A question to an incident

[Dadvocate]

Hi, Skeeter

Did you see this incident yourself, or are you recalling things told to you by others?

For instance, you made no reference to her being a good two meters below the surface in your OP. How do you know that she was at this depth if you were one of the people who did the 22 minute dive? How is there “no dough” that the DM saved her; yet it only “seams” that he didn’t know the hose was not connected in the first place? Also, if he was hurrying to get her “quickly” to the boat, why did he bother with the time needed to remove her gear in the process? More importantly, in answering these questions are you telling us first-hand what you saw or are you giving us the specifics based on what was told to you after the fact?

Your account is hard to follow without more details, one important detail being whether or not you actually saw what transpired.

Cheers!

 

[Skeeter1097]

The other day I posted but I am sorry for so little facts. There was a lot more info that you all needed to see the pitcher, I apologies. If I miss spell Oh well.
This dive was on a charter, 13 divers and Crow. Seas 3 to 5 rollers water 62 deg.
We got to the drop suit and after th DM got back on the boat from hooking us the the suit. I and my group of 4 was the first off and down. As we where looking around doing are thing. Barry found this BCD,Steve picked it it and was looking around to me and Tinman. I sough that the inflater line was not hooked up. I new there was something wrong and gave the thrums lets go up. All four of us started up. Steve had the BCD. I had a weight pocket and Barry had the other. Tinman had the back door.
I suffused first the girl was on the platform on the back of the boat. By the time I got to the on the boat I helped get her to the deck. Steve was on the boat by now and he got her O2 from the first add box. At that time The DM and Steve a ARMY deep sea dives was attending to the girl with her dad. I and the Caption was helping the other divers back on the boat. My group all have 100 and more dives in open seas and did not have a problem getting on the boat.
Bye the time all the divers had gotten on the boat the girl was setting. The girl or lady Late 20s or 30ish was talking and setting. She said she was in bearested. I told her its ok as long as you are OK we can do this again later.
After we got back and so no EMT waiting, no nothing we asked way. All we where told was we where heading back. That is whine some of us got up set. The Lady her dad and friend got in there truck and was gone. The Caption wonted us to tip the DM and have a nice day.
we where talking after the DM told us that she never was under 5 to 7 ft. She panicked and would not put a reg in her mouth, she was taking on a lot of water seas 3 to 5 with some 7 in there. He drooped the BCD, After he could not get the BCD to keep her up. He thought the she had way to much weight on. Steve the deep sea diver told hem the it was not the weight it was that inflater line was not hooked. When we got it on the boat there was not air in it. The line was steel not hooked as we did not change anything.
The Lady was off and we too left.
The dive shop toled me that they did not know anything about it. But the next time I called. I talked to the boss and they had looked into it. We got that apology and 50% off the next dive.
My dive computer gave me a 22 min dive . that is how i came up with 22 min dive

 

[I Dive]

That depends on the connector. The "drysuit" size connectors aren't too hard. The larger "SCUBAPro Air-2" size connectors require quite a bit more force and are extremely difficult to reattach with the air on.

Both are just about impossible with an uncooperative diver.

Terry

I guess if I absolutely had to, I could connect my SCUBAPRO air2 pressurized, but you are right Web Monkey, it is not simple. The time it would take fighting that connection would be better spent on other solutions. This is yet another reason why a proper predive check or 3 is absolutely mandatory for all divers of all skill and experience levels. On the surface, this is nothing more than an oversight. Once in the water, it's an entirely new ball game.

 

[Pimdiver]

Good God skeeter, take a spelling class. It's almost impossible to understand you.

 

[JDMerk]

I guess if I absolutely had to, I could connect my SCUBAPRO air2 pressurized, but you are right Web Monkey, it is not simple. The time it would take fighting that connection would be better spent on other solutions. This is yet another reason why a proper predive check or 3 is absolutely mandatory for all divers of all skill and experience levels. On the surface, this is nothing more than an oversight. Once in the water, it's an entirely new ball game.

So what would you do if you were in that situation...where you forgot to connect the inflator and jumped off with an empty BC, noticing it 6 or so ft under water?

Dump weight? Orally inflate? Both?

Most diving accidents happen at the surface.

 

[I Dive]

So what would you do if you were in that situation...where you forgot to connect the inflator and jumped off with an empty BC, noticing it 6 or so ft under water?

Dump weight? Orally inflate? Both?

Most diving accidents happen at the surface.

