Two die in separate Florida Keys dive and snorkeling incidents
Two people died this week in the Florida Keys after two separate incidents on the water — one scuba diving, one snorkeling.
On Wednesday afternoon, Jon Lassus, 61, from Fort Wayne, Indiana, was scuba diving Molasses Reef off Key Largo when he began to struggle in the water, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office. The crew of the Rainbow Reef Dive Center vessel took him on board and began CPR.
As the vessel returned to shore, the crew continued CPR, but Lassus lost consciousness, sheriff’s office spokesman Adam Linhardt said. Once on land, medics transported him to Mariners Hospital in Tavernier, where doctors pronounced him dead at 3:42 p.m., according to the sheriff’s office.
“Foul play is not expected to be a factor in the investigation,” Linhardt said in a statement. “Autopsy results are pending.”
On Thursday, Karen Ruth Zaslow, 69, died after snorkeling off Sand Key near Key West, the sheriff’s office said. She was swimming off a charter boat around 2:30 p.m. when she began struggling. The boat crew took her on board and began CPR.
A U.S. Coast Guard boat took her to shore, and from there medics took her to Lower Keys Medical Center on Stock Island, where she was pronounced dead at 3:38 p.m., Linhardt said.
As with Lassus, police do not suspect foul play in Zaslow’s death, although autopsy results are pending.
This story was originally published March 11, 2022 at 3:46 PM.
