Mysterious Hawaiian snorkeling deaths may have one thing in common, but investigators thwarted After 3 Bay Area residents drown in Hawaii, officials question safety of new full-face snorkel masks

Two California men drowned at the same Maui beach two days apart mid-January. Both set out wearing a new style of full-face snorkel mask, a fact that has raised eyebrows among Hawaiian law enforcement.

About 10 months prior to the recent drownings, investigators from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) had responded to a consumer complaint about the full-face snorkel, a design that has gained popularity in the past few years. The one-piece masks fit over the eyes, mouth and nose and tucks under the chin.

Guy Cooper, formerly of Martinez, Calif. feared the snorkel contributed to the 2016 drowning death of his wife, Nancy Peacock, in Hawaii.

"I'll never know what really happened," Cooper said, "but if I can somehow prevent it from happening to someone else ... Well, then that's what I have to do. That's what Nancy would have me do."

Neither Cooper nor the Hawaii Fire Department had the mask Cooper's wife was wearing at the time of her drowning. Without the original, possibly defective snorkel, CPSC had no grounds for an investigation.

The circumstances surrounding Peacock's drowning have resurfaced after a particularly lethal January in Maui. Nine people drowned off the Hawaiian island in two weeks, three San Francisco Bay Area men among them.

Maui Fire Battalion Chief Edward Taomoto said his department has noticed a recent uptick in the number of snorkel-related drownings or near drownings involving the full-face snorkels.

It is "too early to make any sort of connection to the use of this equipment and drownings," Taomoto said, but there is speculation "that there may be an unforeseen buildup of carbon dioxide within the breathing chamber" of the full-face snorkels.

A graphic provided by the Hawaii Department of Health shows the leading causes of fatal injuries for residents and non-residents in Hawaii between 2012 and 2016. A graphic provided by the Hawaii Department of Health shows the leading causes of fatal injuries for residents and non-residents in Hawaii between 2012 and 2016. Photo: Hawaii Department Of Health Photo: Hawaii Department Of Health Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close Mysterious Hawaiian snorkeling deaths may have one thing in common, but investigators thwarted 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

Bryan Beyer, a 50-year-old Oakland resident, died Jan. 18 at Kamaole Beach Park. His long-term girlfriend, Heidi Williams, told Northern California TV station KTVU that Beyer was a strong swimmer and a former lifeguard. She is contemplating legal action against the manufacturer of the snorkel mask Beyer was wearing when he died, she said.

Cooper knows Williams' frustrations, and feelings of helplessness, well. Images of his 70-year-old partner floating face up in the waters of Pohoiki Bay, a one-piece snorkel partially pulled up over her nose, haunt him.

"Believe me, I frequently relive that moment of crisis, though I wasn't there," he said.

Cooper flew from his Martinez home to Hawaii shortly after his wife's Sept. 2016 drowning and started asking questions.

"I was trying to think what could have gone wrong," Cooper said. Nancy, whom he met in 2007 at Burning Man, had snorkeled in Hawaiian waters before, he said.

Cooper's probings led him to the full-face snorkel his wife purchased from Amazon weeks before her trip.

Drowning is the leading cause of death for tourists in Hawaii, with snorkeling the most common activity contributing to drownings. Hawaii has long tracked deaths by drowning in residents and visitors, but Cooper said he discovered a major gap in the data: No agency formally kept track of the equipment that was worn when a drowning or near-drowning occurred.

Cooper began lobbying county fire departments and the state's Drowning and Aquatic Injury Prevention Advisory Committee. Many local officials, equally confounded by the high number of tourist drownings, listened.

In 2017 Big Island Fire Chief Gerald Kosaki said counties began developing internal policies to better track the equipment worn during drownings and near-drownings within their jurisdictions. There is no formal statewide database that tracks equipment type and brand, he said.

Kosaki's county began recording equipment informally in July, but each jurisdiction set their own start time for implementing the new policies.

"The plan is to get some data to the Department of Health in maybe a year or two," Kosaki said.

According to Bridget Velasco with the Hawaii Department of Health, "There is interest in looking at the mechanics of respiration across various types of snorkels/masks" among members of the snorkeling safety subcommittee of the Hawaii State Drowning and Aquatic Injury Prevention Advisory Committee.

"However, this is in preliminary stages and there is nothing to report at this point," she said.

Velasco noted that it "may also be possible to assess respiratory strain under controlled, experimental conditions." Though the Department of Health is not directly involved with product safety issues, Velasco said it has alerted the local Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to "monitor these products."

After his wife's drowning, Cooper filed a report with CPSC, who had a field investigator speak with Cooper shortly thereafter, according to CPSC Director of Communications Joe Martyak.

The investigator learned later neither Cooper nor Hawaiian officials had the original snorkel; it had likely been tossed in the trash during the ambulance cleanup. The inquiry was foiled.

As for further investigations into full-face snorkel masks, Maryak told SFGATE: "We are aware of the recent news, and we're looking to understand more about [the masks]."

Big Island Fire Chief Kosaki said it is crucial to take the brand of snorkel into consideration as well, not just the style of mask. He said he first saw the full-face snorkels at an ocean safety conference in 2015.

"I thought it was a good idea actually," he said. The fireman tested it for himself and "didn't feel any sense of being out of breath or anything to that effect.'

"It seemed to be okay for me, but I only tried one brand," he added.

Peacock had enthusiastically purchased her snorkel from Amazon third-party retailer Azorro, Cooper said. Other items listed on Amazon under the Azorro brand name include oil diffusers, water flossers and a digital bath scale.

Azorro did not provide a method to contact the company, and Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the seller.

Cooper thinks the snorkel his wife purchased is a Chinese knockoff of a higher-end snorkel designed by French company Tribord, he previously told the Honolulu Civil Beat.

On its website, Tribord claims to have developed "the world's first full face snorkeling mask" that allows the swimmer to "see and breathe in water as easily as on land." The company did not return multiple requests for comment.

SFGATE reached out to two other full-face snorkel manufacturers. Representatives from both companies said they had not seen evidence that any snorkeling deaths could be directly attributed to this style of mask.

In the months since Peacock's passing, Cooper says he has seen the needle move, albeit slowly. He said he's begun collecting any information on the full-face snorkels he can find – "reports, anecdotes, complaints, any documented fatalities."

He plans to eventually submit a dossier to the U.S. Coast Guard, the CPSC and Consumer Reports to "hopefully get some interest and funding to the study of these masks and snorkeling in general."

"I'm not a crackpot complaining about these masks because my wife died," he said. "There are serious problems with [the masks]."

Cooper stressed that "more needs to be done to warn tourists that they could be getting themselves into serious trouble." Snorkeling is a dangerous activity, he said, regardless of the equipment used.

Velasco of the Hawaii Department of Health strongly advocates for "safe behavior and choices around the water."

She says to always swim and snorkel with a buddy, be aware of dangerous ocean conditions and assess personal skill limitations and health issues before going into the water.

Michelle Robertson is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at mrobertson@sfchronicle.com or find her on Twitter at @mrobertsonsf. The Bay City News Service contributed to this report.