Entanglement Poll

[tchil01]

Same here in Jersey

WreckWriter once bubbled...
the biggest hazard around here is monofiliment (fishing line). Several times, while swimming along a wreck, I've been brought to a stop by it tangled around my legs. You can't see it unless its real heavy stuff and if you swim into it, it will grab you. A sharp knife is a must.

I had a dive this year that was really bad, mono was everywhere. We were all picking line off our gear even after we got back on the boat. You have to watch some of the new stuff too because it's even tough to cut with a knife. Shears seem to work better for it.

One nice thing is there is a fishing boat next to one of the dive boats I go out with. He trades us snag numbers for weights that we bring back. On the last trip we must of had about 25 lbs of lead sinkers that we brought to him.

Ty

 

[DivePartner1]

I've been tangled in monofilament around the Capt. Dan off Pompano Beach--didn't see it until I felt the rubber band feeling of being tangled.

The only drama was my dive buddy sawing around my reg. with a titanium knife that didn't seem to do much. I handed him my sea snips and he snipped my right out. We knew there was tons of it in the area and missed much of it, but this stuff is really hard to see. An otherwise pleasant dive, although we continued to snip this junk off each other for the rest of the morning.

I now carry a small knife strapped to my consol for the California kelp in addition to the snips strapped to my BC.

 

[kelpmermaid]

to catch you, even if you have everything secured. A little bicycle tire tubing works well on fin straps. I have also had to free a buddy from monofilament entanglement. I wouldn't go in without my Sea Snips.

 

[Uncle Pug]

DivePartner1 once bubbled...
my dive buddy

kelpmermaid once bubbled...
a buddy

And to quote kelpmermaid out of context "I wouln't go in without one."

 

[Scuba]

I think anyone who dives regularly in a kelp forest is going to be entangled to some degree regardless of skill level. The only way I see of avoiding it is to not dive, or to only do so under perfect conditions, while keeping a safe distance from the kelp.

The biggest issue in this case is how one handles the entanglement. Most are quite easy to solve with or without a buddies help, or the use of any tools. It's when the wrong decisions are made that the entanglement compounds and becomes a real problem.

Would like to hear othe opinions from expert kelp divers.

 

[Scubaroo]

Had lots of kelp snaggles - usually around a fin strap. My new spring straps should cure that ill

The other place kelp gets hooked up is around the tank valve. Buddy communication and awareness is key, as is not struggling when you realise you're hooked up. First thing I try and do is stop and back up, which usually just unhooks the offending strand, or signal to a buddy and have them unhook me. It's a regular occurrance when kelp diving - at some stage of the dive you're going to have to deal with it (I like diving in the thick stuff )

Ditto on the sea snips - I couldn't believe how ineffective my knife was when I was using it on shore one day to cut a zip tie - scared me a bit to realise I'd been noodling around with this big false sense of security for a year and a half.

Never had a monofilament entanglement, but I've seen a diver get jagged with a lure in his wetsuit by a fisherman, and seen heaps of line on the bottom.

 

[Uncle Pug]

Scuba once bubbled...
I think anyone who dives regularly in a kelp forest is going to be entangled to some degree regardless of skill level.

Having only seen pictures of the kelp forests in CA I think they are beautiful...

The *kelp forests* that I am familiar with here in the PNW are more akin to vine jungles which at times are vibrating from the current at a 45 degree angle... the fronds on the surface held up by the gas bulb of the bull kelp.

Flying through these jungles is... interesting... and unless you are streamlined... very interesting.

 

[jepuskar]

I got entangled yesterday in the pool during my PPB training. My tank got caught on the hula hoop I was trying to swim through. There I was, at 9 feet with about 2500 psi remaining...it was pretty scary. I didnt think I was going to come out of that one, luckily, one of the other 8 other people in the pool just happened to notice my situation. I think im gonna stay out of that pool for awhile, unleast until tonight when I get to practice my videography skills.

 

[Stone]

It's not so bad on the smaller wrecks, but we have a couple of Liberty Ships (40' X 400') that have mono hanging like spaghetti on the interior of their respective bows.

 

[MikeFerrara]

So taking them one at a time:
*How situationally aware you are.*
At what point should you have called the dive? .:

We strive (and usually succede) to be very aware. However, being aware of something and fully understanding the significance of it are two different things. I should have called the dive at the first (or close to the first) sign of his discomfort. In other words when I realized I was watching him but he was not watching me.

*How well you watch your buddy & vice versa.*
At what point should you have called the dive? .:

Same as above with the additional note that sometimes hindsight yields a different analysis and coice of action than foresight.

*Where you plan your dives.*
Should you have called the dive at this location before it started?
.:

These dives are planned with the goal of solving as many problems as possible before they are problems. Each team member, though has the responsibility to honestly evaluate his/her skills and comfort with the plan and environment. Failure to be honest with yourself and/or the team is irresponsible and is a breakdown in the system that can expose the entire team to needless risk.

Don't go defensive on me here... this is about gaining foresight from hindsight.... I admire you for the way you were able to handle the situation... scares me though .:

Hindsight is vital. This is where we learn and improve forsight. No training can prepare us for everything we will encounter. Training prepares us for common problems and teaches a process for learning to avoid/deal with new ones. We debrief every dive. We make mistakes. We try not to make the same ones all the time. The purpose of planning is to avoid problems. the reason we train to deal with them is that we will never foresee and avoid all possible problems. The better our planning the fewer problems we will have. The more training and experience the better the planning and the more effective the response to unplanned events.

I am sure that you are a much better diver than I am... and I have never been in a cavern much less a cave.:

I never said this. I am not even interested in figuring out who is better. Being better than you will not garanty my enjoyment of the sport or my survival. Being good enough will.

I didn't tell this story to brag. Getting cought with your gard down or misjudging a situation is not bragging material. I was aware of the problems yet the outcome I expected (and counted on) is not what came to pass. The story is a good illustration of the snowball effect that starts with one mistake (a divers failure to asses himself) and continues with others failing to respond correctly thus leading to entanglement and team seperation. I was good enough to succesfully recover from a situation that I was not good enough to avoid. Learning did take place