Rescue diver, theory vs practice

[Diver0001]

The three things that did stand out to me, however were:
1.) Someone telling your OW class to join the search is obviously an extreme example of what you were saying, but it made me think of a more general question. Were there only two dive teams because those were the only people there ready to go and qualified, or did you purposely want to limit the number of people to avoid confusion?

These were the only divers qualified and ready to go. More divers were gearing up but we found the victim in 10 minutes and it wasn't necessary to expand the search.

2.) When you talk about the diver foaming blood, you mentioned the mental aspect. But is there any danger to the rescuers here, especially if they were not in a drysuit? I know there are certain diseases which can be transmitted through blood and if there were any open wounds (even if not known about) is it possible for infection? Or is the blood too diluted from the water for this to be a concern?

I would assume that all blood will make you sick. The guy who did the rescue breathing didn't have a pocket mask but said he wouldn't have used it anyway because it would have taken time fiddling around getting it ready to go; time that the victim didn't have. I would assume that the risk of getting something from it is real but when confronted with a situation like that the risk isn't in your mind, just the need to act.

3. The divemaster going into shock was truly eye opening, I guess being a newbie diver, you kind of see the veteran divemaster as being invincible and able to save you if something goes wrong, the fact that he became not just useless, but a liability, is a little bit scary.

Well I guess on the one hand Divemasters are people too but what this Divemaster did certainly doesn't match with my experience/expectation of how divemasters would normally react in that situation.

R..

 

[snturner]

I am in the middle of my rescue class. I beleive experience is the best teacher.

 

[EagleDiver]

I am in the middle of my rescue class. I beleive experience is the best teacher.

Getting enough experience to keep skills fresh is a challenge.

My rescue class was intense. After extensive classroom and pool sessions, my instructors put us through the ringer in the ocean. They had us going on 'normal' dives and coming out of nowhere to spring emergency scenarios on us - panicked diver at the surface, panicked diver submerged, fleeing submerged panicked diver, bolting for the surface, unresponsive diver at the bottom, lost diver, diver tangled in kelp, and more. The scenarios played out from about 50' depth to the surface, and saw us towing 'victims' in all imaginable states of distress into shore, and up a flight of access stairs. When the day was over I felt confident of managing the scenarios we practiced.

But what happens after the class? It's been a few months since I received that rescue cert and there's been no further practice. Of course I am glad I've not had to assist in an emergency, but without practice learned skills wither.

I've re-read the course materials and hope to organize a 'refresher' dive weekend, but the challenge is a continuing one. Threads like this one help.

 

[escapeartist]

WOW...I just read this thread and have gained so much from it. Thanks Diver0001! At the risk of repeating what so many others have said, this is an awesome learning tool. Your detailed account is invaluable.

 

[Steve in Seattle]

When I was 17 I was the first person on scene to a child drowing off the end of our kayak/rowing boathouse dock. Some local kids were pushing their 4yr old brother down the ramp in a wire mesh shopping cart. It was a traggic event, and I know we handled it fairly well.

911 was contacted immediately (I yelled back to others to get to a phone... this was pre-cell phone era), then free dove off the dock to search for a shopping cart. This was spring time with high currents due to mountain run off in a river only 10' deep by the dock to about 20' downstream. I spent 10 minutes with 2 others free diving with no result... then I found the cart about 20' downstream... it was sideways on the bottom.

fire and rescue's divers started down stream when they arrived. The child was found 2.5 miles downstream then next day. I was shocked how far a 40 pound body traveled.

Whenever I think of diving accidents I always think back to that event. Communication and mobilization is vital to any response, but so is the importance of getting proper information and keeping track of time/current flows. Once a body inhales water and presumably blacks out boyancy drops and the current takes over... dragging the body down and along the current flow.

In my own case the two children who were playing with their brother claimed they were just "friends", and didn't know the mom, and tried to leave when the police showed up to the 911 call. Once finding the cart I knew what happened. They didn't ride the cart down the hill to the dock and off... they somehow pushed it down the hill under control, then pushed their brother lengthwise off the dock. The 6 and 5 yr old "witnesses" were more worried about getting into trouble than helping and we lost valuable search time. I understand they were children, but the message is the same... we lost serious time diving an area probably 50' upstream of the last seen location. Information saves lives.

I have to say the 2nd diver situation in your story is a LOT more common than most people understand. I spent 7 years working in, supervising, and managing an emergency operations center. I dealt with suicides of all colors, accidental deaths, and more fires, arsons, and thefts than I care to remember. If you take a few FEMA certification courses you'll learn just how essential they feel command structure is during emergencies like these. I suppose this is why I found point #4 above so shocking. THE fundamental rule of ALL emergency operations from forest fires to heart attacks is that the Incident Commander NEVER leaves without a proper pass-on briefing for the NEXT Incident Commander.

I haven't taken the PADI Rescue Diver course yet, but I'm surprised the co-ordinating snorkeler left the scene at all. Yes, having a dive pro on hand may help the EMS staff, but sending someone else (such as someone who interviewed hysterical Diver #1 while on land) seems like a better call -- if such a person was available. I would honestly like to know if Incident Command is covered in such a course... and if not, why?

