Opinions please!

[miketsp]

I've never been briefed on a return signal either.

The only time I saw the boat have to abandon the divers was when we were doing a wreck in 33m and there was a fast surface current running (2-3knots). During the briefing the DM was very specific about hanging tight on to the granny line and if any equipment floated away to let it go and not try to follow it.
This instruction was repeated about 3 times very clearly.
Anyway a good part of the group went down and there were these 2 tourists that went in near the end. After jumping in one of them lost a fin and instead of making directly for the trailing buoy line, went after the fin and promptly started drifting away fast. One of the crew members saw this and immediately jumped into the dinghy but in his haste to start the motor ended up flooding the motor and it failed to start. So we were 15 miles out to sea with 10 divers down and one fast disappearing out of sight.
The captain quickly tied a buoy line to the anchor cable which was then cut and the main boat went after the single diver.
He quickly retrieved the single diver and came back to the buoy, picked up the cable and resumed station waiting for the group to come back up.
Of course the situation was somewhat different because there was a reference point, the anchor line from the wreck.
Even so the tourist got a real tongue lashing for putting others at risk for the sake of a fin.

But in this particular case a recall would not have worked fast enough. As it was none of the divers that had already descended even noticed that the boat was gone for about 10 minutes.

 

[Rick Murchison]

hmmm... i guess that means that every time i hear the boat
do something out of the ordinary, i should abort the dive
and get on board IN CASE it's a recall signal?

The procedure should be specific and briefed. If you're diving boats that don't brief it, the least offensive way to broach the subject is with the question "What is the diver recall signal?" at the end of the briefing. While the engine rev is common, the ladder banging is more obvious and can be easily "coded" to be a "no mistake" signal. The "Shave & a haircut... two bits" beat over and over is unmistakable and will register.
The diver recall brief is common in LA (FL panhandle & AL), and is 100% on the boats I use ('cause we ask - and when I'm the dive leader, I ask the Captain and then brief it).
Rick

 

[jepuskar]

I thought lemmings were the creatures that followed each other over cliffs and around PADI headquarters and stuff.

 

[kidspot]

Lemuel as found in Proverbs 31:1&4 The words of king Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught him. (Most commonly thought to be another name of King Solomon)


Lemming: Any of various small, thickset rodents, especially of the genus Lemmus, inhabiting northern regions and known for periodic mass migrations that sometimes end in drowning. (from dictionary.com)


Also a fun video game produced in the early 90's - lol

 

[Scubaroo]

On one boat I dive with in Monterey they tell you that they may leave you for a grave enough injury. They do leave a large buoy and a dm in the water with you. Fortunately never had it happen but it seems reasonable if the emergency is grave enough.

That would be the Cypress Sea. I've heard the same speech, and it seems reasonable to me. If I were the poor shmuck bleeding from the lungs, I'd rather be on my way to hospital asap. Sitting around a large buoy on the surface is not an immediately life-threatening situation. An embolism or lung over-expansion injury is.

You can bet that in a group of 20 divers, there would be a couple that would take their sweet time if the recall went off, oblivious to the fact someone is dying 20' above their heads.

 

[ba_hiker]

That would be the Cypress Sea. I've heard the same speech, and it seems reasonable to me. If I were the poor shmuck bleeding from the lungs, I'd rather be on my way to hospital asap. Sitting around a large buoy on the surface is not an immediately life-threatening situation. An embolism or lung over-expansion injury is.

You can bet that in a group of 20 divers, there would be a couple that would take their sweet time if the recall went off, oblivious to the fact someone is dying 20' above their heads.

Yep, I've heard the speech too. Always seemed reasonable to me. Coastguard helos here come from SFO and there are rairly two crews on duty, so it could be a while before they get there. Quite a while if they are on patrol or involved in something else when the call comes.

 

[Finnatic]

Dove the panhandle this past weekend. Captain gave what I thought was a thorough briefing, but no diver recall system was mentioned. Adding that to my school of hard knocks lessons. One note: I've recently read that when calling for help the term "victim" is often construed as meaning deceased by emergency rescue personnel. Possibly a better term would be "patient". My source indicated that the term "patient" might bring a quicker response. Any emergency rescue personnel want to comment on that?

 

[getwet2]

Helicopter is the best choice, probably faster then the boat can move and most likely directly to the hospital or chamber.

 

[TCDiver1]

This leave or not leave question can get complicated depending on conditions and dive plans.

A diver recall system might not bring deco divers directly back to the surface. In many cases cold, swift, water precludes the Captain from leaving the divers still in the water unless he can guarantee another stable platform will pick them up in a reasonable amount of time. A half a dozen fully suited divers rocking and rolling in the dingy or by a float might not be stable enough to count on.

Hypothermia can be a real concern, especially after a long deco hang. It's also a concern for rec divers if the water is cold enough. In both cases, i think you have to recover all your divers before you leave. Its a tough call for a Captain to make but i believe this is a "needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" type of thing.

After initiating the recall the Captain can get on the radio to get another boat to recover divers still in the water, initiate a Coast Guard pickup, etc. But generally speaking, unless prior arrangements have been made, i don't think he can leave until he has done a reasonable job of covering the safety of all his charges.

 

[SueMermaid]

Lemuel is sort of a Sue-ism, sorry for the confusion. It's not a biblical reference.

Lemuel: `lem-u-well (n.), Someone who silts up the bottom, kicks off your mask, slams into coral heads, shuts your air off when you aren't looking, and eats your lunch while you are at depth. See also: Dork.