Dryer :)

[@tima.478]

His wife saying that she found it difficult when Dave's body came up, almost sounds kind of cold in a way. Now she has to deal with his body, funeral expenses/arrangements and such...🤔 You could speculate that she just meant that he should stay down there because that's what he loved to do, but you don't *really* know if that was her true intent or not!

[@silentbliss7666]

Archie, would you look into the Kawagarbo (Meili Snow Mountain) tragic expedition carried out in 1990?

[@jamesb.9155]

A very well told, tragic story. They very nearly lost 2 that day. Hell of a way to go too.

[@TwozySauce27]

So I watched the documentary that you use clips of in this video and I had thought that in the doc they said that the flashlight had got tangled in the lines of the body bag because the body now floated no longer attached to the gear because it wasn't just a skeleton, and that when they and gone to pull their equipment out of the cave that the body bag had floated up bringing Dave with it. Did they detail this differently some where else?

[@rubyred6954]

Just the thought of having to spend hours n hours of decompression is something I can’t even imagine. To me that’s worse than the dice itself. It’s something so simple that ended up in such a tragedy. They must by now have lights that attach to the suits of deep divers, at least I’d hope. Such a tragic case all around. I think they underestimated the time it would take to do all that to retrieve the body along with the flashlight situation. Maybe they could’ve duct taped it to to his wrist area??. So sad. RIP David & Deon

[@Purpose-es8ce]

His face never looked confident to me he looked worried 😟 😢

[@mikijnkowski1624]

Ive seen several other videos about this tragic incident, and it never gets any easier to watch. Why would they want to traumatize other divers that might come across their corpses should they perish since they wanted to not be recovered .How absolutely MORTIFYING would it be to shine your light around and find yourself face to face with a skull attached to a wetsuit?

[@grannykiminalaska]

Amazing 👏 story

[@agakov1]

Very moving story well told

[@SilverMe2004]

Just need to point out that the depths limits you talked about is for scuba diving. Saturation diving has much lower records (500m in 1988) and spend days at depth.

[@NordicDragon1337]

The floating flashlight always questioned me, couldn't they like attach a small rope/leash? This still haunts me and I have said, if you dream of someone who has perished, especially if you see the skeleton, do not do what ypu are going to do, because seeing death is omen to some, and it has grown to me a little

[@NordicDragon1337]

Oh it was attached, because it got entangled, I had misunderstood the sentence of floating

[@MrBluesmeister]

A noble gesture turned tragic. That was an effort from a lot of people with zero common sense. Evidently no one said this was a bad idea guys, they just went along with it, why? I don’t want to seem harsh I just think that SOMEONE should have red flagged this misadventure before it started. A proven deadly environment that claimed Deon ten years before was a sign to me to leave things alone. Dave had only the best of intentions but when he said if anything happens leave me here, that was an omen. There are rules that need to be followed when in extreme environments. Things can go south even with no human error, because shit happens. Not securing his flashlight was the critical mistake he made but it was compounded by his dive partner noticing and saying NOTHING! That was the death sentence. Who you partner with in dangerous situations is critical to the outcome. Details matter and allowing something even minor to slide can lead to tragedy as was the case here. Would you let your wife, daughter or son drive on a flat tire? Walk or hike in the desert with no water? These may seem like crazy comparisons but my point is clear. All details matter to the point of being over cautionary. Being prepared does not guarantee success it just increases your chances. This whole affair was a roll of the dice and they came up snake eyes. The perceived time to bag the body was wrong as well, six minutes with no time for the unseen element of it not going quite as planned put him in danger. Under those conditions he had zero time for error as he was maxed out by the time he tried to release the flashlight from its tangled state. The flashlight should have been attached to the helmet, freeing up both hands for the tasks at hand. This is just an opinion of mine but may have been a life saving idea. If you read this I thank you. My heart goes out to the families affected by this tragedy.

[@gerald2074]

The Man was on a mission and a little thing like dying wasn't going to stop him achieve his goal

[@arganiaspinosa9122]

31:50 Just say you didn't want to spend money on a funeral, sh-t's expensive!

