New Divers Beware: Sketchy dive shop in Cozumel puts profits over safety

[SCUBAPA75]

Um. Wow. A few questions....

Were you the only 3 divers on the boat?

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No. There were 6 divers. and TWO divemasters. TWO. One divemaster went with the THREE experienced divers. The other divemaster had the two new divers with him. I went with the new divers just as a tag along to dive with my buddy who is a new diver.

Was this a morning dive or an afternoon dive? (I suspect it was an afternoon dive if you were the only 3 on the boat?)

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It was a morning dive. Deep Blue has small, fast boats that only accommodate so many people. You are NEVER with a large group with that company.

You said that your friend Don was getting his open water cert. Does that mean these were part of Don's cert. dives?

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Yes. Don was also getting "checked off" on his OW cert that day.

Was communication of the equalization problem done in a standard or agreed upon fashion. (i.e. wiggle the hand, point to the ears)

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All of the standard safety and pre-dive discussions were had on the boat prior to anyone putting on any gear. Including equalization, what to do if you have problems and how to communicate effectively with the other divers.

Was your max depth deeper than 60 feet?

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To be perfectly honest, MY MAX DEPTH was 78 feet. I dropped down below the other divers for my own diving pleasure. But the instructor and the 2 new divers NEVER even approached my depth. They stayed well above me the ENTIRE dive.

I take it that your friend Don didn't do the online course, or that he did, but paid for extra training time?

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No, Don did the full OW course with a one-on-one instructor. He was fully prepared for his OW dives and had NO issues following direction or equalizing as directed.

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[nimoh]

He wasn't coughing up blood for Pete's sake. He had a nosebleed. Textbook reaction to over equalizing, especially on the ascent.

that makes a lot more sense, I can't imagine anyone going on another dive after coughing up blood.

 

[nodakdive]

I am Deborah Felixson, the owner of Deep Blue in Cozumel. I have spent the last 24 hours gathering all the fact about this issue, reading all the posts about this and I am ready to address all the issues bvana has very unjustly and inaccurately accused us of all over the world…this Forum, Lonely Planet, Trip Advisor, PADI, etc.
Thank you DevonDiver for your very eloquent and spot-on and objective posts. There is another side to this story, as with all, and after you read this, THEN be the judge and jury.
I can just start by saying that there were a total of 6 divers on that boat with an Instructor and a DM. The other 2 “very experienced” divers bvana was referring to was a gentleman who was doing his first dives after just completing an Open Water Course with us the day before, and his partner who asked to join them in spite of the Instructor warning her that they would remain at 60 ft max depth. She choose to stay with her partner rather than go with the other DM and the other 3 certified divers . She is an experienced diver who has been diving with us for 10 years, and would not distract the Instructor in any way.
As with Aldora, we do not combine certified divers with divers in training, which is why we had another DM on the boat, but when there are couples or family, I’m not going to deny them to dive together if it’s not breaking standards.
His Instructor Rafael is one of the most serious, conscientious, by the book, Instructors I have worked with in the 16 years I’ve owned Deep Blue. We have an impeccable record with PADI which I welcome everyone to verify, specially you bvana.
The Instructor completed all of the course requirements from the beach the first 2 days. This is our standard description of the course, which was sent to bvana by email when he inquired about it:
“Day 1: Confined water dives 1, 2 & 3 and Open Water dives 1& 2. Duration =
5 hours. This is done at Villablanca Beach, about 1 mile outside of town, on
a very nice reef with lot's of coral and fish to see at a maximum depth of
30 feet. We do not do group instructions - we take a maximum of 4 students
per Instructor, and most of the time it's one or two-on-one with the
Instructor.

Day 2: Confined water dives 4 & 5 and Open Water dives 3& 4. Duration = 5
hours.

Day 3: Open Water Dives. You go out on the boat and do a 2-tank dive. At
this point, you're basically done with the course and this is just 2 fun
dives.”
Even so, the first boat dive was Palancar Gardens. The plan was to 60 ft., the dive depth WAS 60ft. Could it be that he heard the others talking about 78 feet and thought he went that deep? OF COURSE he was given a detailed briefing as we always do, whether it’s with students or certified divers, it’s obviously SOP, and to claim that he received no briefing or instructions about his FIRST ocean dive is ludicrous and beyond belief in our industry, come on….

The Instructor worked with him like we do all divers having problems equalizing, ascend a bit, try again, slowly, etc. SOP….after 20 min. or so of this he signaled he was okay and didn’t complain anymore during the dive. Upon surfacing there was a bit of blood in the mask!, NOT “coughed up” like he claimed. Even so, the Instructor gave him the option to sit out the second dive and bvana CHOSE to do it.
I would like an explanation of how I benefit financially if my Instructors push students beyond safe levels and subsequently suffer barotraumas and cant’ dive anymore? Bvana never complained in the shop about being forced or feeling pressured in any way. He was on the list to dive one morning after taking a day off and was scheduled to go out with a private DM which the Instructor recommend he do, concerned for his safety and comfort, and when he called to cancel about 1 hour before the trip, he was not charged a cancellation fee even though the private DM was left without work and I was left with an empty seat on the boat. In no way, shape or form did he hold Rafael or us responsible for his problems while he was here, until now.
I have a statement from the “experienced diver” in their group and even though I have her permission to post it, I have to tell you I hesitate a bit as it’s a bit colorful and offensive….and I don’t want to seem self-serving.
I am waiting to hear from the other gentleman, so maybe more later.
Now it’s a bit more fair to be the judge and jury….
Deborah

So, they weren't certification dives??? Wow and a half. So, in essence, you sent a private DM out for the new divers?
Wasn't "coughing" blood? (well, I suppose a little nasal drip my have been involved, but that's far different from "coughing" blood.)
Not 78 feet?

