I think it is important to note that a sometimes overlooked skill of many inexperienced open water divers is the importance of making sure someone else knows the dive plan in case of an emergency. Briefing a friend or family member not joining you on that dive about where you are diving, the conditions you are diving in, your actual dive plan, and your return time allows them to give rescue personnel a head-start, so to speak, that sometimes leads to a rescue with a happy ending while in less fortunate circumstances a quick recovery operation that provides closure to the friends and family of the victim. His recovery would not have taken place so quickly had he not put this skill into practice by briefing someone else his dive plan in its entirety. May we at least learn to practice this skill more often from this unfortunate incident.
