A recreational diver died on Friday, May 29, while diving in the vicinity of the Cedarville shipwreck, the Cheboygan County Sheriff’s Office said.
The sheriff’s office said a 62-year-old Sylvania, Ohio, man died Friday morning despite life-saving efforts by other divers who were accompanying him.
“At this time, the investigation remains ongoing. Based on information currently available, investigators do not believe that diving equipment malfunction or charter service operations were factors in the incident,” Sheriff Todd A. Ross said in a release.
The incident took place about 10:15 a.m. near the Cedarville shipwreck in Lake Huron waters, the sheriff’s office said.
The man, who was an experienced recreational diver was taking part in a scheduled dive on the wreck site with several other experienced divers.
The other divers “initiated lifesaving efforts and assisted emergency responders upon returning to the surface,” the release said. “Despite those efforts, the individual was pronounced deceased.”
The Cedarville wreck is located in the Straits of Mackinac Underwater Preserve.
The Cedarville is a 1927 steam-driven bulk cargo vessel that sank May 7, 1965, in a collission with the motor vessel Topdalsfjord. The ship was 604 feet long.
The wreck lies in 105 feet of water and the dive is considered to be intermediate to advanced level, according to the shipwreck preserve website.
“The Cedarville is a favorite site in the Straits of Mackinac. She is intact and lies on her starboard side, about 45 degrees from being upside down. Her massive size and inverted orientation makes for an interesting, but sometimes confusing dive,” the Preserve website says.
The Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Preserve is a 148-square-mile area extending from Wilderness State Park to the Cheboygan area, and extending to the northern edge of Mackinac Island. The preserve is divided in two by the Mackinac Bridge. The Preserve includes the waters offshore from Mackinaw City and St. Ignace, as well as all or some of the shorelines of Bois Blanc Island, Mackinac Island, Round Island, and St. Helena Island, according to the Preserve website.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Ohio man killed diving Cedarville wreck in Straits of Mackinac. What we know
Reporting by Dan Basso, USA TODAY NETWORK / Lansing State Journal
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