Buddy Separation - Safety Stop??

[lhunt99]

I'm hoping to get some input from those more experienced/educated than I:

My wife and I were discussing our buddy separation plan for an upcoming dive; search for your buddy for 1 minute and if unable to locate, execute a controlled ascent and head for the surface. A debate began about whether or not a safety stop should be executed before surfacing.

Can you provide some input as to what the doctrine of the various certification agencies preaches and/or what you advise and why?

Thanks.

 

[Web Monkey]

That's a real judgement call. Assuming you're diving within the No Decompression Limits, a Safety Stop is just that, a stop for additional safety. However if you do a normal (slow) ascent you should be able to ignore it without getting bent, although getting bent is always a possibility. There really is no hard answer. OTOH, you can fix bent, but you can't fix dead, so if my buddy was missing, I'd probably ignore the safety stop.

However, what I'd suggest is that you and your wife each get a medium sized SMB (Surface Marker Buoy) and spool, practice shooting it (the large are more visible, but harder to shoot) and bring it with you on every dive.

That way when you surface you can actually see each other (especially if one of you takes longer to surface, or to recognise that the other is gone), instead of doing something dangerous like going back to look for each other, which would make you both "lost" again.

It also makes you much more visible to the boat.

Another thing to do is to stick together like glue, which will make all your dives safer as well as reduce the risk of seperation. Remember even if you're only 20 feet away, if one of you is completely Out of Air, that's a really long way to swim.

Terry

I'm hoping to get some input from those more experienced/educated than I:

My wife and I were discussing our buddy separation plan for an upcoming dive; search for your buddy for 1 minute and if unable to locate, execute a controlled ascent and head for the surface. A debate began about whether or not a safety stop should be executed before surfacing.

Can you provide some input as to what the doctrine of the various certification agencies preaches and/or what you advise and why?

Thanks.

 

[rocketry]

The SMB is a great idea. I know I deploy mine by habit up here in the northeast. With 10 feet of vis around the surface, the boat can find me while i'm doing my safety stop. I'm a large phobia of being run over by a boat, so i like to identify myself during my vulnerable safety stop. Personally, If you're in the NDLs, I wouldn't hesitate to ascend to the surface SLOWLY. Thats only if I'm WELL WITHIN the NDLs. If i'm borderline, i would absolutely do the safety stop, for, say at least one minute.

you can fix bent, but you can't fix dead,

You are right, but in this case, the chances of separation due to diver incapacitation are much lower than the chances of separation due to simply "being lost." I'd plan the stops and deploy the SMB, so the boat can approach you. Once you know the boat is coming, whether your are waiting on the surface or whether you are 15 feet down makes no difference, in my mind. There are SO MANY scenarios, though, with no concrete answer.

 

[wallacm]

The SMB idea is excellent. IMO anybody diving in open water should carry one at all times. I was taught that one victim is better than two, so always do a safety stop. If I'm diving in 30 ft or shallower i'll skip it, but deeper than 30ft if I have the air I will do one. Just my two cents

 

[lhunt99]

Can anyone describe or send a link to a SMB that they would recommend?

 

[Cacia]

I love the Halcyon that attaches to the low pressure inflator because it has an overflow valve (won't burst) and it is heavy duty and provides
reliable back-up buyancy if I were to punture a wing. I would rather dive without a bcd than my SMB, to be honest. I am very happy they are getting to be more prevalent and used in wider number of applications, other than just emergencies.

 

[khacken]

I completely agree with the SMB idea. Also consider a sub alert or mini hammerhead. You can use it a type of sonar if needed. Once separated. Two blasts for attention. Then one blast per second until you locate each other. I have never lost a buddy for more than a minute with one. Including murky water. Please be sure to be considerate to others around you when using this, as it can be very distracting to others. This means don't use it to replace hand signals and good buddy techniques.

 

[lhunt99]

that's a great idea. i have a sub alert but never considered using it as a "sonar" device. thanks for the tip.

 

[meesier42]

loosing you dive buddy is a major safety issue for both of you, and getting to the surface and informing the DM's/ boat operator to start a search for the lost, possibly injured, or worse, person should be the priority.

Many of the dive operators that I know, have a DM underwater with you normally within sight of the group. And a lost buddy will often surface the entire group, and the entire group can be assembled as a search party.

As for being within the NDLs, well unless you are a decompression (techinical) diver then you can still perform a max 60ft per minute ascent and you SHOULD be safe. The PADI tables are still based on this. Although it is generally taught (and a good idea) to perform a slower acsent.

 

[TSandM]

SMBs are great, and I've used three different ones and settled, to my annoyance, on the Halcyon one.

Avoiding buddy separation beats having a strategy for dealing with it when it happens, but nobody is perfect. Lights and noisemakers can help reunite separated people, but that still doesn't answer the OP's question: If you have to employ the "60 second search and then surface" procedure, do you do a safety stop?

I don't remember being taught anything about this in any of my classes, including Rescue, so I'll give you my own decision-making process. If my nitrogen loading is low, I'll skip the stop. If I'm worried about the missing person (for example, I'm diving with a novice) I'll skip the stop. If my loading is high (toward the end of a deeper dive, or the third dive of the day) and the separation occurs shallow and my buddy is someone very competent, I'll probably do my stops. I might end up regretting that, and if that ever happened, I'd probably change my behavior. It's a risk-benefit ratio question, but you can't ever know for sure how the other person is until you have surfaced and found them.