Danger of concrete falling off Muk Oil Dock?

JackSchacher · Post by **JackSchacher** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 5:48 pm

I have a dive buddy who insists that huge slabs of concrete have fallen off the Muk oil dock and so it is dangerous to swim under the structure.

Has anybody else heard anything about this?

Mattleycrue76 · Post by **Mattleycrue76** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 5:59 pm

I've certainly seen quite a bit of large debris and big concrete slabs when scootering around under there. I guess if you were in the wrong place at exactly the wrong time it could be pretty dangerous. But then that kinda goes for life in general.

Nwbrewer · Post by **Nwbrewer** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 6:29 pm

Does your buddy refuse to use crosswalks too? Probably more dangerous.

selkie · Post by **selkie** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 6:35 pm

The sky is falling, the sky is falling

John Rawlings · Post by **John Rawlings** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 7:10 pm

Although I haven't done so since they blocked off shore access to it from the North, I've dived around and under the Mukilteo Oil Pier for literally decades and have never seen any evidence of concrete falling, or ever heard of it happening from any other person....ever.

I consider your buddy's fears completely groundless, and I'd happily dive there again tomorrow if I had a boat to get me there.

Even IF it were true, the best diving is around the pier, not directly under it.

- John

dsteding · Post by **dsteding** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 7:13 pm

Happens regularly. Especially during crab season.

pensacoladiver · Post by **pensacoladiver** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 7:18 pm

dsteding wrote:Happens regularly. Especially during crab season.

Thats the truth. The good places I go crabbing at routinely have concrete falling in the water all over the place. I would recommend most folks stay out of the water during crab season, especially if you plan on diving to get crab. Just wayyyy too dangerous out there.

JackSchacher · Post by **JackSchacher** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 9:02 pm

I was serious about this question, and I have total respect for this buddy, so please cut the crap.
I too dive for crab there every year, and I am talking about RECENT happenings there.

cardiver · Post by **cardiver** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 9:04 pm

Tom Nic · Post by **Tom Nic** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 9:09 pm

JackSchacher wrote:I was serious about this question, and I have total respect for this buddy, so please cut the crap.
I too dive for crab there every year, and I am talking about RECENT happenings there.

And you received a serious answer above from John Rawlings, a half serious answer from a couple others, and typical NWDC thread hi-jack attempts (i.e. the "crap" you referenced) from everyone else.

Let's all dial down reactions here - no need for this to become a flame war.

Deep breath and back away from the keyboards, please.

edm81363 · Post by **edm81363** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 9:39 pm

I think you might be confused about the dock names at Mukilteo. Which dock are you referring to? Where is it located?

CaptnJack · Post by **CaptnJack** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 10:42 pm

JackSchacher wrote:I have a dive buddy who insists that huge slabs of concrete have fallen off the Muk oil dock and so it is dangerous to swim under the structure.

Has anybody else heard anything about this?

If there are slabs falling off then someone's taking them out of the water after the splash cause there's no concrete pieces underneath or around the Muk Oil pier. (the old big one about 200yards to your right as you face the water from the Silver Cloud Hotel beach).

Joshua Smith · Post by **Joshua Smith** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 10:43 pm

We've lost a lot of divers there over the years. Usually, someone goes missing, and a few days later, someone notices a pair of fins sticking out from under a new chunk of concrete lying on the bottom.....I heard one guy was trapped for half an hour, but he was able to tunnel his way out from under the concrete with his dive knife-surfaced with 12 psi left....back in those days, we'd dive with an onion tied to our weightbelt, as was the fashion at the time. Quarters had a bee on them back then. "Give me four bees for a dollar!" we'd say, when we needed change. We used to call turkey "the walking bird," we did. Come thanksgiving, we'd serve walking bird with all the trimmings, like yams stuffed with gunpowder......

But I digress. To answer the question- nope. Never once heard of anything like that happening. And believe me when I say that if something like that ever happened at or near Mukilteo, it would definitely come up on this site. Some of our members pretty much live at that site.....and some of them have been diving there since the mesolithic era.......

Mattleycrue76 · Post by **Mattleycrue76** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 11:06 pm

Jack, there are a bunch of concrete slabs under the oil dock. I've seen them and they obviously fell from somwhere above. So yes, in theory one could fall on you while you're under the dock. Having said that, I'm inclined to believe that you're more likely to be struck by lightning than by a piece of concrete under the pier.

Pez7378 · Post by **Pez7378** » Thu Jun 17, 2010 11:44 pm

I tend to agree with Matt. Diving is statistically more dangerous than getting hit with a concrete slab while diving.

Nwbrewer · Post by **Nwbrewer** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 5:52 am

JackSchacher wrote:I was serious about this question, and I have total respect for this buddy, so please cut the crap.
I too dive for crab there every year, and I am talking about RECENT happenings there.

Like Matt I've seen some chunks of stuff under the pier. I've seen that some of the pilings don't have much too them anymore. I still wouldn't worry about it much. It's not like there's a bunch of concrete falling off of it constantly. Would I choose to be under it during an earthquake? No. Would I dive under it? Sure.

