Cozumel Incident 9/4/11

[Pelagicsal]

I've dived with 5 or 6 different Coz ops over the years and I do not remember any of them having a recall signal or similar. Price competition if fierce there, the boats are sometimes rentals with rented captains - captains always go with their boats, DMs are fluent in English but captains often are not, etc. If there are other boats around, they are called by radio for help - but that will vary with situation.

Again, Paradise & Villablanca reefs are close to ferry or cruise docks so leaving divers to drift into active ferries or docked cruise boats is not an option.

Since divers must be with a DM in Cozumel, the recall signal is not for customers but for the DM. Having done a surfeit of diving with one op, I sometimes know when the capitans call the DMs - whether it's a recall or other communication. Often the group doesn't notice the message - or even notice the DM disappearing for a few moments to ascend and check with the capi - while keeping an eye on the group.

 

[Hetland]

No I meant the part about divers making sure what to do in an emergency. If a boat needs to leave have a signal system set up and make sure they are prepared to be left and picked up later if need be. Many little details get left out of dive briefings.

You NEVER, EVER, EVER, EVER leave a diver in the water. I don't care if both of MY legs are cut off, and I'm bleeding to death all over the deck. That's my tough luck. Abandoning unsuspecting boatmates while they are underwater is inexcusable.

 

[Diogenesdemar]

Would it matter if one of the people doing the dive was the captain's employer?

I'm can envision that there are (too many? -- BTW, one would be "too many" IMHO) instances where it could, depending on the particular captain and the particular employer -- hence, my question in the next sentence at the bottom of that same post.

For the record, if I as a client of such a company or such a captain became aware of that, I and my family would not be using their services again in the future. I've been in situations where we informed diving operators that we would not permit our divers to dive with particular divemasters or captains ever again after an incident (notice, I said "incident," not "accident"); in each case we explained why and in each case, without exception, the dive operators said they were appreciative of our information -- I would not give my business to any dive operator who responded otherwise.

 

[Pelagicsal]

Rubbish. Proper captains frown on their charges at all different depths. too much compication tracking and recovering everyone on different schedules.

No rubbish there. Captains may frown, but it you go dive the Gold Coast of Florida, you will find this is normal operating procedure.
Many captains are operation owners, so they set the exact procedure Jax describes.

 

[bhalah]

Seriously?!?!?! Am I the only one that goes out on a boat that canvasses the divers, and then says, "Okay, max time is set at (50, 60, 70 minutes) for all divers . . . .?

No, you are not the only one. I too have seen more than one group when on a bigger boat. ie newbies in one group, oldbies in another group.

 

[suprane]

You forget the third choice of not letting the sillines of two different dives carrying on. Makes me wonder if the captain had knowledge of the plan beforehand.

You seem to have forgotten or overlooked that this issue was raised in an earlier post. As in:

.... He works for her!!... Make that read: she hands him his paycheck on a (hopefully!) regular basis! And I can assure you that with the economy of Mexico, he is REALLY THANKFUL to have a job!

He is not going to question anything the "jefe" (boss) does for fear that he may quickly find himself without that all-important income!

 

[IJS]

No rubbish there. Captains may frown, but it you go dive the Gold Coast of Florida, you will find this is normal operating procedure.
Many captains are operation owners, so they set the exact procedure Jax describes.

Amazing. rec diver on same boat as tec diver doing 300'? and this is common? and if rec diver has a problem what is tec diver with decompression left going to do?

 

[IJS]

Make that read: she hands him his paycheck on a (hopefully!) regular basis! And I can assure you that with the economy of Mexico, he is REALLY THANKFUL to have a job!

He is not going to question anything the "jefe" (boss) does for fear that he may quickly find himself without that all-important income!

If boss is hurt and unable to run her business, that paycheck might get harder to come by.

 

[Pelagicsal]

Amazing. rec diver on same boat as tec diver doing 300'? and this is common? and if rec diver has a problem what is tec diver with decompression left going to do?

That was not what you posted in your challenge to Jax. Reread your post to which was responded.

Jax's answer was "Really?

I've been on boats with as many as five groups. Five buddy pairs.

I've seen four groups. Two instructors w/two students each, and two buddy pairs.

I have seen more than one group many many many times."

No mention of tec, 300' in that exchange. Jax's post was not rubbish - for the scenario you posted. K?

 

[WSOPFAN]

If boss is hurt and unable to run her business, that paycheck might get harder to come by.

I really think they got to the point of being so used to doing these dives it became normal. Thinking about a diver getting hurt on a 300ft dive on single AL80? What could possibly go wrong?