Dive Haven GA Incident

[Ron Parker]

Totally AGREED.

 

[tardmaster]

Anything you would like to add or clarify?

Cheers,
Jeff

Scuba dudett is 100% correct on all of her facts.

 

[icestac]

Scuba dudett is 100% correct on all of her facts.

Thanks for the update.

 

[JCDdiver]

i was the divemaster during that incident.

Thanks for the informative post.

 

[jkaterenchuk]

The students were under the supervision of an instructor, a divemaster, and a divemaster in training. Their max depth was to be 80 feet, and not all went too deep. The actual search was for one.

As a result of this event, Dive Haven is planning to install at least one more training platform (max depth probably 80-100 feet). And from discussions overheard in the EMS circle, they will be formulating a more solid rescue plan as well. So something good is going to result from this event.

I am a dive instructor and have certified a number of people in AOW in the quarries of the NE USA. I don't have the time to write here the number of things that can and do go wrong when conducting a dive of this kind in the kinds of conditions that are normal in this and most other Quarries. Regulator free flows are common, differrent descent speeds and diver anxiety to mention a few of the most common.

5 divers with even three supervising people and a low viz 150ft hard bottom is a risky teaching dive. IMO the quarry should build a seperate AOW deep dive platform in a area where the hardbottom is more like 80-90ft, put something down there for the students to look at like an sunken boat and put a platform at 60ft so that there is a stop and regrouping area prior to going deeper.

Additionally, I wonder if having a float on the surface with a hard bottom of 150ft in a quarry mostly used for recreational diving is an encouragement for unqualified divers to go beyond their level of training, skills and knowledge and hence an accident waiting to happen. It should not be needed for any technical diver as they should have the skills to do a smb or free water ascent.

John

 

[deepstops]

i was the divemaster during that incident.

You were a ScubaBoard member when the incident happened, why did you wait until now to post??

 

[tardmaster]

Thanks for the informative post.

as i posted earlier, scuba dudette told the story. there was absolutely no reason for the sarcasm........or do you come by that naturally?

 

[tardmaster]

You were a ScubaBoard member when the incident happened, why did you wait until now to post??

great question. i wish i could give you an answer.

 

[JCDdiver]

as i posted earlier, scuba dudette told the story. there was absolutely no reason for the sarcasm........or do you come by that naturally?

Sure there was, not that I would expect you to understand. I just found your post to be funny.

You didn't post anything 2 years ago when the incident occurred. Now over 2 years later you posted that you were the DM. It was a useless post, why bother? So I laughed.

Most of Dive Haven is a terrible choice for OW training. Anyone who takes OW students out to the 150FFW platform is asking for trouble.