From the surface I witnessed an incident last weekend that made me realize I have some gaps in my training.
A group of divers (possibly training) were on an 85' training platform when one diver panicked and bolted for the surface. Reason for the panic is unknown to me but two of the divers on the platform thought it was "out of air" or "perceived out of air".
Two divers attempted to hold the diver down to slow the ascent.
The diver surfaced unresponsive and with bloody foam from the mouth.
My questions (for future reference):
A: Should a diver in this situation be restrained from surfacing too quickly? (apparently this led to more panic in this case)
B: If an incident like this occurs on a 100' plus dive where the PADI tables mandate a 3 minute safety stop; can/should a buddy omit the stop while chasing the diver to the surface? (Those three minutes could be critical if the surfaced diver is not breathing.)
A group of divers (possibly training) were on an 85' training platform when one diver panicked and bolted for the surface. Reason for the panic is unknown to me but two of the divers on the platform thought it was "out of air" or "perceived out of air".
Two divers attempted to hold the diver down to slow the ascent.
The diver surfaced unresponsive and with bloody foam from the mouth.
My questions (for future reference):
A: Should a diver in this situation be restrained from surfacing too quickly? (apparently this led to more panic in this case)
B: If an incident like this occurs on a 100' plus dive where the PADI tables mandate a 3 minute safety stop; can/should a buddy omit the stop while chasing the diver to the surface? (Those three minutes could be critical if the surfaced diver is not breathing.)