Dapher
Guest
I am posting this for two reasons. 1) To help me deak with the feeling I am having after my near miss & 2) So if this happens to someone else maybe it will help them. I certified at the end of may of last year. I dive in a dry-suit here in alaska. In the past year I have done 60 dives, all but 15 of them in my dry-suit. This weekend I decided that diving would be a nice way to spend Mothers day, so we loaded up our kids aged 16 & 12 and headed for one of the best diving sites on the island. The kids decided that they did not want to dive today and would rather enjoy the rocky beach, so my husband and I were left to do the dive ourselves.
It was a warm day so my husband and I suited up quickly. I suited up, checked my vent on my left shoulder to make sure it was all the way open and then put on my scuba gear. We decided that since it was so hot we would do our buddy check in the water. BWARF - BC's yup functioning, Weights - I dropped 4 pounds because of a change in undergarment and a heavier tank. Weight check was good. Air - on and full with a pony bottle. Releases - yup we know where they are well since we dive the same backplate & harness. Final - Vent open? Yup checked it before I got my BC on. (This was my first mistake. I usually always reach over and check it again, but failed to this time.)
Lets go! - Had a really wonderful dive. My boyancy was right on. When we stopped at 25 feet to let my husband's ears clear I just hovered there. This was going to be a great dive. Went down the sand shoot to this wonderful wall stopped at about 80 feet, added some air occasionally to my dry-suit to take away the squeeze, and then slowly came back up to 50 let out some air on the way up, noticed that I had to hit the valve but did not really think anything of it. Back into the shoot. Time for our safety stop at about 20 feet. Felt an air bubble go up my arm and end at my dry gloves, brought my hand down and realized that I was heading up. Let the air out of my BC, shoot still floating up. Hit my valve button, darn no bubbles. OK.. there is a rock close by I will just swim down (mistake #2) and hang on maybe I took off too much weight. When I headed down that darned air bubble went straight to my feet. Ok, I know how to do this no problem. WRONG. I had too much air and could NOT get turned over, dry gloves prevented air from escaping out my wrist seals, and my hood covered my neck seal. I fought it the whole way up and my right boot and fin popped off and went down while I shot up feet first with one fin on. All I could think of was "Oh shoot" here I am floating in the channel with my kids on the shore and I am going to drown on mothers day. I thrash wildly trying to get my feet back in the water. Then I hear Miss Saunya's voice in my head - Stop Think Breathe. Ok, just breathe. I can breathe upside down. Thank you for my Black Pearl. I can imagine my kids on the shore freaking out because Mom is in the channel feet first. (Luckily they were in the car watching DVD's) I disconnect my dry-suit whip, certainly don't need anymore air in there. Now what? Neck Seal, I pull up my hood and tug at my neck seal and feel the water enter. Unfortunately it does not help. I thrash around a bit more and water rushes into my mouth, I tell myself to swallow, swallow, and breathe. Miss Saunya's voice again, stop and think... breathe. Well my buddy should be around soon, he saw me head up. I cant seem to locate my spg to see how much air I have left. Had 1000 when we headed back so hopefully I have some still, and have the pony bottle. Ok.. hmm.. maybe I can swim towards shore upside down. Wait.. I don't know which way shore is. Where is that darned SPG with my compass. I think about how I could get the dry-suit off, but I would have to take off my BC which is my lifeline, so decide that is not good. My buddy should be here soon. I also think more that I am going to drown right here in front of my kids and how they must be doing on the shore. Finally my husband appears like a knight in shining armor. He tries to get my feet down and I kick to help (more like hinder) darned. Ok tow me ashore.. please tow me ashore... why is he not towing me?? (he was I just could not tell) My husband yells for the kids and they pull me up on the rocky shore, my face still in a bit of water, I put up my hands and say to myself.. pull my face up... pull my face up. Finally I am out of the water and safe.
What went wrong?
1) During my donning of my gear my valve got turned or maybe I confused my righty tighty. Always double check.
2) When I found that the air was not coming out I did not check and turn my valve. I assumed it was the 4 lbs that I removed even though I felt the air bubble in my suit.
3) I swam down putting the excess air in my feet. I should have just went up and then adjusted a the surface. I could have come back down for the safety stop.
4) What is the first thing you do during trouble at the surface? Put air in your bc. I was so worried about the drysuit I never thought to put air in my bc which would have helped me to right myself. DUH!!!
5) I carry a knife. I never use itm and infact have never pulled it out during a dive. I could have cut my drysuit at the legs and let the air escape. Although I knew my buddy would come.
What went right?
1) Thank God for Miss Saunya always telling us to Stop and Think and Breathe. When I was about to really loose it, those words came back to me.
2) The most important thing. My buddy, my husband, and best friend was there for me. We always dive together, we always stay close. Even though he took a moment to finish his safety stop (he assumed I was on the shore and was fine and was shocked to see I was not) He was there for me and if it had not been for him, I am certain I would not be here to write this. Thank you for saving me.