That being said I agree with Rawlings, the best diving isn't under it anyway, it's to the outside (NW) Lots of bottle and other debris to poke around in looking for critters.

Lastly, Jack, know your audience. You came here asking questions. Nobody was rude to you, you got good information from people who dive that area regularly, mixed in with the typical NWDC "flavor". Lighten up.

Let's go diving.

Jake

sheahanmcculla · Post by **sheahanmcculla** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 6:55 am

Norris · Post by **Norris** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 8:28 am

Joshua Smith wrote: But I digress. To answer the question- nope. Never once heard of anything like that happening. And believe me when I say that if something like that ever happened at or near Mukilteo, it would defiantly come up on this site. Some of our members pretty much live at that site.....and some of them have been diving there since the mesolithic era.......

FTFY

pensacoladiver · Post by **pensacoladiver** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 9:01 am

Joshua Smith wrote:We've lost a lot of divers there over the years. Usually, someone goes missing, and a few days later, someone notices a pair of fins sticking out from under a new chunk of concrete lying on the bottom.....I heard one guy was trapped for half an hour, but he was able to tunnel his way out from under the concrete with his dive knife-surfaced with 12 psi left....back in those days, we'd dive with an onion tied to our weightbelt, as was the fashion at the time. Quarters had a bee on them back then. "Give me four bees for a dollar!" we'd say, when we needed change. We used to call turkey "the walking bird," we did. Come thanksgiving, we'd serve walking bird with all the trimmings, like yams stuffed with gunpowder......

But I digress. To answer the question- nope. Never once heard of anything like that happening. And believe me when I say that if something like that ever happened at or near Mukilteo, it would definitely come up on this site. Some of our members pretty much live at that site.....and some of them have been diving there since the mesolithic era.......

Gotta love Abe Simpson.

crowplus · Post by **crowplus** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 12:02 pm

Not sure about falling concrete at the Muk oil dock, but I heard a 100 ft concrete pontoon fell in at Edmonds Underwater Park...

CaptnJack · Post by **CaptnJack** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 12:30 pm

Mattleycrue76 wrote:Jack, there are a bunch of concrete slabs under the oil dock. I've seen them and they obviously fell from somwhere above. So yes, in theory one could fall on you while you're under the dock. Having said that, I'm inclined to believe that you're more likely to be struck by lightning than by a piece of concrete under the pier.

Really? You've been there more than me but I never noticed. Guess I was too busy chasing crabs.

(and not the kind that she said!)

Mattleycrue76 · Post by **Mattleycrue76** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:50 pm

CaptnJack wrote:
Mattleycrue76 wrote:Jack, there are a bunch of concrete slabs under the oil dock. I've seen them and they obviously fell from somwhere above. So yes, in theory one could fall on you while you're under the dock. Having said that, I'm inclined to believe that you're more likely to be struck by lightning than by a piece of concrete under the pier.
Really? You've been there more than me but I never noticed. Guess I was too busy chasing crabs.

(and not the kind that she said!)

Yes there are. If you look at the sattelite pic Sheahan posted you can see where there missing from the dock. Right about the same spot there's a bunch of knocked over pilings too. In an earthquake that's the last place I'd want to be but it makes a nice scooter obtstacle course for now

. The old dock is getting really rickety.

CaptnJack · Post by **CaptnJack** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 2:38 pm

Mattleycrue76 wrote:
CaptnJack wrote:
Mattleycrue76 wrote:Jack, there are a bunch of concrete slabs under the oil dock. I've seen them and they obviously fell from somwhere above. So yes, in theory one could fall on you while you're under the dock. Having said that, I'm inclined to believe that you're more likely to be struck by lightning than by a piece of concrete under the pier.
Really? You've been there more than me but I never noticed. Guess I was too busy chasing crabs.

(and not the kind that she said!)

Yes there are. If you look at the sattelite pic Sheahan posted you can see where there missing from the dock. Right about the same spot there's a bunch of knocked over pilings too. In an earthquake that's the last place I'd want to be but it makes a nice scooter obtstacle course for now . The old dock is getting really rickety.

Maybe they'll remove it like they did at Edmonds

selkie · Post by **selkie** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:21 pm

I lived on Crab from north of that dock back in 85-86

well that and free

night at Shillshole. I am very disappointed we can't still park to the north of the dock.

JackSchacher · Post by **JackSchacher** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:46 pm

Sorry if my "cut the crap" sentence ruffled feathers. It reads meaner than I meant, but it's true I was worried about the thread being "hijacked" and turned into a joke fest.

Thanks to replies and picture from Sheahan.

I posted here because, as Joshua Smith noted, if this was a known danger I figured people in this group would have heard of it.

As the picture shows, at some time there was a cave-in of sorts.
But as to when that happened, it seems an open question.

I love the spooky feel under the pier there, and I agree the risk is relatively small.

Thanks to all

-- jack--

Northwest Dive Club