Advice needed - unqualified diver with apparent mental issues and a bump on my head

[jberry99]

Any advice welcome! One of the divers today presented behaviors that led me to believe he either had a severe mental disability or a very low IQ. He repeatedly shouted for no reason and would engage in loud conversations that repeated the same phrases. He had difficulty getting his BCD and other gear on, though he owned his own gear. The dive site was open water, max depth 60 feet, and a drift dive with a strong current. The dive guides were in the mid-20s and not overly experienced or serious. The diver had motor coordination issues in the water. Toward the beginning of the dive, at around 40 feet, he crashed into me and his tank hit my head hard enough to cause an immediate bump (and pain) that lasted a couple of days. He probably weighed at least 250 pounds, with an additional 20 pounds of weight, which contributed to the force of the hit.

Even before the dive, I expressed my deep concerns about diving with this man and almost refused to dive. I told the boat captain that someone needed to make an executive decision about whether this man was qualified to dive and was informed that he would be babysat. After the incident, the dive guides didn't appear to take the near-miss seriously, though the boat captain was very concerned about the bump on my head and the diver's mental issues. After the dive, when I told the diver that he and his tank landed on my head, he expressed concern that everyone needs to be more careful in the water. It wasn't said in a manner that suggested he was blowing me off, rather it was suggestive of a some kind of mental slowness and a complete lack of awareness of the danger he posed.

Should divers like this be restricted in their certification? Should I have refused to dive with him? I know incidents like this can happen, but the combination of this diver's issues and the incident make me believe that he was an accident waiting to happen and that the dive group failed all of us that day. The diver hadn't been diving for over a year and refused to take a refresher course. The dive guides blew off his challenges getting his tank set up and failed to act on the other divers' increasing concerns about this man's behavior. What is their role in this situation?

Any advice on how I should've handled this - or how I should handle incidents like this in the future?

 

[redacted]

You needed to first make a decision of whether you were too uncomfortable with this diver for you to dive. And, since you decided to dive, you probably should have worked harder to stay away from him in the water. Not much else you could do.

 

[CptTightPants21]

That is a real tough situation.

I don't have a clear answer expect to say we all make our own choices. You have every right to not want to be buddied up anyone, the captain has a right to refuse service to anyone, the DMs have a right to call a divers dive, etc

If I was in your shoes I probably would have refused to be his buddy or take any responsibility for him, but in terms of letting him dive....I'll let God and the insurance companies sort it out.

 

[Mr.X]

Question: Was this in the United States, or overseas?

 

[Kharon]

Sounds like this was a group dive rather than a buddy setup. I would have stayed far away from him, probably at the back of the pack.

 

[phoenix31tt]

not that extreme, but i've dove with similar people before.

It doesn't sound like they forced you to buddy up with him so i would've just stayed away. Even easier on a drift dive, i'd position myself behind the diver, which I've done on more than one occasion.
We have no idea what his "condition" is and if it was present when he was certified or maybe he was just hung over who knows. Other than staying away there is nothing you really could've done. I can see it being extremely difficult for a crew to tell someone they can't dive, unless they have hard evidence that the person is a danger to themselves or others.

 

[jberry99]

It was a group dive in the Caribbean and he was "buddied" with the dive guide to mitigate any issues. So, no, I wasn't his buddy. If I had been assigned to him, I would have refused, since he was so large and his behavior was so erratic. I thought I was staying far away from him, until he crashed into me from above with the dive guide right beside him. After the incident, I spent the rest of the dive that involved him watching him and staying as far away as possible.

What I'm hearing from the responses is that group dives are a crapshoot and, as an individual diver, I should be less concerned about overall group safety.

 

[Herb-alaska]

It is very possible that this diver had some disability that could include turrets and low IQ and that the dive charter was briefed about his issues and agreed to accept him on the trip. It is also possible that he has not been diving for a year becasue this is the only vacation that he is able to afford and diving is how he wants to spend it. These are issues that the dive boat would not have been able to share with anyone that does not have a need to know ( Dive Master, Crew and Captain.) If I was not comfortable diving with this person I would have just simply stayed out of the way, and let the crew do their thing. A friendly non judgmental non elitist attitude is what should be shown toward the diver on the boat. No one really knows what the full story is.

just my view on it
Herb

 

[shmuggy]

anytime I am looking into a dive operator I ask them how the dives are conducted. I stay away from operators that require everyone to dive in group fashion and go with those that let me and my buddy go on our own. Lots of people prefer to be in a group but I had an experience early on with a woman who kept "bicycling" into the top of my head and banging into me until I shoved her away. I just was too nervous she was going to kick my mask off of me and while I was rude, I did enjoy the rest of my dives that trip and have no regrets.

 

[Dhboner]

My son works in the mental health field and I have done a lot of volunteer work so there is a side of me that wants to support the diver and encourage the OP and others to try to be more understanding. However, we are talking about a sport where a poorly trained or physically/mentally limited buddy can do or not do something that could cost me my life. If I were to find myself in the OP's situation I would take steps to make sure that the DM assumed full responsibility for the diver, including keeping him from interfering with the other divers on the charter. It would not be my call whether or not he is fit to dive, just fit to dive with ME. I am a huge supporter of adaptive diving programs and integrating people with any kind of challenge into the mainstream but not in a situation where their particular challenge could get me killed.