One dead, one injured off of Panama City, Florida

[DandyDon]

Don, a Coast Guard investigation might not have anything to do with what happened underwater, in fact, unless the Captain ran them over, I don't think the Coast Guard would have any reason to investigate an underwater accident (though they do anyway for some reason).

If he was running spearfishing charters to federal waters without the proper permits, or had more than six paying customers on his boat, or had a dead goliath grouper on board, they'd probably be interested. Not saying that's what happened, just that they may be investigating him for something other than the circumstances of the accident.

I appreciate those possibilities - a little far fetched that they are, but we just have not seen any reports to support suspicions, and given the usual quality of news reporting - I don't see it reasonable to jump to any conclusions with regard to the captain at this time.

 

[dadediver]

... and at least one search plane that I saw, but that was because he was "missing". They will not send a thing for a bent or unresponsive diver. They certainly didn't for the two previous fatalities that occurred in Pensacola waters, or two additional incidents with bent divers that I'm aware of.

Realistically, anyone brought up unresponsive is probably SOL anyway, but it irks me to see the CG bust !@# for divers in other areas, and all we get is an ambulance at the dock.

Station Pensicola is a small boat station. With only three water assets and 150 SAR per year they more than likely have an agreement with the local authorities (Sherriff department or DNR) on which type of SAR are ran by this particular station. Several of these small boat stations are also level one readiness which is heavy based law enforcement.

Instead of driveling over your dislike with the USCG, why dont you stop by the local USCG station and talk to the OIC and give him your concerns. If you still feel dissatisfied, you can go to Pensicola Sector. Maybe, just maybe there is a reason for them not responding the way you would like for them to respond.

 

[Dr Dive]

A couple of thoughts:

A vessel is registered as commercial or recreational when you pay your fees. A vessel is acting as a commercial vessel only when there are paying passengers aboard. We won't debate the whole "chipping in on gas, etc" issue. A 'commercial' boat can be out for a fun day, and it is a recreational trip.

That said, if you hold a Merchant Mariner license, you expect a higher level of scrutiny in any incident, recreational or commercial.

It is incumbent on any operator to involve the Coast Guard in any incident involving injury, or potential injury. The response you receive is decided by the USCG, based on the info you provide, and their immediate available resources. Once notification is made, the operator's job is to manage his/her immediate situation and cooperate as fully as possible with the CG.

Some of the details of the CG response sound odd, based on SOP for the Pensacola area, but each incident can vary. That said, I'm sure all involved did all they could.

Sorting out the chaff, sounds like a good response under the circumstances, though not all could be saved. The captain should expect a thorough review, though circumstances suggest a recreational outing. Responsibilities for each party will be decided elsewhere. A sad day, and condolences and support to all involved.