The post-accident shock demonstrated by Diver #2 is likely VERY common. Frequently even first responders talk about the fist choking victim they encounter and the hesitation to act... especially with children and babies due to concerns of injuring the victim and being unfamiliar with diagnosing a true choking situation vs a cough (adults make communication two-way and easy to decide on action). I once witnessed a interstate car wreck with two full car loads of people. The teenage driver, who was hit by a 60+ asian gentleman, popped out of his daddy's new VW Jetta blank faced and responsive... within about 5 seconds he went quiet and wide eyed. About 20 minutes later it wore off and he collapsed into screaming pain in a blink of an eye... he had slammed his knees into the dash after having surgery a month earlier.

Physical and mental shock/panic is very real, very quick to change, and difficult to recognize when dealing with strangers.

I'm not surprised that Diver #1, the snorkeler, or rescue divers thought anything about Diver #2's calm reaction. In full scuba gear, with a total stranger I'm not sure anyone honestly could have recognized he was about to be in trouble. Was he aware at all of the missing diver? Was there even someone missing (maybe Diver #1 was suffering from narcosis at depth, saw "a body", and flipped out)? did he even speak English? who/where was the dive master? With the background on the divers in the water responders had to work on first impressions and what they could judge.

Getting information, distributing it to responders (ie. snorkeler above divers to hear shore-line instructions for when divers surface, AND a shore line responder to greet EMS, keep witnesses calm and talking, and gather additional information via a dive plan in the vehicle?) are ESSENTIAL to a proper response.

I have to commend your staff on their response and willingness to go live on such short notice. It's true that Diver #2 never should have gone under, and yes, he definitely needs more training in emergency response than a PADI or other "Rescue Diver" course or Divemaster rating affords him... but thats not an issue with classroom work. Actually being in those emergencies is what allows someone to get past "heart thump" and freeze-up. Which leads to the greatest lesson from this story:

8) NEVER, EVER, dive with a "Divemaster" whose never actually conducted a rescue. Sure, it's nice to get the 30yr vet who claims he's never, ever, ever had a single emergency after training thousands of students... but that's not realistic unless a) he's lying, or b) the training is mickey mouse. People make mistakes, they always will. Practice makes perfect, and because of that, I'm much more comfortable diving with my Navy buddies who HAVE done rescue work than with a "pro" club diver whose trained thousands in a pool with some select cert locations.

Experience counts... and diving experience is NOT the same as rescue experience.

 

[dpaustex]

Great recap of events.

It points out that, even with training, some people freeze. Happens all the time.

The victims last known point is always, always crucial. Search patterns have a good starting point if the last known location can be pin-pointed.

You were right-on on the students. No use having more victims.

Maybe this will serve as a wake up call to all of us on why the Instructors and DiveCons/DM's train so much.

 

[danekruger]

thanks man ive just done my dan sea and rescue and the info u gave is helpfull

 

[RayDivesIVS]

Thanks for the lesson and your positive participation in the rescue. In the fog of the moment, knowing the capabilities and limits of a new partner is often overlooked.

 

[opsanus]

Reports and discussions of real world situations are a great way to connect the theory taught in rescue classes with the messy, confusing way things play out in the real world. Thanks for sharing your experience.

My main question is do you know what happened underwater? What series of events led to diver #1 and diver #2 appearing at the surface---one frantic and the other in passive panic? What was the dive plan? One diver was a divemaster---what was his role in the dive? What were the conditions? Did anyone debrief the two divers who surfaced as to what happened. I realize that afternoon on the beach is not a good time for that....but later....

Rescue is an important skill, but even more important is using training, practice, planning and judgement to make sure that we as divers don't get into these terrible situations....or as divemasters and instructors that the divers we are looking after don't get into these situations.

I would love to know more about what went wrong underwater. I think the most important lessons to be learned from this accident are how to avoid the situation in the first place.

It seems to me that although accidents sometimes present themselves as sudden "out of the blue" events there is almost always a chain of small events that lead up to the final event. If we can cut this chain of events off before it approaches the severity of the accident....that's the key. Good divers do this all the time. They decide not to dive because they are tired from yesterday. They always check their gear before the dive. They adjust their bouyancy so they don't have to struggle to maintain an even keel---and thereby don't get out of breath and don't get cramps...etc. You get the picture.

What was the chain of events that led to this sad ending.....I hope the diver recovers completely...but I'm sure he and all involved would have preferred not to have gotten to this point.

FYI--I am new to Scubaboard and haven't posted before, but I was an active, teaching , NAUI instructor for fifteen years---I still dive, but I've retired from teaching.

 

[MtnPlayVA]

It points out that, even with training, some people freeze. Happens all the time.

The book "The Unthinkable" by Amanda Ripley really reinforces this. It is a more common reaction that active panic in catastrophes. I highly recommend the book - it really makes you think.

I am currently taking the PADI Rescue course and this posting really reinforces that as difficult as it is, the class will probably be the best one I'll ever take. Hopefully I will never need it.

Thank you for sharing your experiences.