Yikes.

Thank you Deborah for addressing this issue.


-Blair

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Give it some time. Ironically, just before reading this thread yesterday I was reading the latest edition of the PADI professional journal. It included an article listing by name the instructors who were banned permanently by PADI or suspended in the previous year for standards violations. It included the numbers of instructors who were referred for retraining. There are clearly results from these reports, but they do take some time. Furthermore, they don't just act on impulse--there has to be an investigation. Finally, they might not tell you the final results. I had results when I made a report a number of years ago, but I didn't learn about it from PADI until I became a pro myself and had access to the information.



An OW diver is struggling to learn how to dive. I would never expect them to study the standards for the dives so that they can double check to make sure the instructor is doing the job correctly. You seem to think they should pass an exam on the PADI Standards and Procedures before certifying. I would bet that if I didn't tell my students that they were limited to 60 feet on dives 3 & 4, they would never know it. I wonder of the OP in this thread knows he was limited to 40 feet on dives 1 &2, and I further wonder if that standard was not breached as well. I do have my students participate in planning their dives, but if I just told them what we were doing, as I know many instructors do, I don't think any one of them would know they were being cheated.

I was initially certified in a Mexican resort (not Cozumel), and I worked hard to get in all the learning I could as I was directed by my instructor. I did whatever he said when he said to do it, just as students are taught to do in all instruction everywhere. I had no idea before that what diving was like. When I was done, I was happy to have gotten through it all. Several years later, when I began working on my DM certification, I was surprised at all the skills I was being required to demonstrate. I went back to my original log book and saw how very many things were ticked off as having been done that I am quite sure I never did. I had no idea until then that the instructor had violated so many standards. I think my failure to read the standards for the course and cross reference with what actually happened is the norm, and it would be a very rare student who would check on that and challenge the instructor.

And that's why I tell my students and advise new divers and those thinking of taking up the activity to do just that. Ask to see the standards you are supposed to be trained to. I have them right out in the open every class session and will often refer to them and point out items in them as we are going over the lessons. They are not some secret. It's one of the items I included in my book. Ask what the standards are and if you can see them. If the instructor says no, you don't need to, or I don't have them handy right now - walk away.

What the instructor can and cannot do should be in the mind of every student and they should be encouraged to have it there. They should know you can't take them below certain depths, that you have to see them perform skills in a certain way, that they cannot just skip over things and then say you did them. The first class session is for paperwork and explanations of what will go on in the class. It should also be the time to tell them not only what they are doing but why they are doing it and why it's done in this manner.

 

[Gdog]

Thank you Deborah for posting, as well as scubapa75. As previously pointed out, there are always 2 sides to every story. Jumping to conclusions at the end of a one sided story usually just adds to the drama. I have dove with Deep Blue several times over the course of about 3 years. They always followed protocol, and were always very professional. Put it this way.....Deep Blue is one of the dive shops I would refer anybody to, including new divers.
The advent of the internet has made it much to easy in many respects. I believe the OP felt his education in OW diving would sufficient if done online....how would he know any different unless he had an experienced diver tell him? The truth is, the internet tries to be a one size fits all in that respect, while the one on one time spent with an instructor in the pool is invaluable and irreplaceable as it can be taylored to the needs of that new diver. Diving is a poor choice of sports if ones objective is to go the cheap route....nothing in this sport is cheap!
sorry..just my dos pesos...

 

[cvchief]

I would note the Deep Blue describes dives with an involved instructor, not so much an instructor just supervising the student diver. I am glad to dispute is about what happened, not how a student should be treated.

 

[ggunn]

If the opening post is accurate, the instructor is fully at fault. The student takes priority, and a problem takes priority over continuing as though nothing is wrong. I'm totally with the OP on this one.

That is a very big IF.

 

[deeper thoughts]

So, they weren't certification dives??? Wow and a half. So, in essence, you sent a private DM out for the new divers?
Wasn't "coughing" blood? (well, I suppose a little nasal drip my have been involved, but that's far different from "coughing" blood.)
Not 78 feet?

Yikes.

Thank you Deborah for addressing this issue.


-Blair

Unfortunately sometimes diving just isnt for everyone and there is not always a villain. Not taking sides because I wasnt there just adding my 1cent

 

[vlkr]

is it possible that the instructor was merely telling the student that they were heading down, would wait for him there? why did the student feel he had to go down at the same rate as the other divers?
i do not dive with deep blue but i do know louis and deb so maybe i am just seeing it from their pov.

 

[Ron Lee]

I wonder if the OP had his memory jogged by the two rebuttal responses. I may have to go to the PADI website to understand the elearning process.

Does the student get any pool work prior to going to Cozumel? I can see doing book work on line but how do you do all required pool work just prior to the first two checkout dives? Just seems odd if I understand an earlier post correctly.

Of course I do not twitter or use f*ceb**K either so I am be crotchety and set in my ways.

If I am being bad, you know how I should be disciplined.