The snorkeler who was pronounced dead on Friday (22) in a Cayman Islands hospital following a snorkeling accident while on vacation has been named.

Keith Larson, 55, from Worthington, Minnesota, who was visiting Grand Cayman and snorkeling off Seven Mile Beach, got into difficulties.

Larson was rescued and assisted back to shore by persons who were on the beach at the time. Paramedics at the scene, administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and took him to the George Town Hospital, but medical staff were unable to save him and he was pronounced dead.

*CPR is an emergency procedure, performed in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person in cardiac arrest. It is indicated in those who are unresponsive with no breathing or abnormal breathing, for example, agonal respirations.

CPR involves chest compressions at least 5 cm deep and at a rate of at least 100 per minute in an effort to create artificial circulation by manually pumping blood through the heart. In addition, the rescuer may provide breaths by either exhaling into the subject’s mouth or nose or utilizing a device that pushes air into the subject’s lungs. This process of externally providing ventilation is termed artificial respiration. Current recommendations place emphasis on high-quality chest compressions over artificial respiration; a simplified CPR method involving chest compressions only is recommended for untrained rescuers.

CPR alone is unlikely to restart the heart; its main purpose is to restore partial flow of oxygenated blood to the brain and heart. The objective is to delay tissue death and to extend the brief window of opportunity for a successful resuscitation without permanent brain damage.

*CPR. From Wikipedia