This weekend I will be in the pool re-enacting this and working on what I could do to get out of that predicament. I will also work on my skills so that if something like this ever happens again what to do just comes naturally.
Sorry for the long post, but thank you for giving me a place to discuss this.
It was a warm day so my husband and I suited up quickly. I suited up, checked my vent on my left shoulder to make sure it was all the way open and then put on my scuba gear. We decided that since it was so hot we would do our buddy check in the water. BWARF - BC's yup functioning, Weights - I dropped 4 pounds because of a change in undergarment and a heavier tank. Weight check was good. Air - on and full with a pony bottle. Releases - yup we know where they are well since we dive the same backplate & harness. Final - Vent open? Yup checked it before I got my BC on. (This was my first mistake. I usually always reach over and check it again, but failed to this time.)
Lets go! - Had a really wonderful dive. My boyancy was right on. When we stopped at 25 feet to let my husband's ears clear I just hovered there. This was going to be a great dive. Went down the sand shoot to this wonderful wall stopped at about 80 feet, added some air occasionally to my dry-suit to take away the squeeze, and then slowly came back up to 50 let out some air on the way up, noticed that I had to hit the valve but did not really think anything of it. Back into the shoot. Time for our safety stop at about 20 feet. Felt an air bubble go up my arm and end at my dry gloves, brought my hand down and realized that I was heading up. Let the air out of my BC, shoot still floating up. Hit my valve button, darn no bubbles. OK.. there is a rock close by I will just swim down (mistake #2) and hang on maybe I took off too much weight. When I headed down that darned air bubble went straight to my feet. Ok, I know how to do this no problem. WRONG. I had too much air and could NOT get turned over, dry gloves prevented air from escaping out my wrist seals, and my hood covered my neck seal. I fought it the whole way up and my right boot and fin popped off and went down while I shot up feet first with one fin on. All I could think of was "Oh shoot" here I am floating in the channel with my kids on the shore and I am going to drown on mothers day. I thrash wildly trying to get my feet back in the water. Then I hear Miss Saunya's voice in my head - Stop Think Breathe. Ok, just breathe. I can breathe upside down. Thank you for my Black Pearl. I can imagine my kids on the shore freaking out because Mom is in the channel feet first. (Luckily they were in the car watching DVD's) I disconnect my dry-suit whip, certainly don't need anymore air in there. Now what? Neck Seal, I pull up my hood and tug at my neck seal and feel the water enter. Unfortunately it does not help. I thrash around a bit more and water rushes into my mouth, I tell myself to swallow, swallow, and breathe. Miss Saunya's voice again, stop and think... breathe. Well my buddy should be around soon, he saw me head up. I cant seem to locate my spg to see how much air I have left. Had 1000 when we headed back so hopefully I have some still, and have the pony bottle. Ok.. hmm.. maybe I can swim towards shore upside down. Wait.. I don't know which way shore is. Where is that darned SPG with my compass. I think about how I could get the dry-suit off, but I would have to take off my BC which is my lifeline, so decide that is not good. My buddy should be here soon. I also think more that I am going to drown right here in front of my kids and how they must be doing on the shore. Finally my husband appears like a knight in shining armor. He tries to get my feet down and I kick to help (more like hinder) darned. Ok tow me ashore.. please tow me ashore... why is he not towing me?? (he was I just could not tell) My husband yells for the kids and they pull me up on the rocky shore, my face still in a bit of water, I put up my hands and say to myself.. pull my face up... pull my face up. Finally I am out of the water and safe.
What went wrong?
1) During my donning of my gear my valve got turned or maybe I confused my righty tighty. Always double check.
2) When I found that the air was not coming out I did not check and turn my valve. I assumed it was the 4 lbs that I removed even though I felt the air bubble in my suit.
3) I swam down putting the excess air in my feet. I should have just went up and then adjusted a the surface. I could have come back down for the safety stop.
4) What is the first thing you do during trouble at the surface? Put air in your bc. I was so worried about the drysuit I never thought to put air in my bc which would have helped me to right myself. DUH!!!
5) I carry a knife. I never use itm and infact have never pulled it out during a dive. I could have cut my drysuit at the legs and let the air escape. Although I knew my buddy would come.
What went right?
1) Thank God for Miss Saunya always telling us to Stop and Think and Breathe. When I was about to really loose it, those words came back to me.
2) The most important thing. My buddy, my husband, and best friend was there for me. We always dive together, we always stay close. Even though he took a moment to finish his safety stop (he assumed I was on the shore and was fine and was shocked to see I was not) He was there for me and if it had not been for him, I am certain I would not be here to write this. Thank you for saving me.
This weekend I will be in the pool re-enacting this and working on what I could do to get out of that predicament. I will also work on my skills so that if something like this ever happens again what to do just comes naturally.
Sorry for the long post, but thank you for giving me a place to discuss this.
