Rescue of an Unconscious Diver Underwater

[The Chairman]

Some of the situations with unconscious divers prohibit direct ascents. So what do you do until then?

protect yourself first.

 

[Dan]

I read in this thread, Feb 19 2017 Cozumel diving fatality that a drown diver could be very heavy to lift (if the 6L lung were filled with water, I would guess that 6 kg weight added on to the victim). In this situation 2 divers (@Ravenware & husband), who found the victim, were not able to lift the victim up with their BCD fully inflated. The complication added to the situation was the victim BCD inflator was found disconnected & could not be reconnected due to wrong fitting (Air2 inflator/regulator on regular BCD?). Removing the victim weights or BCD did not came to the rescuers mind too. I thought this is something any rescuer needs to consider when attempting to bring a drown victim up.

 

[boulderjohn]

Let's start with this understanding--an unconscious diver on the bottom with the regulator out of the mouth is almost certainly dead. In any event, that diver is not going to be doing any inhaling on the way to the surface.

Over the last decade, I have asked for any known cases in which a diver as found unconscious on the bottom with the regulator out of the mouth, was brought to the surface and given rescue breaths on the surface as is taught in a Rescue Class, and survived. No one has given me an example yet. The closes anyone has come has been cases in which a diver reached the surface in trouble, descended, was recovered while still sinking, was brought to a solid surface (boat or shore) quickly, and given CPR immediately,

 

[Rred]

Actually I'd never heard any debate about angels dancing on the pin of a needle. But it Topology class, the prof made a very reasoned argument concluding that exactly 16 angels can dance on the head of a pin. "Dance" being defined in the simplest case, as just spinning around with their arms and wings out, so they can be approximated as spheres and then the rest just becomes a matter of packing the space with spheres.

Topology: For mathematicians who think numbers shouldn't "crunch" and all them pointy Arabic ones are too dangerous to play with.

 

[boulderjohn]

Actually I'd never heard any debate about angels dancing on the pin of a needle. But it Topology class, the prof made a very reasoned argument concluding that exactly 16 angels can dance on the head of a pin. "Dance" being defined in the simplest case, as just spinning around with their arms and wings out, so they can be approximated as spheres and then the rest just becomes a matter of packing the space with spheres.

Topology: For mathematicians who think numbers shouldn't "crunch" and all them pointy Arabic ones are too dangerous to play with.

Continuing off topic, but it sounds like you would like a play I saw in Chicago a couple months ago: A Disappearing Number. It was fascinating, and a lot of it with theoretical mathematics. Here is a summary. Unfortunately, the run is over in Chicago, but you might look for the piece being performed elsewhere.

 

[The Chairman]

During my ITC, Wayne Mitchel (RIP) cited two instances of this happening. One was with him.

 

[boulderjohn]

During my ITC, Wayne Mitchel (RIP) cited two instances of this happening. One was with him.

Can you find references to them?

 

[Dr Simon Mitchell]

The comments by Rred and Kevin NM exactly reflect the recommendations in our published guidelines. We recommend that if the regulator is out of the mouth, you do not attempt to replace it. Just get them to the surface. However, you might replace the reg if you were in a cave or wreck without an option for direct ascent to the surface. In this setting, the diver's only hope is resumption of spontaneous breathing (as unlikely as that may be). We also make the point (made by John Adsit above) at several places in the paper that an unconscious diver at the bottom has a dreadful prognosis, and the point made by the chairman that it is appropriate to make decisions that put your own interests first.

Simon M

 

[The Chairman]

Can you find references to them?

Wayne is now deceased, and I was told that at the turn of the Century. Good luck with finding references to a diving accident that preceded Scuba Board.

 

[The Chairman]

We gave different advice if the regulator or mouthpiece or full face mask was still in place.

So Simon, you're a rebreather diver. Do you use a gag strap or Full Face Mask (FFM)? If so, which do you use and why? Is it an emotional or science based decision?