Calm-headed response

[MichaelMc]

My reading of the events, from watching slo-mo was:
Bubbling.
Assessment
hands to ears to show others there is a problem/noise.
pointing to own 1st stage so each buddy could see, to show problem was their own first stage.
ok. to each buddy to say I'm fine (or maybe checking they were, but that is a bit silly, nothing changed for them)
taking tank off to assess.
...
Telling other diver chill, hold,
seeing the leak,
giving general ascent signal.
in there, getting offer of octo from buddy and saying no, thanks, I'm fine.
...

How you should handle on OOA, depends. Learn the basic method.
If you get so good that exploding air behind you is no big deal, do as they did.
1) Signal your team, as they did.
2) Tell your team what the issue is, as they did.
3) Fix or ask needed assistance, as they did.

It is not really a different procedure. Just a new diver may not handle much more than 1) issue, 2) get air.
My take...

 

[Scott]

I'm not sure it's best practice to take off one's BCD at depth and would like others' thoughts. I get that he did it to see what the problem was, but I don't think this is a good idea/best practice for most divers, since then you have to carry/hold the rig (as he did), which complicates breathing from your buddy's octo.

I can think of a reason or two to take it off. There was no signal that the other divers could understand for "hey do I have a leak back here can you fix it, or turn my gas off" or the DM was comfortable enough to remove it, analyse the situation and make a decision. Which obviously he was.
Now leaving it off for the ascent, I don't really agree with, but his choice. Put it back on, let it drain, secure the alternate and ascend. Turn off the gas, secure the alternate replace and ascend. Replace, turn off gas, secure alternate ascend. Number of other options I'm sure.

Which brings me to my second point: was surprised at no Roman handshake, but again that may have been a function of having to maneuver the BCD (see first point). Thoughts?

I think the failure to "link up" was due to hands being occupied with the kit. If things would have become sketchy he could have just dropped it and retrieved it later. As calm as he was, he probably would have just donned it.

 

[MichaelMc]

Is this the OOA procedure to follow is a good question.

But they were not OOA. They had a gear issue that could have lead to OOA. Which they told their team about, and fixed or got assistance, and kept their team advised.

 

[ReadyDiverOne]

@Scott -- Agreed, that's my view as well: I get taking it off to see what the heck is going on, but I would put it back on so I had hands-free for octo, handshake, and anything else--like inflating the SMB.

 

[ReadyDiverOne]

Is this the OOA procedure to follow is a good question. But they were not OOA. They had a gear issue that could have lead to OOA. Which they told their team about, and fixed or got assistance, and kept their team advised.

I don't know, man, aren't you splitting hairs? I mean, he did have to breathe from the other diver's octo, right?

 

[Lorenzoid]

The video seems useful as a good illustration of how staying calm can help you solve a problem. I do not believe the video should be viewed as instruction on best practices for handling such a situation. I wonder if taking off the rig to inspect the source of the bubbles, show the others what the problem was, etc., was taking the "keep calm" lesson too far--bordering on showing off.

 

[rjack321]

Looks like a dislodged O-ring, maybe the hand wheel was loose. From his earlier actions, I was half expecting him to try to re-seat it after he shut the valve down. Finding an alternate air source and bolting to the surface has always been ingrained during open water training.

He did try to reseat the DIN fitting, The tank is shut down at 2:35 and he tries turning it back on about 2:50.

It was probably the DIN to reg body connection. That oring is secured with an hex key in the DIN fitting. Its hard to extrude but not possible to reseat if it comes loose.

 

[ReadyDiverOne]

The video seems useful as a good illustration of how staying calm can help you solve a problem. I do not believe the video should be viewed as instruction on best practices for handling such a situation. I wonder if taking off the rig to inspect the source of the bubbles, show the others what the problem was, etc., was taking the "keep calm" lesson too far--bordering on showing off.

Precisely!! I had the same thought. Just seems like a bad idea to make that big a show of it all. But still, hat tip to the guy--cool as a cucumber.

 

[rjack321]

The video seems useful as a good illustration of how staying calm can help you solve a problem. I do not believe the video should be viewed as instruction on best practices for handling such a situation. I wonder if taking off the rig to inspect the source of the bubbles, show the others what the problem was, etc., was taking the "keep calm" lesson too far--bordering on showing off.

He's a DM. With clients he probably doesn't know or even trust.
With almost no weight on in a shorty
Taking it off and looking himself was fine, I probably would have put it back on before shooting an SMB though.

 

[MichaelMc]

I don't know, man, aren't you splitting hairs? I mean, he did have to breathe from the other diver's octo, right?

They shared from the octo only because they decided to shut down their valve. They could have feathered it or ascended with it spewing air out. Depending on how much they had left. They continue to exhale many times through their response. Clearly they were getting air.

I do agree sticking it back on their back would have been a good idea.