Florida police officer dead after SCUBA dive at Lake Mead

By MAX MICHOR LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

9 years ago

Two National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) divers (in water) prepare to dive to the bottom of the Overton Arm of Lake Mead as a support crew member mans a diving platform, Wednesday, March 1, 2006, that floats 170 feet above the wreck of B-29 Superfortress. Lake Mead National Recreation Area personnel, elite marine archaeologist divers from the National Park Service Submerged Resource Center and technical dive experts from NOAA, dove on the World War II era heavy bomber crash site to record the condition of the wreck and to provide images to the public. (GARY THOMPSON/LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL)

Fred Arnold III, 48, of Florida, died Saturday afternoon after scuba diving at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, the National Park Service said. (From the Tampa Police Department Facebook page)

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) diver drops into the Overton Arm of Lake Mead as support crew members man a diving platform, Wednesday, March 1, 2006, that floats 170 feet above the wreck of B-29 Superfortress. Lake Mead National Recreation Area personnel, elite marine archaeologist divers from the National Park Service Submerged Resource Center and technical dive experts from NOAA, dove on the World War II era heavy bomber crash site to record the condition of the wreck and to provide images to the public. (Gary Thompson/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

A Florida man died Saturday afternoon after scuba diving at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, the National Park Service said.

Fred Arnold III, 48, was diving at the site of the submerged B-29 bomber at Lake Mead on Saturday, but he was unconscious when he resurfaced at about 1:36 p.m.

Personnel from the Park Service, Nevada Department of Wildlife, Mercy Air and Clark County Fire Department responded, but the man could not be revived and was pronounced dead at 2:40 p.m.

The Tampa, Florida, Police Department posted about Arnold’s death on Facebook. Arnold was a Tampa police master patrol officer who had been part of the department for 27 years and worked in a volunteer program mentoring young teens.

“We are deeply saddened to share with you that this weekend we lost one of our Tampa Police family members,” the department wrote.

The Clark County coroner’s office will release Arnold’s cause and manner of death once his next of kin have been notified.

Contact Max Michor at mmichor@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find @MaxMichor on Twitter.