{"id":594222,"date":"2026-09-08T19:48:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T19:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/594222\/"},"modified":"2026-09-08T19:48:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T19:48:12","slug":"coroner-calls-on-mbie-to-ban-tankless-diving-device-after-accidental-drowning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/594222\/","title":{"rendered":"Coroner calls on MBIE to ban tankless diving device after accidental drowning"},"content":{"rendered":"

The day before he died, Shengwei Cao pulled out his new tankless diving device – a Wolach 919 – and tested it in the bathtub.<\/p>\n

By 11.30am on 5 March, 2023, the device, sometimes known as a hookah type system, was on the surface of the water off the coast of Mana Island, pumping air through an umbilical hose to Cao, who was diving below.<\/p>\n

About an hour later, a couple of boaties – alerted to a missing diver – pulled the 58-year-old’s body from the water.<\/p>\n

He was declared dead onshore shortly after.<\/p>\n

In findings published on Wednesday, Coroner Amelia Steel ruled Cao’s death an accidental drowning<\/a>, with decompression complications a contributing factor.<\/p>\n

She recommended the Wolach 919 be banned from importation into the country and that the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) launch an awareness campaign about such devices and a broader product review of risks and regulations.<\/p>\n

In her report, Steel said Cao, a painter from Lower Hutt, had been free diving for at least five years.<\/p>\n

He usually dived in shallow water close to the shore, and only when the weather was good, she said. Occasionally he would take pills for seasickness.<\/p>\n

Steel said Cao wasn’t trained in scuba diving<\/a> but hoped to learn and had discussed its differences with friends.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

An advertising image shows the Wolach 919.<\/p>\n

Supplied \/ Alibaba.com<\/p>\n

His online purchase of the Wolach 919 would enable him to dive deeper, she said, and he tested it in the bathtub on 4 March, 2023.<\/p>\n

The next day, the 58-year-old met up with six other friends and began diving off Mana Island around 11.30am.<\/p>\n

“Mr Cao was using the Wolach to free dive for the first time, while the other people were scuba diving.”<\/p>\n

The Wolach was attached to a buoy.<\/p>\n

After several dives, Cao returned to the boat, complaining of seasickness and that the Wolach wasn’t working. Steel said he needed help getting out of the water, which was unusual.<\/p>\n

But 10 minutes later, feeling better, he was back in the water.<\/p>\n

However, not long after, his friends requested to dive elsewhere and unable to get Cao’s attention, they left him alone, Steel said. The skipper noted the 58-year-old’s breathing bubbles on the surface as they went.<\/p>\n

When the skipper returned to the site, the rocky shore prevented him from approaching Cao. He headed back to the main group and alerted a passing boat to a missing diver.<\/p>\n

The boaties found Cao’s body still attached to the buoy, in water about five metres deep, Steel said.<\/p>\n

The breathing tube and pump, which went from the surface of the water to Cao, were also attached to the buoy she said.<\/p>\n

“However, the mouthpiece attached to the breathing tube was to the side of Mr Cao’s head, rather than in his mouth.”<\/p>\n

A short time later on shore, Cao was declared dead by emergency services.<\/p>\n

Steel said a specialist from the Police National Dive Squad tested Cao’s gear in a diving pool and among several findings noted the Wolach design left the diver with an inconsistent air supply, particularly at depths of around 4.5 to 5 metres.<\/p>\n

The specialist considered it to be a “dangerous system” leaving the diver in an unsafe position without immediately available air.<\/p>\n

The specialist found Cao’s use of the Wolach, continuing to dive when unwell, and diving alone were all factors in his death, Steel said.<\/p>\n

‘Avoidable tragedy’<\/p>\n

Water Safety New Zealand said Cao’s death was an avoidable tragedy that demonstrated the risks of diving alone.<\/p>\n

In 2025, more than 55 percent of the 79 drownings were people undertaking water activities by themselves, it said.<\/p>\n

\"Rob<\/p>\n

Supplied \/ Water Safety New Zealand<\/p>\n

The organisation’s kaihaut\u016b M\u0101ori Rob Hewitt said the coroner’s findings read like a “tragic list of everything you must never do” when heading out underwater.<\/p>\n

“Diving in open water is absolutely not the place to try new equipment,” he said.<\/p>\n

Hewitt told RNZ Cao’s death hit home. Hewitt survived four days at sea in 2006<\/a> after a routine dive trip off Mana Island went wrong.<\/p>\n

“When I first … saw the coroner’s report and saw where it was, it sort of touched my heart and woke up a few thoughts of when I was lost out at sea.”<\/p>\n

He said New Zealand men needed to understand they weren’t bulletproof.<\/p>\n

“When the unexpected happens you need someone close to you who can immediately give you some help. Tragically this was not the case for Mr Cao.”<\/p>\n

He said training, ensuring equipment was fit for purpose and diving with a buddy were critical.<\/p>\n

MBIE considering findings<\/p>\n

MBIE’s manager of consumer services Simon Gallagher said the agency was considering the coroner’s findings and recommendations and was committed to assessing any appropriate actions.<\/p>\n

He noted the Wolach 919 was not currently available for sale in the country, but recognised the importance of understanding and addressing potential risks with such tankless diving products.<\/p>\n

“We’ll continue to work closely with relevant agencies and stakeholders to assess consumer safety risks and provide advice and guidance where needed to help prevent harm,” Gallagher said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The day before he died, Shengwei Cao pulled out his new tankless diving device – a Wolach 919…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":594223,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[111,43,139,69],"class_list":["post-594222","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594222","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=594222"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594222\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/594223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=594222"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=594222"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=594222"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}