San Diego accident

[Oside Jimc]

It'd be nice to hear from the divers themselves, but that's not likely.

This isn't going to happen, but I guess I should have been more explicit in my 2nd post, the scenario I laid out is what happened, probably tacky of me to have said anything since I can't tell why I know, but with all the speculation I felt the need to speak out.

The best we can do is discuss how to prevent what happened to them in various details.

1. Teach divers how to read a f'n pressure gauge!!!!!

2. Bring back more regimented divers training that accepts that not everybody is cut out to dive. When I learned in '72 my instructor was an Air Force open water survival instructor (not sure of his formal title) for his "day" job. 36 years later I can vividly remember his lessons in "panic proofing", by far the best life lesson a 15 year old could have ever learned. It makes me sick to read these threads time and again where a newish diver panics with fatal results. In this case it is a miracle that we did not have a double fatality, thank god the female diver kept her head in the face of a panic crazed buddy and not only saved her own life, but his as well, to her I say AWESOME JOB!

 

[DandyDon]

1. Teach divers how to read a f'n pressure gauge!!!!!

2. Bring back more regimented divers training that accepts that not everybody is cut out to dive. When I learned in '72 my instructor was an Air Force open water survival instructor (not sure of his formal title) for his "day" job. 36 years later I can vividly remember his lessons in "panic proofing", by far the best life lesson a 15 year old could have ever learned. It makes me sick to read these threads time and again where a newish diver panics with fatal results. In this case it is a miracle that we did not have a double fatality, thank god the female diver kept her head in the face of a panic crazed buddy and not only saved her own life, but his as well, to her I say AWESOME JOB!

Sure, fine. Tell the agencies who set the standards that Instructors must compete under; I'm all for it. Start a petition and I'll sign. I would have liked to have had better training. And prohibit Discover Divers outside of swimming pools while you're at it. Dream on...

Otherwise, I will try to learn from the mistakes of others here as well as discuss better standards to others who come here to learn.

YOU might be happier presenting the case in the Mishap Analysis forum; I dunno - just guess. I do thank you for the facts you furnished in this learning discussion.

 

[Missdirected]

An attentive and well schooled buddy will immediately remedy the situation, and then, as Diver0001 (one of my favorite, and alas these days largely absent SB members) once said to me, the emergency is OVER. At that point, you have an inconvenience, and you deal with it calmly.

I like that guy (Diver0001) and I think I would have to agree with that statement. I just did an air share with someone that went OOA and now that I think back, it was nothing more than a slight inconvenience, if that. They came to me told me they were out, I grabbed em, gave them air, and we made a nice, safe, slow ascent. There was a time when my blood pressure would have probably shot through the roof, definitely not now.

Anyway, I am not really adding to the conversation, it's just that statement made me think. Carry on....

 

[Oside Jimc]

Sure, fine. Tell the agencies who set the standards that Instructors must compete under; I'm all for it. Start a petition and I'll sign. I would have liked to have had better training. And prohibit Discover Divers outside of swimming pools while you're at it. Dream on....

Sorry if you did not like the truth as I see it, but I do not see any way to teach prospective divers how to handle a panic inducing situation without specific training on how to handle a massive task overload.

I am not a diving genius, not even a DM or instructor, but to my untrained mind an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

I apologize for adding to this thread and will shut up now........

 

[Coll]

Assuming that the diver that wasn't OOA was low on air how would you guys have approached the situation? Done a controlled ascent air sharing as long as the tank lasted and then do a controlled emergency ascent exhaling all the way?


Edit: For novice divers like myself, it would be EXTREMELY helpful to hear how you guys would approach the problem instead of the passive aggressiveness going on here.

 

[Missdirected]

Sorry if you did not like the truth as I see it, but I do not see any way to teach prospective divers how to handle a panic inducing situation without specific training on how to handle a massive task overload.

I am not a diving genius, not even a DM or instructor, but to my untrained mind an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

I apologize for adding to this thread and will shut up now........

Jim I don't believe that is what DD was saying at all. He was actually agreeing with you but as most sadly already know, changes do not come that easily. Stating how it should be is one thing but getting it to happen is another, as so many have come to learn.

Please don't apologize for adding to the thread. As long as someone somewhere learns something, that is a good thing.

 

[ItsBruce]

I agree with TSandM. There are only two good explanations. There may be things that contributed to one or the other, but at the bottom of the analysis, there can only have been two things.

I initially considered that one can be at 70 feet for quite a while before one incurs a deco obligation and figured that there was probably an overexpansion injury rather than deco. However, on further reflection, it could have been the divers were deeper, were working their way back up and fulfilling their obligations when the one went OOA. But, that is a gas management issue.

The answer is Rock Bottom. (And, I'm not even a caver.)

 

[ItsBruce]

Edit: For novice divers like myself, it would be EXTREMELY helpful to hear how you guys would approach the problem instead of the passive aggressiveness going on here.

The answer is not let it become a problem. You should never let your air supply get lower than what you need to safely surface while sharing air with your buddy. Whether you are at 20 feet or 130 feet, there is a certain amount of air you will require to do a safe ascent, including deco obligations and safety stops. It is easily calculable. There is also a certain amount of air your buddy will require for that same ascent. Add those two together and when either of you hits that figure, start your ascent.

 

[Missdirected]

Assuming that the diver that wasn't OOA was low on air how would you guys have approached the situation? Done a controlled ascent air sharing as long as the tank lasted and then do a controlled emergency ascent exhaling all the way?


Edit: For novice divers like myself, it would be EXTREMELY helpful to hear how you guys would approach the problem instead of the passive aggressiveness going on here.

Hypothetically; depends on just how low and who I am diving with (how much can I trust this person to stay fairly calm). I know I have to have enough for myself to reach the top and get help. Risking my last drop of air isn't an option. Now if for some reason I was to go OOA and I was on my own - I have other options for myself.

 

[jupitermermaid]

Sounds like a panic situation. It's a shame that both had to suffer because one person ran out of air. I wonder, could the other person have been low on air and afraid that with two people sharing one tank that she would also run out of air, therefore the rapid ascent? Or perhaps they were so intent on getting to the surface they neglected to watch their ascension rate and release air from their BCD's to slow the ascension? So many different things could have happened in this case. People really need to practice more often the skills learned in OW and other classes. All dives are not perfect......even if the first 500 are!