Here is the video from our recent trip. It starts with a little commentary then goes into the dive. I always tell students that the biggest threat to ourselves as divers is our EGO. Sometimes we refuse help because we don't want others to see our faults. In this video you will a diver exhibit signs of stress that look normal at first but quickly escalate. Being able to handle problems before they occur is always better than trying to deal with an emergency after the fact. I hope all divers are safe and are proactive to help their fellow diver even if its not their dive buddy (as divers we are all family).
[video=youtube;TGGyUwtfVtU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGGyUwtfVtU[/video]
The video was pretty ridiculous. The guy ran low, didn't want to share air, swam to the surface and then all the way to the ladder still using his tank. I don't see panic, I don't see some huge problem. I don't see this as a good example of a stressed out diver.
What I see is a bald guy with way too much lead. He had his BC awfully full for an empty tank and then he swims horizontally underwater, so obviously he was close to neutral in that state.
I would not have played around like you did. I would have tried to look at his air and if that didn't work, and I was worried, I would look at his air, not rely on signals. i would have been waiving the octopus in his face (sorta) the whole time.
---------- Post added April 21st, 2015 at 04:53 PM ----------
How many of you have been directly involved in emergency situations? How many have been indirectly involved in emergency situations? How many dives do you have and how long have you been diving?
I have been continually diving for the last 18 years and spent some time diving before that. I have just under 1000 contemporary dives. I have only been indirectly involved in one emergency when a diver ran out of air and tried to drown. I did not witness the event but he was saved by one of his buddies. He was resuscitated on the boat and airlifted to a local hospital for care.
I would be very interested in others experience.
Good diving, Craig
I've been around when 4 divers died. One accident was a double in a cave. I recovered one of the dead divers and did mouth to mouth on another that died. I've seen 2 people become permanently paralyzed, . I've seen tech diver students almost die, one barely lived with a very close drowning incident by the time I finished my solo dive.
I've seen many divers panic at the surface, I've seen people try to climb an anchor line in full scuba gear, I've seen a person so scared they refused my regulator at 70 feet, I've fought off sharks quite a few times and shot one with a speargun when I felt it was needed, I've seen people come very close to being attacked by sharks several times, I've had a BC fail 3 times underwater I think, I had buddies run out of air on me at depth 3 times (that I recall), I've seen a second stage hose explode underwater, while the guy was using it... that was pretty funny, I've been stung by poisonous fish, been bitten by moray eels 3 times I think, almost had my back snapped when body was wedged in a rock and surge bent me, I almost drowned freediving solo from dual leg cramps in the surf (at 14 yrs old), almost blacked out twice while solo freedive spearfishing, saved one freedive black out victim, I've run out of air on the bottom 2 times (which resulted in memorable and stressful situations), I've jumped in and towed panicked divers to the boat many times, I've seen people get bent a few times and I got a little hit once.
I've jumped in with my air off a dozen times and have forgot every piece of equipment on entry (at least once).. ever jump in with sunglasses on? I've "saved" several people who were shooting up and had lost control of their buoyancy..
Oh yeah other stuff: got tangled in steel wire and fishing line at 150 ft on a solo deco dive and barely made it out, ended up with a 40 lb anchor and string wrapped around my ankle in 80 feet and then the lift bag dumped sending me to the bottom in 80 feet in zero seconds (when I was pretty much out of air). Oh, also went pretty far in a cave with ZERO training and got turned around and sorta lost with no reel or guideline and lost buddy for a little while and nearly panicked-luckily girlfriend knew way out.
And more... rolled off the side of a boat and my light was trapped on the gunwale, leaving me 3/4 out of the water, hanging by the light lanyard clipped to my waist and screaming for the capt to cut the line - but is snapped pretty quickly.
Those are some of the things I've seen.. Diving for 40 years.