Cozumel Incident 9/4/11

[Ron Lee]

Bearkeley, read the link in my previous post. There is NO reason to not be excited about going.

 

[DandyDon]

Bearkeley, it was worrisome at first read - as it was presented at first as an unexpected accident that happened to two local pro divers, leaving some of us to wonder: "Damn, if it can happen to them, what can happen to me?!" I dived with one of the pros and the third diver the week prior and it shook me up a bit to be sure.

Now we know that it was not at all an unexpected accident. The stunt was not planned to fail the way it did, but it was a known stunt dive with known risks which caught up to them. Coz diving still deserves respect, training, planning, and other prudent measure - but it's not inherently dangerous when dived without your training and experience. Down currents are possible but easy to escape as described in many threads by those names, and certainly nothing nearly as dangerous as the fantasy monster first mentioned.

 

[Mike]

and figured the less I know about accidents, the better....my fear about Coz was specific to the currents and being pushed away from my group and getting lost...

An extremely important safety factor that a new diver needs to embrace is how your dive buddies proximity to you can dramatically effect your level of safety as a diver. I witness too many new and experienced dive teams ignoring how important it is for dive buddies to remain close to each other. Being within a few fin kicks of each other will increase your safety dramatically. Keeping close keeps you close to a 2nd source of air, a source of physical help. In drift diving especially, keeping within an arms reach of each other, keeping close means currents effect you both and maintains your margin of safety by having your dive buddy available instantly to help you deal with a problem.

Keep tight with your buddy in Cozumel and your safety and confidence should be greatly increased.

 

[Bearkeley]

Keep tight with your buddy in Cozumel and your safety and confidence should be greatly increased.

I've been trying to find a good reason to keep a tight leashe on my husband - now I've got one! Seriously though, he is a very good buddy - even offered to hold hands with me for our dive! This incident has caused me to take action and try to become a stronger swimmer (I had to learn to swim to get certified!). So again....another good outcome.

Bearkeley, it was worrisome at first read - as it was presented at first as an unexpected accident that happened to two local pro divers, leaving some of us to wonder: "Damn, if it can happen to them, what can happen to me?!" I dived with one of the pros and the third diver the week prior and it shook me up a bit to be sure.

Now we know that it was not at all an unexpected accident. The stunt was not planned to fail the way it did, but it was a known stunt dive with known risks which caught up to them. Coz diving still deserves respect, training, planning, and other prudent measure - but it's not inherently dangerous when dived without your training and experience. Down currents are possible but easy to escape as described in many threads by those names, and certainly nothing nearly as dangerous as the fantasy monster first mentioned.

You bring up a great point --- I have tried to read ALL the posts and threads (including the one on restoring confidence) and honestly, didn't really pick-up that it was a known stunt dive. Saw the posts on the bounce dives, etc (looked up what it meant), but still trying to get clarification on what happened (maybe I missed it?). Not sure if it's appropriate, but adding a separate thread or sticky or something that can summarize for those who are just 'surfing' might be good. Again, I am a big fan of this board, and honestly was debating between two Dive Ops when it happened (they were one of the two), so we really took the time to try and read as much as we can to fully understand it...most tourist divers probably won't - sad.

 

[gypsyjim]

We booked our flight for our first COZ trip late August and have been researching dive ops and hotels on this board when the incidents happened....last night, we tried to see what it would cost to cancel our flight....didn't cancel it yet, but we definitely are not as excited about the trip as we were back in August.

We are still planning to go....won't stop driving a car just because it's probably the most dangerous thing there is, right? However, I must admit, I'm one of those tourist divers who is questioning COZ....

Now, to be honest, I have always avoided this section of the forum. I'm afraid of everything (but LOVE diving once I'm in the water!) and figured the less I know about accidents, the better....my fear about Coz was specific to the currents and being pushed away from my group and getting lost....the reports of random down currents grabbing recreational divers and dragging them down to 300 ft (or not),without warning is terrifying and has certainly caused me more anxiety about going to Cozumel. (My husband is usually not worried about these things by the way, but he too, has become worried after reading the posts ---not something we hear of in Culebra! They may be there, but we haven't heard about them so quite frankly, that's just better if the chance is next to zero of being caught in one)

So....are these posts / speculation / reports hurting anyone? I certainly think so....But, I also think it's giving me courage to overcome my anxiety. Our trip is still 3 months away, so I may still change my mind, but my head is telling me that based on ALL the posts, it really is silly to think that there could be more than a 1 percent chance that a down current can take me down to a depth that could hurt me if I dive my level (with less than 30 dives, I don't expect to go any further than 80 or 90, if that!). So, thanks for the educational posts out there - it's helping....I hope!