[@Rick_Cleland]

[@dianebays5484]

I've watched the video, and it's no so bad. You can hardly see anything. I was kind of surprised that his wife was upset that his body surfaced. Evidently it's what was supposed to happen. No one dove down to get him. It just happened on it's own. That to me means it was supposed to. Especially since Deon was attached to him. She didn't want the pain to have to deal with the body since he was already in heaven. I guess I can understand that somewhat. I would've been beside myself if he had been my husband that died. That's the main thing. I also would feel terrible if I were Deons parents.

[@saar144]

Not only every second in such depth means prolonged decompression period, but when initially trying to move the body, the effort at such depth could have caused him to immediately lose consciousness

[@jbvap]

I “love” this story, it’s so dark and I love diving. It’s very unfortunate. Diving to ~900ft is wild.

[@CharlieApples]

You said Deon died at 48 meters (158 ft)? Is that accurate? Because that’s an incredibly shallow depth for an experienced diver to die or lose consciousness at.

[@KS-yp1jl]

Yes, according to Wikipedia "Dreyer was lost on ascent around 50 metres (160 ft) from the surface."

[@soggywafulz]

​@@KS-yp1jlright around where Don almost lost consciousness on his ascent

[@therealandrecorbin4050]

Seems like a remote control underwater "drone" type thing could have been done to retrieve the 1st body. Sad story

[@chubbydinosaur9148]

Wow! Your videos are truly the best! I've heard about this many times but it always sounded like some adrenaline junky went down there ALONE trying to play the hero. But man this story is so much different! Everything was planned so well but in the end it failed because his body couldn't take it.

[@bradsanders407]

I just don't understand how a submersible couldn't have been used. They were exploring the inside of the titanic years before this

[@josephdouglas6482]

I get really conflicted when trying to comment for praise on these, loss of human life is tragic and not the good part. I mean these videos help tell their stories, trying to be tactful and be like "wow this is great!" seems like it could come of disrespectful to the people that perished. These videos and stories are so gripping and interesting, it's hard to stop watching! I try to explain what I mean so I don't disrespect the people that lost their lives.

[@anovosedlik]

He did an amazing thing. He should be honoured, no doubt. I think he didn't realize that Deon's body wasn't a skeleton which affected the buoyancy. They should have also had a different configuration with the lines. But what the heck do I know? I just can't imagine losing my husband (or anyone really) It would be incredibly painful. May he rest in peace ❤🙏

[@chicagogyrl4846]

“.....Ending up in an underwater cave where the light cannot reach you...”. Oh, I’ll be damned if I ever end up there. 😆😂

[@fatrambo73]

crazy, brave but it's like trying to retrieve bodies from Everest you can all too easily add to the count. leaving behind a wife so sad for all involved

[@MarbleFox162]

14:00 Have you noticed that when you say “body” alone, it sounds normal, but when you said “body recovery” and “body bag” it sounds like buddy? It’s kinda like the old Julian Smith “milk” “malk” thing. Interesting.

[@Gundus1000]

Afterwards every one knows better. It was wrong to attempt to separate the body from the gear. The risk to lose something during the separation of the gear was as high as it would have been losing something on the way up without a bag. But this way it was much more dangerous. In hindsight...of course. To wrap the body into a broad bandaged line would have been suffizient. Sometimes to much of diligence becomes a burden by complicating things and making them too time consuming.

[@n.c.842]

I don't know much about diving, but I don't understand why Dave tried to put Deon's body in a bag or why he didn't take more air with him. I also don't understand why we can't just send small drones down there. We have ROVs that can go to the bottom of the ocean.

[@jimreece7615]

Verna’s book - fatally flawed covers this is exceptional detail, including significant aspects left out of all videos on this rescue.

[@Wykletypl]

Well, it's been some time since I last dived. And I am not THAT experienced as Shaw was. But... Rule number of diving: NEVER GO DOWN ALONE! Understand!? I think he should have gone there with a partner. Someone who could help him in case something goes awry.

