Surface support from a private boat.

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Ana

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Messages
2,577
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4,534
Location
Pompano Beach, FL
# of dives
I just don't log dives
Lobster mini season 2019 came and went and it appears there was one fatality. It happened very close to were we (my husband and I) were diving. When the call for help came from the Coast Guard it made us pause.

First it was a private boat calling for assistance with a missing diver. At that time there were several calls in the radio from minor cluster fk's , a Capt. asking where is boat this or that because he had one of his divers and like I said minor things. That missing diver call didn't quite registered as a terrible thing just a temporary issue.

From our vessel we are taking turns, and at the end of each dive we'd ask, did they find that diver? no, it turns out he didn't have fins, damn. Next dive, how about now, did the diver show up? no, it was a 60 y/o male, the boat Capt. said the diver came up normal and handed over his fins, 2 seconds later he slipped back in the water and that was it, damn again.
Now it wasn't just conversation between BSO/ marine patrol and the boat captain, after about 2 hours it was the Coast Guard asking all the vessels to be on the look out. It hit us hard, and of course you start to speculate because you just do.

Then the call to stop looking because the body was found, well crap, not what anyone wants to hear.

So in our speculation I'm thinking I don't want my last action alive to be handing over some stupid fins. What if I use that last bit of energy to ask for help or to hold on to the ladder, or just look at the person on board (usually my husband) and tell him I love you as I slip back in the water. Not only elevates the chances of surviving if I hold on to the ladder but it fully communicates to the person on board you are in trouble. This person on board then can activate a plan and proceed to help.

Of course in order to activate a plan, you need a plan and that is what we are trying to figure out. Obviously all this is the result of our speculation, we don't know much besides what we heard in the radio, the news said it was a 70 y/o and that he fell of the boat. Whatever, I doubt we'll know. For sure feels better to think he was 70 than 60, for one he lived longer and it doesn't hit so close because we aren't in our 70's (but hopefully we will)

Anyway, the idea is having something very close to the ladder easy to grab/deploy that would help to either hand over to the diver or for the topside person to jump in the water to help and remain connected to the boat.
The trick is that it needs to be handy but not in the way, because chances are we will never use it (like the tourniquet in the 1st aid kit) but when you needed it should be right there.

For now, we are thinking the float we use for freediving, orange plastic bullet shape, with a line attached to a cleat opposite side of the ladder. When we bring up the dive flag that can be put in place. In addition to a better adherence to the OK surface protocol. Lack of clear OK at the surface and then when the boat approaches will mean you are not ok.

What else can be done that is practical. If it isn't practical then it won't be done regularly.
 
For sure feels better to think he was 70...

Thanks for tossing us old guys under the bus.


On my boat I have a rope attached so I can take off my gear and clip it to that line, board, and then bring the gear aboard. I suppose if I wasen't feeling so good I could clip myself off as well, or just make it a habit.



Bob
 
Serious dive boats will have practiced plans in place to cover the various ways people have previously tried to get out of paying their bills.

If the case of a diver in the water without fins it might involve a handy throwing rope and hitting reverse, depending on when it happens.

In the example described though, the diver has sunk and the only thing getting them back is a kites up support diver. You could have that but you’d need to pay for it and by the fact they are never there on fun dive boats I suppose nobody is prepared to pay for them.
 
Thanks for tossing us old guys under the bus.


On my boat I have a rope attached so I can take off my gear and clip it to that line, board, and then bring the gear aboard. I suppose if I wasen't feeling so good I could clip myself off as well, or just make it a habit.



Bob

Nah uh... no busses Bob. No one will confuse me for a young person, but I still have a bit to go before hitting 70, that's all. My mom is 90 and going I'm shooting for 107.

We made a point of designing an easy ladder for the boat to deal with potential injuries, is wide and sits in an angle to facilitate going up. Live boating is not conducive for leaving a line out but basically that's the thought behind having this float very handy, should give us buoyancy in addition to being attached to the boat.
 

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Serious dive boats will have practiced plans in place to cover the various ways people have previously tried to get out of paying their bills.

If the case of a diver in the water without fins it might involve a handy throwing rope and hitting reverse, depending on when it happens.

In the example described though, the diver has sunk and the only thing getting them back is a kites up support diver. You could have that but you’d need to pay for it and by the fact they are never there on fun dive boats I suppose nobody is prepared to pay for them.

Right, but my boat is not very serious, we have cocktails at the end if the dives and all kinds of not-serious things happen on board. I just want to add a safety notch to the very end of the dive.

The plan has to be execute by one person. The typical outing is 2 people one dives, the other stays on board.
 
On our boat, we have carabiners we use to clip our cameras to. In an emergency, we could clip our gear to them but we haven't had any emergencies.

We are buoyant at the surface, so there is no chance of sinking after reaching the boat. We take our fins off at the ladder, but could climb with fins on if it was really rough. We remove our gear after getting back in the boat. We don't remove any gear in the water other than cameras. Merry will be 71 next month and has no problem climbing the ladder with a steel backplate, steel tank and 25# weightbelt on.

The only time we have someone onboard is if one of us sits out a dive, which is rare.
 
On our boat, we have carabiners we use to clip our cameras to. In an emergency, we could clip our gear to them but we haven't had any emergencies.

We are buoyant at the surface, so there is no chance of sinking after reaching the boat. We take our fins off at the ladder, but could climb with fins on if it was really rough. We remove our gear after getting back in the boat. We don't remove any gear in the water other than cameras. Merry will be 71 next month and has no problem climbing the ladder with a steel backplate, steel tank and 25# weightbelt on.

The only time we have someone onboard is if one of us sits out a dive, which is rare.

I'm very impressed by Merri
 
It's not scary to dive from an unattended boat? I thought that was a no-no. I've never dived from a private boat before.
We have over 400 feet of chain and a nice anchor that holds the boat in place. We don't go out when it's rough and being photographers, we don't move much so we're always within a minute or two of the anchor.
 
Interesting topic and something to discuss at my next dive club meeting. On club boat dives, we tend to stagger the dives so that a dive team is always on the boat. Occasionally only 2 divers go out on the boat, but we did have an incident this year. No one was hurt, but for the safety of the divers and boat, having someone on the boat is a good safety procedure because an anchor line is only as good as its weakest link. But I digress. We do throw out a buoy and line so divers can grab onto it at the surface if there is a bit of current or wave action. We also have lines and carabiners over the side of the boat so divers can hang their cameras and/or gear and climb up the ladder without the stuff making it easier to get on board.

But if a diver suddenly sinks... this isn't a problem if the incident happens to the first team since the 2nd team is ready to enter the water once the first has completed their safety/deco stops. The second team can just jump in after the diver.

The problem is when the second team comes up. Usually the first team is stowing their gear and discussing their dive. Maybe it would be a good idea to have a spare tank on board. Strap it to a BCD, setup the regs. Someone is designated safety diver. When you see bubbles at the anchor line, suit up with tank and fins ready to roll over the side if necessary. A pain in the ass for club members but something to seriously consider.
 
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