Accidents in your diving ...

[fisherdvm]

And how you dealt with. About dive 10, I was invited to join 3 other young soldiers to go on a boat for lobsters at night. To an unknown reef with the wives on the boat. None of us had lobster experience. Boat anchor was too short so it drifted off. I got sick, threw up underwater, used too much air and surfaced. We were much deeper than we expected with no gps guidance, I was near sighted and can barely see the boat. Bought prescription goggles soon after. Got no lobsters as we were on sand bottom with a few rocks. About dive 7 on my AOW night dive, insta buddy wanted to see the exhaust tube at the electric plant at Electric reef in Oahu. I reluctantly stayed near but got caught in the vacumn and blown out to sea. It was like swimming in a rip current to get back. Insta buddy was on the surface with the group.... again, if it was not for the lights on the electric plant, I would not know how to find the group. Lesson learned, stay away any moving current, there is a vacumn that pulls you in. Dive 60 or so, TSA disassembled my bc and did not reattached the hose well. I jump in with BC deflated but it emptied by itself. Dove with problems. Surfaced scared to death and kicking like mad, but made it back. Should have dumped weight, but did not want to pay for loaned ones. Dive 60 or so... back entry on a sixpack boat without fins. Fortunately no currents. Dive 100 or so, played with the valve while waiting for a group of students, swam to the group, signalled ok and enterred the water. 4 breaths later, no air! Kicked to the surface and turned the air on. Some of us never made mistakes.. and other, like myself, make them all the time .... and I agree with the GUE philosophy. But most experienced divers learn from mistakes. That is why we ask stupid questions on SB and get flammed for should have known better!

 

[Charles2]

That which does not kill us makes us stronger. - Friedrich Nietzsche

Or maybe Conan the Barbarian said that in an earlier life.

 

[Steve_C]

I ask my students, what do they learn from their mistakes. They always say to not make them. I reply, "what they will be next time." In my case, if I get a last minute instabuddy to quit doing my predive equipment check and switch to DM/new buddy mode. Assessing what they want to do, etc. Or getting into a conversation on the boat. Experience has taught me to now go back over the whole predive prep since this is when I screw up sometimes. Yesterday I did it and oh yeh, there are my dive computers sitting not on my wrist but in the camera bag.

 

[fisherdvm]

Cause analysis? Task overloading - new activities. First dive boat, second night dive, new diver, new activity. Second accident, first night dive, insta buddy, unknown dive site, new tasks - using light. Third - Pre dive check did not include fully inflated bcd and under extra pressure by squeezing the wings. Would have detected the large leak at the inflator hose. Fourth - predive check list not done A air, B cd, Breathing regulator check, bc inflated , C can you see without the mask, D ditchabe weight, and F fins !!! Last dive - cocky diver messing with the valves, lack of attention, failed to go through predive check list.

 

[Soloist]

Thanks for your genuine and frank post/thread. I respect the fact you are ready to face the sanctimonious critics lurking in the bushes. These are exactly the types of scenarios new divers should read about on the Basic Scuba Discussions forum, so they will grasp the importance of being careful and diligent. Hopefully they can learn some valuable lessons from our naive and idiotic mistakes. Moreover, why they happened and how to resolve/survive them. After long deliberation I posted a couple of my not so pleasant experiences recently (see links below). It was uncomfortable posting these, but I did so in the hopes my mistakes will not be repeated by others. Thanks again for having the courage to jump head first into the belly of the beast!

This thread has a lot of interesting stories
Challenges in your first 100 dives?

This thread was created just a few days ago
How do divers not realize their air isn't on?

 

[fisherdvm]

Just lost my smb last week shooting it up from about 25 ft. The plastic clip was not tight, and the string came off at the surface. Since then, I tie the spool line directly to the smb. Just have to remember to not clip the loop on the reel, but snap the line on a hole so it stays tight and does not unravel. The weight of the spool tighten the line. If someone will upload a photo how they rig their smb to the line and clip it on their bc, I would appreciate it. Right now the smb is clipped on the bc, the spool hang freely, a second clip secure the line onto a hole on the spool. The weight of the spool keeps it tight and does not unravel, but it hangs 1 to 2 inches below the smb.

 

[Storker]

The plastic clip was not tight, and the string came off at the surface..

Plastic clip???

If someone will upload a photo how they rig their smb to the line and clip it on their bc, I would appreciate it.

I do it pretty much like this.

I prefer a spool and a double-ender over a reel, though. Like this: Keeping spool (with SMB attached) from unwinding underwater

 

[fisherdvm]

Plastic clip???



I do it pretty much like this.

I prefer a spool and a double-ender over a reel, though. Like this: Keeping spool (with SMB attached) from unwinding underwater

yes. Built in platic clip on the smb. Might have been fine for the D ring, but wrong for the line loop. Lesson learned.

 

[dlofting]

yes. Built in platic clip on the smb. Might have been fine for the D ring, but wrong for the line loop. Lesson learned.

If I can I replace plastic clips with bolt snaps and SS split rings. I just don't trust the plastic to not open or fail.

 

[Bert van den Berg]

So far:

Stored gloves in the crack between the low pressure inflator hose and oral inflator hose and accidentally disconnected the low pressure inflator hose when pulling gloves out. Didn't notice the problem till I tried to add some air to the BCD.

Jumped into the water without getting someone to zip the drysuit zipper.

Jumped into the water without closing the latch on the waterproof housing for the GoPro.

Jumped into the water without my weightbelt on.

Knocked my wife's regulator out of her mouth with my foot.