A Gruesome Start to A Dive Trip

Scuba divers often get to see the unexpected when underwater and usually relish the idea. Not so Florida diver Tom Sullivan, who spotted something unusual protruding from under the dive dock while he was waiting for the return of a previous charter and a group of fellow Americans, before departing from an annual trip to dive the St. Lawrence River in Canada. His worst fears were confirmed when he and the dive boat's first mate, Ryan Anderson, went to have a look. It was a corpse.

Anderson said it took a moment for the realization to sink in that Sullivan had spotted a body, rather than some loose clothing bunched together or a scuba suit that somehow became caught in the dock structure. Sullivan said the body was wedged in place tightly and at first glance could have been brushed off as something innocuous, but he alerted operators of the 'Under Where? Dive Charters' of his suspicions.

Anderson said, "I don't know how he spotted it. It was just the edge of a foot or a heel that was visible. It's definitely a little disturbing." The body was removed from the water with the assistance of city firefighters and taken to Ottawa for a post-mortem. The dive charter later proceeded as planned.