The shark or DCS?

[RikTikTavi]

If you were coming up from a decompression dive and needed to hang 3 more minutes at 15 feet but had a shark that kept pestering you, would you take the chance that the shark was just being friendly or would you pop out and head for a chamber?

- Riktiktavi

"The truth doesn't care what you believe"

 

[ClayJar]

What kind of shark and what specific behavior? How much deco did I have, and how much did I already complete (and at what stops)? Where am I in any multi-dive set? What sort of water conditions? Are there others also with a deco obligation? Do I have O₂ on the boat? Basically, my answer is a solid "it depends". :biggrin:

If I'm the only diver in the water with a deco obligation, and if it's the last dive, and if we have plenty of O₂ on the boat, and if it's a bull shark with fins down and back arched, and if it's already actually *bumped* *me*, I might decide it's time to make a slow ascent to the surface and just go suck down a bottle of O₂ as a precaution. I'm not heading to a chamber unless I show symptoms.

If it's just a shark acting a bit too curious, and there are two or more of us with notable deco, maybe we just breathe a little heavier and finish up.

Of course, if I'm bleeding and it's a great white... grab the O₂ and flank speed back to shore, 'cause I'm getting *out* of the water approximately right *now*.

 

[JahJahwarrior]

Solution: bangstick. Chamber a round and pop it's head.



Ok, ok, I'm actually not a proponent of shooting sharks unless they are in the process of eating you or a close friend. It just crossed my mind that you could rearrange the words like that....

If I was doing decompression dives in the ocean I would read up on and become an expert on the sharks and other dangerous animals in the region to understand their behavioural patterns as best as can be, and I would also know statistics to know how many divers are attacked underwater by this type of shark, etc. I'd also make sure to know if it's mating season, etc. Only with that data can I make an informed decision.

But I'd rather avoid the chamber. Always the chance of damage before you get there, it costs money and there's a good chance they'll tell me not to dive for a while.

 

[robint]

If you were coming up from a decompression dive and needed to hang 3 more minutes at 15 feet but had a shark that kept pestering you, would you take the chance that the shark was just being friendly or would you pop out and head for a chamber?

- Riktiktavi

"The truth doesn't care what you believe"

First - I have never seen a shark "pester" anyone, more likely the other way around. I have been in the water with sharks and they just aren't interested in divers unless the diver has a speared fish that is bleeding. And then, all the want is the fish, not the diver.

As Clayjar said, if it were a bull shark with fins down I would be nervous. Ditto a hammerhead. A great white might get me back on the boat quickly.

 

[SlowRain]

This is a circumstance I haven't worried about. Like a lot of people here I have been in the water with sharks hundreds and hundreds of times and have never had any sort of issue. Certainly I view them much like an encounter with a strange dog...I pay attention to what they are doing while they are around. I have been in the water and have seen a Tiger, several Bull's, and once a Mako, and in the Galapagos there are Hammerheads all over the place...schooling.

Certainly the varieties who have a reputation of "indiscriminate snacking" i.e. Bulls and Whites (which I have never seen) bear closer attention than others, but I think the chance of being on a 15 foot deco hang and being "pestered" by a shark are about as good as winning the lottery.

 

[seaducer]

Agro behavior or just circling?

If the shark is showing signs of agression like pectoral fins pointing down, gaping, eratic swimming, or more bluntly just trys to bite me I am geting out of it's way, and possibly the water. Otherwise I am staying put and enjoying the moment.

No need to really worry though. In OW sharks will almost always move out of our way when feeling threatened, and those who might be curious or think we are tasty are easily put off by swimming at them and blowing extra bubbles...

 

[Fuzzmutton]

Was there something about that in the book Deep Descent, or am I imagining things? Some book I read awhile back with diving in it had a guy writing about hanging on a line doing deco and having a too curious shark coming about and making him real nervous.

 

[OceanObsessed]

I'd take the shark. Unless there is blood or a wounded fish present sharks are really overrated.

 

[crlavoie]

Actually, there was an individual on this board (can't remember the name) that had a curious GW hanging around in Hawaii. If I recall correctly, they actually completed their safety stop.

The thread resurfaces every once in a while. I bet if you searched on it you could find it. Scary to say the least.

 

[johnny_bravo]

This happened to me last year with one of Jupiter Dive Center's DMs (Doug)...the bull sharks got really agressive after someone shot a cobia or a gag in the Hole in the Wall...the shooters had shark shields so they didn't get bothered too much...two bull sharks started circling around under us at the 40' mark...the larger one followed us up to the 20' mark as we did a safety stop and started arching its back and pointing pectoral fins down...Doug and I did a minute or two facing each other back to back...we decided to get to the surface, signal the boat for an immediate pickup, we stuck our faces back in the water to watch out for the bull...it was the longest minute of my life.

IMHO if you are recreational diving...had a nice slow ascent and possibly a deep stop at half you max depth for a minute or so I would have no problem blowing the safety stop which just adds a theoretical safety margin.

Cheers.

-J.-