diver 85
Contributor
String, I mean Mr P.O.----you want to run this one by me again..."Human eyes generally rely on contrast to make out objects -"......
Diver dies on French Reef (Keys)
- Thread starter deeper thoughts
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Well said Captain Larry, everything you said is right on the money
Thanks Captain Larry for a very well stated post. I dive a lot in the Keys and am often surprised by the experienced divers that fail to follow direction of the operator and have been pissy when reminded of their responsibilties as a diver.
Noboundaries
Guest
Captain Larry, thanks for that no BS post. I know who I'm going to book with on my first trip to the Keys.
An additional suggestion.
For those of you who do deep dives consider an inexpensive finger spool for under $10. If you assist a diver on a deep dive and are doing a safety stop, either sharing air or a minor medical assist, pop that safety sausage onto the finger spool and send it up. I can assure you that someone from the crew will be down to assist.
Additionally, if for some reason you come off the mooring line you can still do your safety stop while drifting, launch the safety sausage on the finger spool while you're drifting and it will identify you to boat traffic and allow us to track you.
We had a diver assisting his buddy who became ill and was extremely disoriented while diving on the Spiegel Grove at 100 feet. They began an ascent and while fumbling to keep his buddy's regulator in his mouth, fight a light current, etc he momentarily lost his grasp on the mooring line and began drifting. He didn't have a spool but put a few breaths into his safety sausage and set it free. They drifted and did a slow ascent and a safety stop and surfaced fairly close to the sausage. We saw the sausage and were able to easily track their approximate drift. Another boat enroute to our location saw the sausage, stopped and waited for them to surface, then brought them on board. The other captain said that if it wasn't for the safety sausage he probably would have run right over them. A spool would have kept the sausage closer but with the light current it worked out well for them.
Larry
For those of you who do deep dives consider an inexpensive finger spool for under $10. If you assist a diver on a deep dive and are doing a safety stop, either sharing air or a minor medical assist, pop that safety sausage onto the finger spool and send it up. I can assure you that someone from the crew will be down to assist.
Additionally, if for some reason you come off the mooring line you can still do your safety stop while drifting, launch the safety sausage on the finger spool while you're drifting and it will identify you to boat traffic and allow us to track you.
We had a diver assisting his buddy who became ill and was extremely disoriented while diving on the Spiegel Grove at 100 feet. They began an ascent and while fumbling to keep his buddy's regulator in his mouth, fight a light current, etc he momentarily lost his grasp on the mooring line and began drifting. He didn't have a spool but put a few breaths into his safety sausage and set it free. They drifted and did a slow ascent and a safety stop and surfaced fairly close to the sausage. We saw the sausage and were able to easily track their approximate drift. Another boat enroute to our location saw the sausage, stopped and waited for them to surface, then brought them on board. The other captain said that if it wasn't for the safety sausage he probably would have run right over them. A spool would have kept the sausage closer but with the light current it worked out well for them.
Larry
We were doing night quarry diving here in Estonia just a few weeks ago. (The quarry contains a portion of the prison that was also flooded when the excavators hit a spring. Pretty neat but watch out for the concertina wire!) :shocked2:
While we were underwater, a storm had moved in (the weather here is insane: you can never believe the forecast!). It was so rainy and windy that when I ascended (I was VERY slow) I didn't even know that I had broken water at first because I was dividing my attention between a lookout for overhead and location of buddy and just happened to be looking down at the moment when I surfaced. I first knew I was above water when my reg rattled during exhalation.
As the rest broke water we gathered together to determine the way back to the shore where we were parked. We had brought a Maglite to be shined through the windshield of the car to guide us back. Couldn't see it. In fact we couldn't really see anything! We began to sweep the surrounding area and though we couldn't see any lights, the LICENSE plate just popped out of the rain like a beacon! Nothing else was seen. Reflector tape is basically the same thing and does almost as good a job. It can be seen a long ways a way. BY LAW here in Estonia, you are required to wear a reflector at night if you are a pedestrian, and boy can they be seen a long ways a way!
(I don't recommend tying an old license plate to your smb it might interfere with your buoyancy.)
I think that it is ludicrous to critic the standard methods of diving for the Keys. All dive boat captains may not be brilliant but I believe that most are intelligent enough to know what is safe for their area. If mooring is standard practice in the Keys, then moor! If Zodiacs in the Red Sea, then Zodiac.
Bottom line is that we should review this tragedy with the purpose of trying to prevent a repeat occurrence; not to show our arrogant ignorance. It is ridiculous to think that we could change the standard operating procedures followed by the majority of captains in a given area. It is downright ignorant to assume that what works in one area of the world would have to work in another!
What we can do is change how we as divers act and respond.
Great idea; carry a SMB or sausage in the first place!
Great idea; put some tape on it!
Great idea; don't panic!
Great idea; choose the right color!
Great idea; use an audible alert!
Great idea; don't panic!
Great idea; stay together!
Great idea; wait for the boat!
Great idea; don't panic!
I honestly believe that if the divers involved in the tragedy had had this information available to them and had heeded it, they would be here today. We would probably have never even heard about it, because it would have never been a life-threatening situation to them, but rather just another exciting adventure on the blue pond.
I also believe that had these steps been taken, the boat and captain would have been in a better position to spot the divers, ascertain the situation, and render aid.
What you want for reflectivity is SOLAS tape. A few local tech divers made a group purchase and bought our initials in SOLAS tape from this company: DiveSigns.com: Reflective hard wearing vinyl stickers for all your diving needs..., Be Seen When It Counts
Second that recommendation, with one additional caveat. When you get your spool/reel, practice shooting the SMB/Lift Bag to the surface on a regular basis. Lines can be the greatest thing since sliced bread; wonderful tools - not only for shooting markers/bags but for navigation in low vis, marking exit points, depth measurement after a computer failure (all my lines are knotted for measurement in zero vis), dragging a flag, securing things, etc., etc... But... any time you're dealing with lines it's easy to make a mess of things; the key to making the line your best bud is to practice with it. Often.
Rick
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