What is a Dive Op's responsibility to you if you surface and signal you're in distres

[pilot fish]

Is a Dive Op supposed to get some form of rescue device to you if you surface and signal you need help, or are they supposed to wait till all divers are onboard till they tend you? Are they supposed to have one person onboard able to dive in and get to you if you are in obvious need and not able to stay at the surface?

What is the responsiblity of the Dive Op that does not put a DM in the water with you on your dive? Is he/she just there to help you into the water, make sure your tank is on and then wait to be tipped at port?

I know we all sign release forms but does that absolve the Dive Op from the barest minimum of care, as in throwing you a line?

 

[ScubaFreak]

And so begins the start of another multi-page thread

If a diver needs assistance when they ascend, I can't really imagine any boat not coming to your assistance- regardless whether or not the boat that assists you is the Op you are diving with or not!

What is the responsiblity of the Dive Op that does not put a DM in the water with you on your dive? Is he/she just there to help you into the water, make sure your tank is on and then wait to be tipped at port?

It's nobody's responsibility but your own to make sure your tank is on, sure maybe they steady you by grabbing your arm while you make your way to the ladder, but a DM's responsibility is either to guide you around the site if you are a member of a group, or supervise you / assist you if you are part of a class.

I know we all sign release forms but does that absolve the Dive Op from the barest minimum of care, as in throwing you a line?

Again, I can't imagine any Dive Op not throw you a line, just because you've signed a waver...

All of course my $0.02
SF

 

[BIGSAGE136]

I wouldnt have posted this in the other thread out of respect for fairness to all parties. That being said I would would like to let my fellow Conchs know that you guys are the greatest. There is no way that this would have happened on one of our dives.

I also want to personally thank the staff & crew of Splashdown Divers, Parrot Island, and American Dream II. There are many others, but I want to say that this unfortunate accident that happened in the previous thread, in IMPO, would never have happened on these boats.

These people take seriously the term, and principle of BUDDY.
Even if you dont have one with you, You have one on the dive.

I once actually enjoyed sitting out a second dive on American Dream II. Capt Todd, and the mate were playing. Todd was throwing a tethered bouy, and the mate was catching it about 50 yards out. No gear. The mate was trying to toss it back, and Todd was trying to hit him.

Think about that.

 

[DougK]

I am also curious about this.

If you surface a long way from the boat and signal distress will they pull up anchor (or cut away from the mooring line) and come to you while other divers are still in the water?

In Key Largo last Sept. my wife had trouble with a mask leaking and we surfaced to deal with it. I watched the boat, it was not long before someone was looking our way -- which was good -- I signaled Ok and got a return, that made me fell good.

But I just can't see a big boat moving with divers in the water. Would they send out a rubber raft if you were in need of help?

 

[Doc Intrepid]

They will do the best they can do under the circumstances. Unless they're on a mooring of some sort, however, if they have divers on the line on deco, they can't move the boat to respond to someone who has surfaced downcurrent without hazarding all the other divers decoing on the line. (Imagine what would ensue if they started the engines to respond and the propellers then struck a diver still beneath the boat?)

If they have a mate available who can respond without moving the boat they may deploy a surface swimmer. But on smaller charters, paying the mate may make a difference between profit and loss. So inflate, relax, the boat will come get you when the captain has the others onboard.

They ordinarily have a standard duty of care, but no more. They're there to get you from the dock to the dive site, and back. What goes on in the water is not their primary responsibility.

They can assist - to whatever degree they feel obliged to assist, it will vary considerably both regionally as well as depending on the ability level of the divers onboard. But its not their responsibility to wipe noses and respond to 'issues'.

(Read the terms of service or the contract that diver's sign.)

Diver's who want some extra care, some coddling, some one-on-one rescuing, whatever, may want to hire a DM or guide to accompany them on offshore charters until they are more familiar with that environment. Bottom line is that few charter boat captains will start up their screws with divers still on the line in the water and go rescue someone having issues downstream. They won't generally put the many in jeopardy to ensure the wellbeing of the one. JMHO...YMMV.

 

[miketsp]

Every situation is different, it's very difficult to generalise.
No operator is going to put 10 at risk to save 1.
It's always a judgement call.
I've seen situations where the divers were warned about strong surface current and then a tourist lost a fin and swam after it getting whipped away by the current.
The pilot quickly buoyed off the anchor line and took the boat to pick up the drifting diver even though there were 10 submerged divers at that moment.
This was discussed by the group after the event and he took the decision to cast off rather than waste time putting the dinghy in the water and getting the outboard started based on the experience level of the group that was in the water.
If he had other divers down of an unknown level, then he would have used the dinghy even though this would have 2 problems, a) 2 strokes are temperamental and cannot be relied to start quickly and b) being much lower down in the water it would be harder to find the diver than from the fly-bridge of the main boat. The sea was agitated, the current was fast and the tourist didn't have a buoy.

 

[DrSteve]

I believe we were told in Coz and the Bahamas that if we surfaced away from the boat to inflate our safety sausage and sit tight. I am assuming the boat would cast off, if it was an emergency situation, especially if they are on a buoyed location...dead easy to find a buoy compared with a diver who has been floating for 30 minutes...all that black gear makes divers very difficult to spot.

 

[pilot fish]

I am also curious about this.

If you surface a long way from the boat and signal distress will they pull up anchor (or cut away from the mooring line) and come to you while other divers are still in the water?

In Key Largo last Sept. my wife had trouble with a mask leaking and we surfaced to deal with it. I watched the boat, it was not long before someone was looking our way -- which was good -- I signaled Ok and got a return, that made me fell good.

But I just can't see a big boat moving with divers in the water. Would they send out a rubber raft if you were in need of help?

I can see why they might not be able to pull up anchor and go to him right away but to toss the diver something, a line, tell another diver to swim to him, or something, seems reasonable.

While diving in Ft Lauderdale this past weekend 4 divers and I had to wait a 1/4 mile from the boat 15 to 20 minutes till they were able to come get us on a drift dive in 3 to 5 ft swells. I was soooooooooooo thankful my BC was holding air, I had my snorkel with me and was able to stay buoyant. I did think, if I needed help, what would I do? Service your gear, folks.

 

[miketsp]

While diving in Ft Lauderdale this past weekend 4 divers and I had to wait a 1/4 mile from the boat 15 to 20 minutes till they were able to come get us on a drift dive in 3 to 5 ft swells. I was soooooooooooo thankful my BC was holding air, I had my snorkel with me and was able to stay buoyant. I did think, if I needed help, what would I do? Service your gear, folks.

If you know what depth you're in just tie your weight belt to your spool line and drop it letting the line run out. It will serve as an anchor and slow down your drift significantly. You will also stay much more buoyant & comfortable.

 

[pilot fish]

If you know what depth you're in just tie your weight belt to your spool line and drop it letting the line run out. It will serve as an anchor and slow down your drift significantly. You will also stay much more buoyant & comfortable.

That's an interesting piece of advice, Mike. Never would have thought of that. I don't have a spool line and my weights are intergrated. What would I do in that case? Thanks. Great advice.