Write Up of Near Death in Monterey

[Jim Lapenta]

Under what conditions should one diver refuse to allow another diver to thumb a dive?

Never that I can think of. After telling students in class over and over that a thumbs up means surface and then refusing to do that? I would hope that instructor would have their card yanked. It is never the right thing to keep someone under that does not want to be there. You surface, address the issue calmly, and if need be cancel the dives and go back to the pool. But to refuse a students request to surface? That's just ignorant as well as unprofessional.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Ayisha]

A precedent was already set in Switzerland a few years ago. Apparently you can only slow a bolting diver down, not hold them down:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/sc...-helper-trouble-involuntary-manslaughter.html

 

[raftingtigger]

MONTEREY DIVE ACCIDENT UPDATE: SCUBA GEAR LOST AT RESCUE RECOVERED

Posted by California Diver Magazine on 01/06/2013
On December 15th, Kerry Franciscovitch was involved in a serious dive accident on her first underwater training dive. After an rapid ascent from 28 feet, inhaling seawater, and surfacing in distress, she was rescued by her fianceé Scott Cassell, the U.S. Coast Guard, and other divers onshore. (See our related story here).

​

During the rescue, both Kerry and Scott’s gear was removed and left at the scene. After 2 weeks of extensive searching and media coverage asking the dive community to help find the gear, the gear was not located and presumed stolen. The Monterey Police Department, Coast Guard, Monterey and Bay Area dive shops, California Diver, and many other businesses, agencies and individuals were involved in the search for the gear.
Weeks later, while investigating the accident, an investigator was able to locate the gear – It was at the dive shop which was training Kerry. Until contacted directly by the investigator, the SF Bay Area dive shop allegedly made no attempt to contact the divers involved.
“I was talking to the investigator and told him that the dive shop might have the gear … they said they had it, and I could come and get it if I wanted it. He called them, and had (the gear) delivered. Scott and I have been through everything and the only items missing were our weights, which were ditched in the water, Scott’s dive watch and depth gauge. Everything else had been gathered and stored exactly as it had been found. It was moldy and cruddy but it was all there.”
California Diver would like to thank all those who helped search for the gear and spread the word. We had many emails from people offering to donate replacement gear, start a fund to replace their lost gear, and from hundreds of others who offered their best wishes to the family and who helped spread the word.

 

[bambooreef]

The shop involved in this incident was NOT and Bamboo Reef, it was a different shop in Northern California. The instructors involved have no affiliation with any Bamboo Reef.

 

[oldschoolto]

Boy oh boy... That dive shop and it's instructors are a real class act.... To not even try to return the gear... And forget about not rinsing the gear... They need to be outed.....

Jim....

 

[supergaijin]

That's a bad sign if the gear 'turns up' back in the DC after an incident like this. Media coverage and all the while the gear is sitting in the DC. There is a lot of time to swap regs or fix something (if indeed something was not working properly).

 

[Peter_C]

Here is another incident from the same shop. The shop may not be named in the thread below, but trust me in that the OP and I exchanged many PM's back and forth regarding the shop, the owner, and training. In my personal dealings with the shop owner I swore I would never set foot in the door again, and I haven't.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ne...ering-diving/325531-fail-weekend-certify.html

 

[House Gecko]

A quick look at the SSI web site shows that there are three SSI shops in the bay area and Monterey.

One of them, Wallins, has been out of business for more than a year, so we know it isn't that one.

The other two SSI shops have the same name. So, the name of the shop isn't really a mystery. I've never take a class from the most popular dive shop in Monterey but it seems like a well run shop. I wonder what became of the instructors. I know that with PADI, instructors have to file an incident report if there is an injury during a class. This results in an investigation and follow up actions. I sure hope SSI does the same thing, this needs to be cleaned up so it cannot happen again.

I am glad to have learned that the speculation in this post in incorrect. Today I spoke with Sal (Bamboo Reef owner) and he told me that Bamboo Reef had no involvement in this incident what so ever. My understanding is that the shop involved is no longher a SSI shop and is not a Bay Area Dive Center. I could tell that the speculation incorrectly pointing to Bamboo Reef bothered Sal a lot. I understand why it bothered him as he has spent decades building Bamboo Reefs reputation and a few assumptions and rumors can do a lot of damage to brand.

My best wishes for the lady involved in the incident. I hope she fully recovers and one day can enjoy the water again.

 

[lamont]

Yesterday when I was originally reading the story, I - like I imagine most people - started getting myself in a lather over how the instructors behaved. And then I realized, I'm just getting half the story here. Why am I taking this person's word verbatim? Imagine for a moment that the two instructors were completely competent, experienced, and professional. We don't know they weren't. What if it was the author that had acted out of line and has a completely distorted opinion of the events?

I'm having a very hard time picturing two completely competent, experienced and professional instructors alongside the outcome where the student is getting intubated.

Even if the boyfriend is really a bit of a pushy jackass or something, the instructors are ultimately responsible and are responsible for managing the whole class, including him, and responsible for keeping the class under control and stopping situations like this before they have a chance to occur.

Dive instructors need to really be held to have ultimate responsibility for their courses, much like a captain has ultimate responsibility for their ship.

 

[koozemani]

Holy crap. As embellished as this story is(IMO), it still sounds like a terrifying ordeal. I could not imagine going through what either the author or victim experienced. Not one for law suits, but this seems like a case for which they were intended.