Spiegel Grove??

[keysguy28]

glad you are o.k. also. as a dive profesional in key largo I can sympathize with your situation as it happens more often than anyone will admit. That being said, it is my opinion that you need to be responsible for yourself on every dive. If you were with an instructor, this incident probably shouldn't have happened. On the other hand, just because a divemaster is in the water does NOT mean he/she is responsible for every other diver in the water. I have been on the Grove when there are more than 30 ppl off of several boats diving at the same time. How can you expect any dive professional to look out for everyone at the same time. Most of the time they are assigned a specific group they are responsible for.

As for never diving again, that may be a premature assesment. Maybe a second opinion is in order. Also, 25 dives is still a little early to be hopping in at a challenging site like the grove without 100 percent confidence in yourself. That's just my opinion, for what it's worth.

 

[casemanager]

Thanks Guys You Have Shed Some Light On What Actually Happen, I Dont Know If I Was Narced Because People Say You Feel Good, I Felt Extreme Vertigo And Panic, I Am Truely Blessed Individual

Ive Never Had A Problem Until I Started Diving With This Crew, I Was In Hawaii Last Month And Had An Incredible Relaxed Instructor And Dm.

I Thought All Dm's Are The Same But Thst Is Not True. Why Wasnt My Instructor Watching His Students Instead Of Checking Out The Wreck? Maybe The Ambulance Ride And The 4 Hours Waiting In The Hospital Will Change His Patterns Of Being More Responsible For Your Group And Keeping Everyone Close.

 

[keysguy28]

I was not at the grove yesterday, but why are people always looking to blame someone else????

 

[String]

There is too little emphasis put on self-rescue and self-reliance these days. A qualified diver is supposed to be able to look after themselves and not need someone holding their hand. If its an instructor training a course then yes theres a duty of care. If not, then the divers safety is primarily his own resposibility.

 

[Scuba]

I was not at the grove yesterday, but why are people always looking to blame someone else????

Always? In this case, because the accident was made worse due to other equally responsible parties.

He had a buddy. He was taking a course.

Why do people promote buddy diving, taking additional courses, going on guided dives, and then often place all the blame on a single individual when there is an injury?

Casemanager, any conditions beyond calm, warm, clear, shallow water is going to increase the challenge of a dive, such as cold, currents, poor visibility, depth, etc. It is safest to expand your limits, only after you are comfortable and competent within your limits. Then only one step at a time. Do not combine multiple challenges in one dive, such as depth, poor visibility, cold, currents,etc. This is an ideal learning process which is not followed by many, but one were a violation will exponentially increase the risk of error and injury. The more challenging and extreme the conditions, the greater the risk. The greater the number of challenges, the compounding factor multiplies the risk.

The quality of instructors, DM's, guides, dive operators, is inconsistent. Make no assumptions. If you can afford a private instructor, this may be the way to go. Have someone help you with your in water confidence level to decrease stress and effectively deal with underwater situations under control. Inquire on boards like this one, or from divers you know and trust about a quality instructor. Let those you dive with, any and all, know exactly what you expect from them, about your experience level and any pertinent issues, and to what you agree to or will reciprocat.

Based on your side of the story here. I would ask for a full refund for this class to help you pay for another class, at least.

It's about responsibility.

 

[Henryville]

Casemanager, I really feel bad for you and that you were injured and traumatized by your accident.

With all due respect, though, your insistence on coming back to the other people you felt should have been watching out for you and preventing you from the consequences of an ascent you learned not to make in your basic open water course convinces me that you simply do not (yet) have the right attitude to be attempting that dive.

You went deeper in Hawaii, great. There is a reason why every training agency I know of says when they certify you that you are qualified to go on dives under "similar or better conditions" than those you trained in. Add lower visibility, colder water, stronger currents, night, big scary critters, whatever it happens to be, and stress goes up. Add several at once and some people will react the way you did. Maybe you liked your Hawaiian DM and Instructor better and the lack of chemistry added another stressor. It also seems from your comment that you didn't like your buddy - another source of stress. Sooner or later the dominos start to fall and unless you are trained, experienced and disciplined you won't be able to stop them.

You want to know what the first rule is that you would learn in rescue if you took it? Don't make two victims. If I was watching you and you bolted from 90 feet with an inflated BC, if I couldn't catch you in about 10 feet I would make a safe ascent and deal with administering whatever first aid I could for the inevitable problem on the surface. That is standard training. A DM in Japan died this year attempting to catch a diver doing just what you did. The panicking diver was lucky enough to live through it. Whatever you think, you are not paying a DM, dive operator, instructor or buddy to risk their life to stop you from an unintended though self-destructive act.

 

[DandyDon]

Glad you're okay. I don't think you have to give up, but I'll leave it to the pros to help you here.

 

[casemanager]

I am not laying blame on anyone, i ascended on my own. i tried to find my buddy, i tried to get other divers attention, i tried to find the dm but i was in a state of panic, hyperventilation, and extreme vertigo, plus i was scared out of my mind. had i not ascended, i think about what if i blacked out, what if i had a heart attack at 90', what if i went down instead of up. The fact was i was with a group of 7 students and 3 dms. i was taking my checkout dive for my advanced course. I read that there have been 6 deaths on the spiegel in the last 6 months. Maybe its not a good wreck dive to take advanced beginners on.

If I get back in the water again, I will only do it with a private instructor who is DAN qualified and it will be 1:1. Plus, I will only go with my doctor's permission.

 

[tlawler]

I read that there have been 6 deaths on the spiegel in the last 6 months.

Where did you read that?

 

[Ayisha]

I can't even fathom why any instructor would do any of the Advanced course at a challenging site like the Spiegel Grove. Especially when you consider that some of the students, albeit unfortunately, may be brand new O/W divers with only 4 shallow dives under their belt, and may never have experienced those conditions. Why even take the chance? :06: