I'm the Pariah again

[jonnythan]

You might consider the 99,9% other options, but you definetly dont rule out the worst case scenario, unlike what a lot of people in this thread are doing..

No one is ruling it out. They're saying it's not likely enough to justify the level of stress and panic the OP felt. It's this stress and panic that led him to ignore the captain's questions and focus 100% on freaking out about his buddy dying at the bottom of the ocean.

 

[jmneill]

Then another person sitting nearby said, "You have taken Rescue Diver. You should know that you are responsible for your own personal safety.

You might want to throw that Rescue Cert in the trash and quit talking it up pre-dive before you give the wrong person a false sense of security.

 

[nimoh]

One thing this thread has me wondering about is that throughout my training, the protocol is first taught, and then reinforced that in a lost buddy situation, you look around for 1 minute and then surface to meet up with your buddy. I don't recall ever being taught a protocol for what to do if your buddy doesn't surface.

As it turns out, in my 100+ dives, I have never had a lost buddy, so didn't think much of it. I have had inattentive buddies, where I had to do most of the work to stay together, but I have never run into the situation of surfacing and not finding my buddy. So the question of what I would do is somewhat tainted by my benefit of hindsight, and time to think about it.

In Matt's situation, if his buddy had been in trouble, I think we would be having a different discussion since his actions would have likely engaged a lost diver search sooner rather than later, and perhaps the diver would have been found before OOA (such as in a case that the diver was stuck). So, I don't see anything wrong with his actions in the water, even though many of us would have acted differently (back to my point that I am not aware of any standard protocol for this).

The only issue I have with Matt's actions, is back on the boat. Once the primary fear of the buddy being in trouble was put to rest, it is time to swallow some pride and apologize if your improvised lost diver protocol was not appropriate.

 

[jmneill]

Then one of the instructors jumped in the water with a line attached to a buoy, swam over to me, and told me to pull myself in hand over hand. That worked very well.

Were you the only one on the boat that required this assistance, or were there others?

 

[FuzzyNutz]

You might want to throw that Rescue Cert in the trash and quit talking it up pre-dive before you give the wrong person a false sense of security.

Don't be a dick. Why? Because he once second guessed himself at the surface? I do believe he is capable of hauling an unresponsive diver back to the surface and shore/boat to revive them. I'd rather dive with someone who acted on a false emergency rather than doing nothing in a real one.

 

[vladimir]

In Matt's situation, if his buddy had been in trouble, I think we would be having a different discussion since his actions would have likely engaged a lost diver search sooner rather than later, and perhaps the diver would have been found before OOA (such as in a case that the diver was stuck). So, I don't see anything wrong with his actions in the water, even though many of us would have acted differently (back to my point that I am not aware of any standard protocol for this).

I would like to hear about an incident where a buddy was lost, trapped underwater, and rescued by a search initiated from the surface. Think of the logistics. Even if a search was mounted immediately (divers geared up and standing by?), how long would it take to find the buddy that the buddy couldn't find? How often does a diver get trapped underwater? On a Caribbean reef? It's not an impossible scenario, it's just incredibly unlikely. The overwhelming likelihood was that the buddy was on the boat, or on the surface but out of sight, or on his way to the surface in no distress. By assuming the fantastic scenario, the OP created a situation on the surface that had its own set of risks.

 

[nimoh]

I would like to hear about an incident where a buddy was lost, trapped underwater, and rescued by a search initiated from the surface. Think of the logistics. Even if a search was mounted immediately (divers geared up and standing by?), how long would it take to find the buddy that the buddy couldn't find? How often does a diver get trapped underwater? On a Caribbean reef? It's not an impossible scenario, it's just incredibly unlikely. The overwhelming likelihood was that the buddy was on the boat, or on the surface but out of sight, or on his way to the surface in no distress. By assuming the fantastic scenario, the OP created a situation on the surface that had its own set of risks.

first of all, don't put words in Tigerman's mouth, he probably doesn't appreciate it

So if I understand you correctly, you are suggesting that the standard protocol for getting to the surface without your buddy should be to assume that your buddy is fine?

I can't say that I completely disagree with that, given that I agree with the fact that the odds are heavily stacked against a diver emergency. I mean, lost buddy should be rare (very rare in my case), and diver emergencies are rare. The odds of both at the same time...extremely rare.

 

[jmneill]

Don't be a dick. Why? Because he once second guessed himself at the surface? I do believe he is capable of hauling an unresponsive diver back to the surface and shore/boat to revive them. I'd rather dive with someone who acted on a false emergency rather than doing nothing in a real one.

Not because he second guessed himself at the surface, but rather when you examine the OP's post in it's entirety (as well as some of his previous posts) that it becomes painfully obvious that this guy is no resque diver and shouldn't be construed as such by unsuspecting divers around him. (or himself for that matter)

 

[vladimir]

first of all, don't put words in Tigerman's mouth, he probably doesn't appreciate it

I fixed that misquote—thanks.

So if I understand you correctly, you are suggesting that the standard protocol for getting to the surface without your buddy should be to assume that your buddy is fine?

No, not exactly. What I would suggest is that you not create a real emergency to address an imaginary one.

 

[nimoh]

I didn't, and Tigerman can take care of himself. What words do you think I put into his mouth?

in post #156, you attributed what I wrote to Tigerman, and I am guessing it was a typo, which is why I put in the smiley face.

You just put words into my mouth—I suggested nothing of the sort. What I would suggest is that you not create a real emergency to address an imaginary one.

I am not trying to antagonize you, but I sense that I am. I was not trying to put words into your mouth, and based on your response, I probably did not understand correctly.