Despite some early speculation, later corrected, this accident was not caused by a current. It was a very deep dive that went wrong. Very deep. Narcosis. No back up gas supply. Several factors led up to or contributed to this accident, and none of these are going to effect you, diving within normal recreational dive guidelines.

I have dived with these folks with my very cautious girlfriend, as paying customers, and they were extremely safety conscious at all times. The dive on which they were injured was some sort of personal quest, deep dive, and involved only themselves, on their own time.

As Tortuga68 suggests, simply avoid truly deep sites. Dive the normal site along the top of the reefs. Stay within recreational limits and you will have no such problems as these folks did.

 

[Ron Lee]

Despite some early speculation, later corrected, this accident was not caused by a current.

Dive the normal site along the top of the reefs. Stay within recreational limits and you will have no such problems as these folks did.

Two nits. One of the three divers stated that they were pushed deeper due to a down current. That statement is not believed to be accurate.

Also you do not need to stay on top of the reefs. Plenty of sites where you will be below the top (eg Palancar) but still within safe depths.

 

[cruiser]

.....something that can summarize for those who are just 'surfing' might be good...

First post here gives a synopsis:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mishap-analysis/396425-cozumel-accident-9-4-11-facts.html

 

[Bearkeley]

First post here gives a synopsis:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mishap-analysis/396425-cozumel-accident-9-4-11-facts.html

This was VERY helpful! Didn't even see this thread since it was in the mishap-analysis section rather than Coz.....thank you!!!!!!!!

 

[boulderjohn]

Our trip is still 3 months away, so I may still change my mind, but my head is telling me that based on ALL the posts, it really is silly to think that there could be more than a 1 percent chance that a down current can take me down to a depth that could hurt me if I dive my level (with less than 30 dives, I don't expect to go any further than 80 or 90, if that!). So, thanks for the educational posts out there - it's helping....I hope!

So... don't dive sites that have a 300'+ bottom

As Tortuga68 suggests, simply avoid truly deep sites. Dive the normal site along the top of the reefs. Stay within recreational limits and you will have no such problems as these folks did.

I believe I am going to disagree with this advice. The best sites in Cozumel and in many places in the world have maximum depths that go beyond recreational limits. A basic OW diver should have no trouble staying within those limits simply by glancing at the depth gauge from time to time.

The original and very much false story of a killer downdraft ripping highly skilled divers from recreational depths to 300 feet instills a false fear that will keep you from enjoying the best dive sites. If you are going to stay on top of the reefs, there is no point in going to Cozumel. You are better served going to some place like Key Largo, where you can swim in sites with a maximum depth of 35 feet.

In a typical Cozumel 2-tank dive, the first dive is to a site that has the potential to go beyond recreational limits. All such dives must by law be led by a DM. If you announce on the way to a dive site that you will only dive on the top of the reef, no one will know what to do. The rest of the group is certainly not going to be content to have such a restriction, and the DM will not be allowed to let you go on your own. You will have to schedule your own private dives on the shallower reef sites if that is what you really want.

 

[gypsyjim]

I agree that it is not necessary to hug the reef top, unless one has a real fear of deep water. Then it is not as much a need, and a phobia.

Our best dives on Coz were along the face of the walls, and on the reef top. Great swim-threws, etc on the walls of Coz. Diving a wall of any depth adds no real risk to you dive, as long as one is monitoring their depth.

I have dived walls off T&C where they claim the bottom is a @7000ft. Note: I did not check to confirm this. While on such a wall it can be a bit easy to go deeper than you think if you do not keep alert to your depth, it certainly does not add to risk if you monitor your gauges.


The early stories about this particular accident on Coz, were full of cautions about a powerful down current, which while they could conceivably occur on a wall, they are relatively easy to get away from, and certainly do not lead to the kind of accident they were being blamed for early in the story.

I was simply pointing out that if one is really concerned they can avoid wall dives. Some divers are comfortable in blue water dives with extremely deep bottoms, while others are not. No diver is wrong to stay within their own comfort zone, and no diver should ever be pushed to do a dive they are not comfortable doing.