IMPORTANT! Do you dive with a DAN Tag attached?

[DandyDon]

I write my name, address and DAN # on my fanny before every dive. It's alot cheaper.

I'm not sure why you think one is so critical. I dive with buddies who know me and I make sure and have my DAN card with my c-cards so they can get to it if needed. Why do you feel they're so critical? Maybe I should change my mind.

ALWAYS - stake your life on that...?

I take dive trips alone, so perhaps I am touchy about this. And I have seen injuries that would have been easier to treat if they had the tag.

 

[almitywife]

DD - is that your bedroom with all that dive gear (and hats)??? you might want to share that with some of the singles

Hoosier. my 2 senrio's was this:
1. i found a diver in the carpark. vomiting, weak, sweating and i needed to phone DAN quickly. hubby fortunately had the number on his phone but i didnt. but if he had a tag on his gear i could have made the call then and there

2. diver (not my buddy) exceeded dive plan and went into deco and still surfaced. shortly after showed signs of dci (blurred vision, pain in arm), he had a tag on him so a quick call to DAN, we got him in a car and to the hospital where the team was waiting for him becasue DAN arranged it all before we arrived - bypassing a few hours wait in emergency.

cheers

 

[Doc Intrepid]

I write my name, address and DAN # on my fanny before every dive. It's alot cheaper.

I'm not sure why you think one is so critical. I dive with buddies who know me and I make sure and have my DAN card with my c-cards so they can get to it if needed. Why do you feel they're so critical? Maybe I should change my mind.

If you look at the list of benefits DAN offers, one of the critters is "repatriation of remains". That means if you screw the pooch badly enough they'll ship your dead a*s home on dry ice so your family can plant you properly.

The DAN tag is built to survive a small thermonuclear explosion. That means that after they find you adrift about two weeks after you've went missing, and after a two week dive your own mother wouldn't recognize you and you wouldn't want her to try, that DAN tag tells them (a) who you used to be; (b) who your physician was and their phone number; (c) where to ship your dead a*s; and (d) who is going to pay the bill.

The more challenging your dives, etc., the more valuable the tag potentially becomes! Failing to plan is planning to fail

I've got one hung off my backplate. Never know when your buddy Murphy might tap you on the shoulder.

FWIW. YMMV.

 

[DandyDon]

DD - is that your bedroom with all that dive gear (and hats)??? you might want to share that with some of the singles

Nah, just my scuba & hat room.

ICE, why not have it on your BC. I have seen an unconscious diver from my boat rescued by another boat when we could not move.

I chose the not always or no option because I don't have a DAN tag, nor am I a DAN member. Nor do I have dive specific insurance. Will I get dive insurance? Probably not. Can I afford a chamber trip or two? Again, probably not, but thats part of why I dive conservatively--protecting what meager assets I do have.

Ok, but I think you are a poor example to students and newbies. Sorry, can't think of a nicer way to say it honestly.

 

[CAPT HOOK]

don't own one

 

[Divin'Papaw]

ALWAYS - stake your life on that...?

Most of the time, but not always. But I also don't think my life depends upon it either. All the boats I've been on know who all the divers are and have the necessary pertinent information. What else are all those forms for?

I take dive trips alone, so perhaps I am touchy about this. And I have seen injuries that would have been easier to treat if they had the tag.

Examples would be nice. So some guy comes up from his dive and collapses and they woulda helped him if only they'd known he was a DAN member? Not likely. I'm really open to seeing why it's so important.

To be honest, I actually have one. But I stopped wearing it. I found it an entanglement hazard.

Should I put it back on? Convince me ... I'm open!

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Hoosier. my 2 senrio's was this:
1. i found a diver in the carpark. vomiting, weak, sweating and i needed to phone DAN quickly. hubby fortunately had the number on his phone but i didnt. but if he had a tag on his gear i could have made the call then and there

2. diver (not my buddy) exceeded dive plan and went into deco and still surfaced. shortly after showed signs of dci (blurred vision, pain in arm), he had a tag on him so a quick call to DAN, we got him in a car and to the hospital where the team was waiting for him becasue DAN arranged it all before we arrived - bypassing a few hours wait in emergency.

Good examples and I'm glad you where there to help, but where were their buddies in these two instances? Given the environments and company I dive with, I just can't see either of these two events occuring. Keep in mind I life in Indiana. 90+% of my diving is quarry or Great Lakes boat diving with at least one buddy if not a boat full of people who know me, with a few ocean dives a year thrown in. These would be the ones to give me pause.

 

[DandyDon]

Should I put it back on? Convince me ... I'm open!

Like Almighty said, it can save essential time while you're in pain and time is valuable. Like I said, I have seen diver a diver from my boat rescued by another boat that took him in when we couldn't move. And like Doc referenced, sometimes bodies are found after the crabs have had their way. How about inside a BC pocket...?

Another idea I use, but know no one else who uses it, is a dog tag that is always hung from my neck when I leave the house, especially on dive trips. Cheap, easy to wear, etc - with my next of kin info and my allergies. Seems like an excellent idea for dive days anyway. I have also been on trips where divers were found on the dock or in the hotel grounds with no ID.

And yes Jbd, sometimes injured divers are not given the treatment they need until/unless financial proof of payment can be guaranteed in a hurry. I have known one personally who was thankgod, or we'd be discussing a death.

...with a few ocean dives a year thrown in. These would be the ones to give me pause.

Okay quit doing those and don't buy the $20 tag. Oh hell, you have one you're not using! :11:

 

[Hemlon]

I have DAN insurance but I don't have the tag and I have no plans to buy one.

But I always dive with I.D. on my person and my dive log contains extensive info regarding health history, contact numbers and even neuro assessment info.

In an emergency, I would hope that my dive buddy will call 911. The call to DAN can be made after my emergent crisis is managed. (I.E.: airway, breathing, circulation, defibrillation)

But I will say this: the DAN phone numbers are programmed into my cell phone for those less-than-ABCD situations.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

If you look at the list of benefits DAN offers, one of the critters is "repatriation of remains". That means if you screw the pooch badly enough they'll ship your dead a*s home on dry ice so your family can plant you properly.

The DAN tag is built to survive a small thermonuclear explosion. That means that after they find you adrift about two weeks after you've went missing, and after a two week dive your own mother wouldn't recognize you and you wouldn't want her to try, that DAN tag tells them (a) who you used to be; (b) who your physician was and their phone number; (c) where to ship your dead a*s; and (d) who is going to pay the bill.

Plausible, but highly unlikely given the type of diving I do. I realize that what you describe can and has happened, but almost exclusively ocean diving in high current, low visibility, or both. As of yet I haven't done any diving like that. If I did, I'd certainly give a DAN tag a consideration.