Diver Indicted in 2003 GBR mishap

[Crimson Ghost]

I am still reading the transcript.....in the mean while - what does UI stand for ?

 

[MikeFerrara]

Assistant instructor Craig Cleckler had her in a class of beginning divers.

Craig Cleckler: My duty that day was to look for any student that appeared to be very nervous, or very uptight. And Tina quickly caught my attention.

Dennis Murphy, Dateline NBC: So what was she doing that--

Craig Cleckler: She had grabbed hold of this dock on that side, and in four-feet of water, she was holding on to it with both hands. And just wouldn't let go. Then I quickly figured out that she might be very nervous, and have some anxiety about today's dive.

Once Tina and Gabe began dating, she began taking up some of his hobbies. Getting certified in scuba was one of them.

The drill at the quarry was that students would get acclimated to the enclosed pool portion here – about 10-feet deep -- and then swim out into the open water to an underwater platform anchored at 20-feet.

Craig Cleckler: Once I had determined that she was showing some signs of nervousness, I stayed on Tina's shoulder during the whole training that day.

Dennis Murphy: What happened when she hit the 20-foot mark ?

Craig Cleckler: Tina panicked, and she shot off of her knees to go to the surface. As I was on her shoulder, I caught her approximately 10-foot up. And just made sure she had a slow, safe ascent to the surface.

Even when she was safely at the surface, she continued to freak out.

Craig Cleckler: Tina's eyes were very big. Kind of a half dollar. She was almost dog paddling. And she could not even really talk to me at that time.

Dennis Murphy: Even though she was safe, she was up there. She was on the buoy. You were with her.

Craig Cleckler: The panic was continuing.

Now where have I ever seen anything like that before? Of course a better question is where haven't I seen it? [sarcasm on] I sure couldn't imagin that student having an accident.[sarcasm off] But there I go judging the dive industry again. LOL

 

[Geoff_H]

I am still reading the transcript.....in the mean while - what does UI stand for ?

I imagine it stands for unintelligble, i.e. the person writing the transcript can't make it what was said on the tape.

 

[tridacna]

I am still reading the transcript.....in the mean while - what does UI stand for ?

User Interface

 

[MikeFerrara]

He talks about the receiver (computer) having the incorrect battery, and refers to the transponder as a separate device. Given that he is talking about screwing the transponder into the first stage he is clearly referring to the transmitter.

Did the computer log an error on the first dive attempt? We know it recorded the depth and time but that isn't in question and he didn't claim that the computer was off. He said that it wasn't registering breathing gas pressure. Was it or wan't it?

Here again, I've seen a lot of dives aborted because of computers. I don't have any trouble believing that it happened again here...whether or not he understood the exact nature of the problem.

 

[Rick Murchison]

... whether they are correctly reported can be debated ad nauseum. ...

No need to debate that... if there's one point of consistency in the media, it is inaccuracy - gross inaccuracy. Indeed, they're so consistently horrible one might think they work at it on purpose!
Rick

 

[livinoz]

No need to debate that... if there's one point of consistency in the media, it is inaccuracy - gross inaccuracy. Indeed, they're so consistently horrible one might think they work at it on purpose!
Rick

So true!

 

[UnderSeaBumbleBee]

No need to debate that... if there's one point of consistency in the media, it is inaccuracy - gross inaccuracy. Indeed, they're so consistently horrible one might think they work at it on purpose!
Rick

That just might be the quote of the day. Once again words of wisdom from RM. It does seem that they work hard at getting the facts wrong.

 

[MikeFerrara]

The dive industry on the GBR handles 2 million plus visitors a year and hundreds of thousands of safe recreational and technical dives. I think the GBR authority and operators do a pretty good job and our saftey standards shouldn't be judged on a couple of high profile "accidents".

I disagree with your logic here. World wide, most dives do not result in injury or fatality regardless of any regulation or the skill level of the divers. The fact is that someone who doesn't know much at all about diving (no training at all)can drop to the bottom, breath for a while and come back up without injury. As long as nothing goes wrong there isn't much to breathing underwater. IME what is more telling is how divers perform when there is a problem. They don't seem to do so well then.

As far as the oporators doing a good job...I've not dived that wreck but based on what I've read about the victim and the dive site, I don't get the impression that it was an appropriate dive for her.

 

[MikeFerrara]

No need to debate that... if there's one point of consistency in the media, it is inaccuracy - gross inaccuracy. Indeed, they're so consistently horrible one might think they work at it on purpose!
Rick

It's not just a question of accuracy. It's one of intent. Netwerks tend to have agendas and they seem to report the news in such a way as to promote their views.