I'm not trying to avoid a more direct answer to your question. But, honestly, my only response is "This will never happen to me". I know many people reading this will think "Hey, that's sounds all good and fine but everyone makes mistakes." Skipping a predive or taking short cuts on it is not a mistake I will ever permit myself to make. And, I generally don't stop with just one check, I usually check my gear multiple times before hitting the water. It's not hard and it's not time consuming. Why not do it?

 

[ScubaSteve]

I'm not trying to avoid a more direct answer to your question. But, honestly, my only response is "This will never happen to me". I know many people reading this will think "Hey, that's sounds all good and fine but everyone makes mistakes." Skipping a predive or taking short cuts on it is not a mistake I will ever permit myself to make. And, I generally don't stop with just one check, I usually check my gear multiple times before hitting the water. It's not hard and it's not time consuming. Why not do it?

Perhaps you are better than every single diver out there and have special equipment. Perhaps not. Bottom line is, **** happens no matter what. Otherwise we would not need any training. Training and experience are what teach us to do when it hits the fan and the inevitable happens. And your answer above shows nothing about suitable training.

 

[I Dive]

Perhaps you are better than every single diver out there and have special equipment. Perhaps not. Bottom line is, **** happens no matter what. Otherwise we would not need any training. Training and experience are what teach us to do when it hits the fan and the inevitable happens. And your answer above shows nothing about suitable training.

That didn't take long... I was waiting for the first "You must be perfect" response. Read my answer in the context of the question asked. I'm not at all implying I never make mistakes and will never have a problem in the water. I was asked what I would do if I entered the water with my inflator unattached and an empty BC bladder. Given the question, I stand by my answer. As far as I'm concerned, there is no excuse for either of those things ever occuring and I definitely do not consider them "inevitable". If the question was something to the effect of what I would do if my inflator failed when I was in the water, of course my answer would have been different. I'm not a fool who claims to know that my gear will never fail. Like every diver, I maintain it properly so it hopefully doesn't, but gear failures do unfortunately occur. You can only control so much, and one of the things you can easily control is making sure your gear is properly assembled and operational before you hit the water.

 

[Dadvocate]

Hello, I Dive!

I’m not interested in calling your pre-dive procedures or your statement that you would never let this happen into question. There is no point in doing that in this thread anyway. I’m more interested in the what-if scenario you would utilize if indeed you landed in the water with your inflator hose unhooked for some unforeseeable reason. I offer this potentiality as a possible way your inflator hose could be disconnected with no fault being attached to you at all.

Let’s say for argument sake that another diver is jealous of your way with the ladies at surface intervals and at the bar at the end of the day. He is frustrated with your Cheshire Cat grin and your dalliances into making suggestive word plays with diver terms such as “Baby, being with you is like Nitrogen Narcosis” or “Wanna see my giant stride?” or even something more graphically suggestive using the inflator hose itself (everyone can insert their own dirty imagination with this one).

Say our devilish antagonist becomes so incensed with your seductive success in the face of his abject failure that he decides he is going to teach you a lesson. He watches your pre-dive routine after each dive for three days and then notices that a well timed removal of your inflator hose could possibly go unnoticed if done in such and such a way. It isn’t going to be easy given your impeccable pre-dive routine, not to mention all the other wandering eyes on the boat (half of them love glances from your previous conquests), but there is just a smidgen of an opportunity if he practices secretly in his room at night in the time he has left before that faithful last day of diving on this trip. Hell, he is alone in his room anyway because of you, and that drives his resolve all the more.

Despite all the ways in which he could fail in his evil quest, he is successful at getting to your gear in a stealthy way as you are ready to enter the water. You are unaware that this horrid person wishes you harm. He feels that you will surely perish, not knowing how resourceful you are as a diver as well as a ladies’ man. He sits back and watches his handy work with his own version of a cat’s grin.

The next thing you know you are in the water with no inflator hose connected. It is a functioning inflator hose, but it is disconnected all the same.

What, if I may ask in purely hypothetical terms, would be your in-water response in this situation? After answering this question, you can also let us know what would happen to this guy when you are safe if you like. It just so happens that someone unknowingly catches him in the act while testing his new underwater camera. This is brought to your attention in the bar that night.

Cheers!

 

[imasinker]

Well I know one thing......

On a boat or facing a shore into the water...I inflate my BC "BEFORE" I enter the water. I breath from "BOTH" regs before I enter the water. I check my "GAUGES" before I enter the water. I want to make sure everything works..EVERYTIME. Thats my responsibility, thats what I was taught. If you jump into the water and your inflator isin't hooked up, thats because you didn't do a PRE DIVE CHECK.

C'mon guys call a truce!