[@beatles7238]

How horrible to say you wished he'd stayed in that deep dark cave! Why do they use a rebreather on the dives! Why couldn't they try the mini sub to try to get his body, so many questions! Great video, I'm loving your stories especially since I've never heard about them, I just don't get the attraction to death in horrible ways!

[@fancyme.alter1311]

I don't think it was horrible that she wanted his body to remain there. The man loved diving, now his body is either ash or stuck in dry dirt in a wooden box.

[@plestari5104]

Whats odd is when she says about not want to deal with the “body” . Man that’s your husband you’re talking about , not a car junk !

[@ihsanullah-m7l]

Did he die becuase of lack of oxygen were his cylinders empty?

[@nkristianschmidt]

Some people seek adventure

[@kishoretadiparthiexplorer2958]

Mysterious act

[@ROSUJACOB]

He was my johu ....forta

[@chicagogyrl4846]

Of I was going into a dark cave, I would take extra flashlights with me, for sure! You can’t count on one, it could always malfunction!

[@nkristianschmidt]

well... Dave did not see a skull in a diving helmet if they already found the helmet on the first dives looking for the body ... but ok

[@alyssawilliams6172]

He said if I don’t make we stay there we We don’t want to be Recovered what he mean when he said we tho

[@Gundus1000]

Boesmansgat (Bösmannstor) means Evil Mans Gate. Guess that hole doesn't good men any good.

[@cjwars2828]

to odd guy is 50 dose extreme stuff as a hobby . I wonder if the tv or doc was not involved would he still done it was 10 years after the fact and family has a grave their he didn't know him wired AF dream stuff missing people dreams works for tv but we knew how and where so he knew he would be sitting up when his back has 30 pounds of gear ya id say you sink butt down kinda a stretch. Sucks guy had heart just not a recovery diver wounder if a vet would use same gear and method and if all was sound then this is same lvl as Everest or k2 odds or higher. side note don't invite trauma victims till after you done the job mom and pa looked FD up at end

[@Liliisgettingrich]

The body didn't want to be moved maybe. Let the dead rest in peace guys.

[@factsoverfeelings1]

I think that Dave Shaw used the body recovery as an excuse to go back...an ego trip if you will...no offence intended.

[@Codehead3]

I don’t understand why the carbon dioxide accumulated in Dave’s lungs.

[@hufflebuff82]

He was using a rebreather which stopped recycling the CO2 into usable oxygen. Once the scrubber ran out he was basically inhaling pure CO2, which caused him to suffocate.

[@ororomonroe8022]

Maybe your husbands body and equipment shouldn’t be populating the environment. Since what happens to the body is irrelevant, its good it was removed. Society needs to stop thinking of ship wrecks, drowned victims and such as artifacts. And think of these items as pollutants to be removed. They do not benefit the environment.

[@charlesfaure1189]

Dave Shaw didn't die trying to recover Deon Dryer's body. He died trying to make a TV show out of recovering Deon Dryer's body. This was no selfless act. This was a stunt.

[@ahmadsantoso9712]

Dave is now diving in the afterlife with Paul Walker, queen Elizabeth, and Benito Mussolini.

[@jacobmccabe6596]

Body not buddy

[@OmarLopez-yr8bs]

his wife is a fossilized remanence of a human being

[@emilebichelberger7590]

Completely unrelated, with my new phone I can change the playback speed of adult videos. It’s pretty cool

[@blackhawkorg]

Excellent presentation. Lol you outdid your web nemesis brilliantly🤣 Dion's stupidity got 1 valuable expert killed for nothing. Had he been my son that would have remained his grave.

[@jeremeymiller3406]

Fascinating stuff I will never understand these kind of hobbies like this or high altitude climbing BASE jumping skydiving etc why would you want to do something that could end your life with circumstances completely out of your control especially with people who have kids. Oh and just a heads up Don didn’t see Dave’s bubbles because rebreathers to not produce them

[@thamadtroll9981]

Human error

[@jonathanhammond3975]

Dave was an egotistical maniac and his actions killed himself and almost some of his colleagues. Foolish death.