Air Quality

[CajunDiva]

In light of recent accidents as a result of bad air, much has been written on SB about the subject of air quality at dive shops.

Although PADI requires that dive shops submit air samples for testing on a quarterly basis, it is apparent that this requirement is not being enforced. As a result, divers must accept the inherent risk that they may be breathing bad air.

Someone made a suggestion a while back that as divers, we must be responsible for our own safety and check out the operations of the company we decide to dive with. Since I just returned from a 10 day dive trip, I thought I'd try to start an informational thread about places that have been found to be "safe". Hopefully others will care to follow the same principle and share their findings here. At least we divers will then establish a network of dive operations that we know conduct themselves in a safe and responsible manner.

We dove 8 days at Fantasy Island on the island of Roatan. During that time I met with Robert, who manages the dive operations. He was actually pleased with my questions and made it a point to give me a tour of their compressor room and operations. He showed me the certificate from Trace Analytics, the company they send their air samples to, confirming that their samples passed inspection. He informed me that they had sent the latest sample only two days before we arrived.

I dove feeling completely confident that I was in good hands and I would feel safe recommending this operation to divers looking for a safe experience.

In no way am I trying to promote one particular dive operation. I am just attempting to open a dialogue among divers to share information. It is my hope that we can all participate in a cooperative manner to share information that will be helpful to each other and make diving an even safer sport! :10:

 

[DandyDon]

Robert is still the dive shop boss, huh? Great, and I bet it is the same Robert who was my skipper for my first time there in Sept 2001 - watching the 9-11 news back home on TV, wondering how we'd get home with US skies closed then finally opened to US carriers only. We couldn't do a thing about it so we dived, arrived home a couple of days late, filed my trip insurance claim for the extra expenses. I was green and grossly under tipped him and Willy, felt bad about that for a few years and was happy to see them both still there on my return: "You won't remember me, but I owe you each money," and laid a $50 on each. No problem.

Glad to hear that FIBR is making a good effort. Even the last time I was there I didn't know of the significant & existing omission in diving safety of tank air quality control. Now I know to ask to see their compressors; it's my right as a customer I think and a good operator should be proud to show; and more....

• Check for signs of oil leaks;
• See where intake air is and ensure it is well away from compressors, vehicles, boats, etc.
• Check to see if an inline CO monitor is operating on each;
• Check to see if an inline scrubber/filter is in place on each;
• Examine their testing records for less than 10 ppm CO - preferably much less;

Then finally my own testing on my own tanks. All the above is reassuring, but problems can still happen when compressors and ran long, hard, and hot - especially in the tropics. My little CO monitor/tester may be the most important piece of safety equipment I own, even tho one of the cheapest ones.

No one else is really protecting divers from bad air!

The best tropic operators like FIBR, Buddy's on Bonaire, Protech Belize are doing their part - much more than most others I've checked personally, but there remains a chance of accidents, i.e. hot days, overworked compressors, overworked and/or under educated fill shed employees, the wrong filter used (on the deadly Maldives accident they were using a cheaper electric compressor filter on a diesel powered compressor) and who know what all else? DAN readily admits that the risks exist, and while reported CO injuries and deaths are rare - DAN admits that a significant portion are recorded simply as drownings with no tank or corpse testing done that they are aware. PADI has requirements that include quarterly tests at an accredited lab, but those are not enforced and are often ignored in the tropics.

And how many dive vacations were marred seemingly with "traveler's flu" or side effects to chloroquine but were really too close calls with CO contamination? My CO tester went with my Tech Instructor to Utila this month and stopped Nitrox diving the first day until the tanks and the compressor could be thoroughly cleaned. Have you ever had a headache on a dive trip? Tank air is one of our most important safety needs, but how do you know...?

The good news is that while no one else is doing much about it, we divers can and it won't require that much. Ask like CajunDiva did, and a good operator should be proud to show what they are doing for air safety. Remember the points above: cleanliness, air intake, inline monitor & filter/scrubber, air test records. Then test your tank yourself with a $140 monitor - far cheaper than your reg, BC, dive computer, Nitrox tester, etc. Then please come back to Scubaboard and report your findings - praising the good ones, exposing the dangerous ones.

The accident that killed a local DM and a Texas tourist diver a few years ago at another Roatan operation was listed simply as Fatalities: Honduras: One non-US/Canadian, one US/Canadian with no report.

05-72 Double fatality, diver had problem at depth, divemaster drowned also, limited information.
Cause of Death: Drowning
There is little information available on the death of this 49-year-old male. He had some kind of problem on the bottom and both he and the divemaster who came to his aid reportedly drowned. This case is limited to a single fatality in the tally since the divemaster was a non-American/non-Canadian national for which little information was available.