I'm the Pariah again

[redacted]

You act like asses, apparently.

See, "ass" is more acceptable in civil society, which I guess you don't mix with very often.

Dicks - Asses ??? I guess it depends on your point of view.

 

[Mike]

You act like asses, apparently.

See, "ass" is more acceptable in civil society, which I guess you don't mix with very often.

Good, so you're more civilized then I am. If you're all better now, shall we get back to the subject of the thread or have you just been so totally shattered to your foundations by some written words on an internet forum that based on how uncivilized they were and you simply can't go on?

---------- Post Merged at 09:56 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 09:54 AM ----------

Not quite. In fact, Matt's actions would have delayed a search had one been necessary. While he initially followed normal protocol of search for 1 minute and then surface; he then decided to descend again and resume his own search. He does not indicate how long he persisted in that fruitless endeavor before he resurfaced and had more communications problems.

True. But for a guy with 20 dives I've seen a lot worse. He got more of it right then his dive buddy did.

 

[diverrex]

Interesting all the different points of view. I dive with buddies where the lost buddy protocol is we each keep diving and meet back on the boat, not everyone follows that but I'd say it's fairly common in our local diving. The key is to communicate the protocol you are using with your buddy and have clear communication with the boat.

I must admit I understand how buddies can get lost in low vis but once you hit 30+ vis and then you lose a buddy I don't think you were following any standard buddy protocol in the first place.

 

[Mike]

A woman recently disappeared in Cozumel where her dive buddy left her for what he claims to be only the few seconds it took to swim over to the dive master to tell him they were going to surface. She was never seen again.

stinky-poo poo poopy happens quickly underwater with high stakes consequences. (I substituted stinky poo poo poopy for sh*t because I'm trying to be more civilized)

 

[FuzzyNutz]

Exactly, and I said so earlier in this thread. Matt needed to communicate "lost buddy" to the captain and basically made no attempt to do so.

And without knowing an appropriate signal, how exactly do you communicate this from 200 yards away? His options at that point are pretty black and white... either everything is ok or something is wrong, and he felt as though he needed assistance.

If a search was needed, it may have been delayed... but they then might also have had a head start on where to begin looking, since he's still in the general area.

I'm trying to visualize this event and put myself in the shoes of both Matt and the captain so I can learn from this. For instance, what if you happen to come across a diver who is so entangled in line that he can't be freed and no one has a cutting device (or add any detail you see fit to make the point that you need extra help from the surface for an emergency that must be handled underwater in a timely fashion). If I surfaced to get help from the boat and found that it was far away, I'd be waving my arms in distress like a madman. If I were the captain, I'd get the boat closer to the diver before sending someone in to rescue the person on the surface. At that point, I would assume you can communicate the real issue at hand and appropriately handle the situation. Am I wrong for thinking this?

After reading this thread, if I were in the above situation, I think I would give a variety of rotating signals - starting with waving my arms around (to get their attention... and like Matt said, to HOLD their attention), then the big OK sign, then the pick me up "field goal" sign... and I would repeat this sequence until they were close enough to where we can verbally communicate. Am I wrong for thinking this?

... and since I haven't commented on the aftermath of the incident, quite frankly because I'm only interested in the emergency issue at hand, I would like to add that Matt probably handled that better than me. I have the utmost respect for captains while on their boat. Paying customer or not, I will always immediately do what they say, no questions asked. However, if I was belittled by a captain in the manner Matt describes, I would have punched him right in the face, no questions asked.

 

[vladimir]

Good, so you're more civilized then I am.

Yes.

If you're all better now

I was always fine. You might be a little better now, though, with the benefit of my civilizing influence. We'll see.

shall we get back to the subject of the thread or have you just been so totally shattered to your foundations by some written words on an internet forum that based on how uncivilized they were and you simply can't go on?

It seems to have affected you more than me, actually, and I only addressed you obliquely, as a resident of Colorado. Nevertheless, it seems to have struck a chord. Good. I'm sure you'll make more of an effort in the future to comport yourself appropriately, to your benefit and to the benefit of the Scubaboard as well.

He got more of it right then his dive buddy did.

So what? Who has argued that the buddy who abandoned Matt was an example to be emulated?

---------- Post Merged at 01:11 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 01:08 AM ----------

However, if I was belittled by a captain in the manner Matt describes, I would have punched him right in the face, no questions asked.

Internet tough guy.

 

[FuzzyNutz]

Is this considered civil discourse in Colorado? There are at least a couple of you who seem to think so.

Well there was no need for his personal insult. That was my way of standing up for a fellow board member. Call it what you want. ...and I'm from NJ... I don't think I need to explain this one :cool2:

Colorado is filled with real people, we talk, act and carry on like normal people not fake ones.

Tru dat! :cool2:

You act like asses, apparently.

And the world would be less entertaining without us :cool2:

 

[jonnythan]

And without knowing an appropriate signal, how exactly do you communicate this from 200 yards away?

Well, the OP could hear the captain. The obvious thing to do would be shout "lost buddy!"

OP did not try that.

 

[FuzzyNutz]

Internet tough guy.

[video=youtube;0GEx4HG-SgM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GEx4HG-SgM[/video]

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Let's take a step back for a moment....The divers get separated. From the Doctor's decription of the situation, the buddy swam toward the boat after he saw Matt take off in the wrong direction... That is what I recall reading...

So now the buddy is moving toward the boat underwater and Matt does the right thing and looks around for a minute and ascends... If Matt simply yelled for help and waited on the surface, why would he have not seen his buddy get on the boat? Instead Matt, who was unable to locate his buddy underwater attempted to re-descend and initiate a solo search for his buddy...Is that an appropriate action for a rescue diver?

If the surface current was such that it over powered the Doctor to such a degree that he had to be rescued/recovered using a rope, what is the chance that he could ascend safely, look around for his buddy for a while (presumably drifting away this entire time, including the ascent) and then go back down and find him when the surface currents are so significant? Not to mention that Matt has documented his inability to descend rapidly due to equalization problems in previous posts.

If you want to nitpick the situation, I think this decision (and the validity of it) should be considered. Probably more useful to others rather than discussing the Captain's and the Doctor's interpersonal skills on a diving thread.