dinky_diver
Guest
I was diving last Monday in Panama City. We were coming back in from diving Accokeek wreck and was still about 2 miles out from jetties. I just happened to glance out toward west and see a yellow fin being waved some 500yards distance. It was overcast and seas were 2-3 feet. I got the captain's attention who spotted it too. We circled around and saw two divers on the surface. After bringing them on board, we learned it was a Dad and his 21yr old son. They had been in the water about an hour. They were spearfishing and carrying a float ball that his other 18 yr old son was following in their private boat. Apparantly, the weight rope on his red float ball broke and drifted away before they noticed. Looking around we saw several boats around but none closer than mile or so. The captain tried to raise someone on the radio but no response, so we drove toward a couple boats until we got close enough to figure out which one was theirs. After catching up to the younger son fishing from the boat, he was still following behind the red float. The deckhand yelled over if he had a radio but the younger son just held up a handheld radio but didn't indicate whether it was on or not. By this time after a 10 minute rest and a drink of water, both swam over to their boat. I got teased about being an eagle eye the rest of the week. However, I will now invest in a safety sausage before my next boat trip. If it had not been for that yellow fin, they could have been out there a long time.
