Have you ever been entangled?

[ems_is_4_me]

In my work as a Paramedic i have found that shears will cut most anything you need. A good pair will cut a penny in half.

 

[Jayde323]

I've been entangled a twice. The first time was not too long after hubby and I were certified. Viz was low on this particular dive so the DM laid out a line around the dive site for the divers to follow. I was following hubby's lead and next thing you know, I'm kicking and getting nowhere. I follow my hose up to the first stage and feel the line the DM laid caught up in it, but coudln't get myself free. I didn't have a knife with me, and being a new diver I was not comfortable with taking my gear off to free myself. I had plenty of gas left, so I just hung out waiting for my hubby to turn around and come to my aid. A few seconds later he turned to check on me and saw me just hanging there. After he flooded his mask from laughing at me, I was free.

The second time was just a few weeks ago diving the Bibb in the Keys. There was some fishing line tangled up on the mooring line and I had managed to steer clear of it on the way down, but the way up was another story. I had gotten narc'd for the first time on this dive and was a bit shaken up so we called the dive. On the way up the mooring line, I forgot about the fishing line and it became caught on my tank straps. it never became an issue as my husband saw it and freed me right away.

Right after my first entanglement, I bought a dive knive. Now I dive with 2, one strapped to my leg, the other on my BC.

 

[offthewall1]

Entanglement seems to be a primary diving hazard, but my OW textbook really fails to mention anything about it. It mentions that a diver's tool (knife) is "very handy" to free yourself in case you become ensnared and for tapping on your cylinder to get your buddy's attention. It never really even stresses that a diver's tool is a critical piece of equipment (although I just assumed I would always carry one).

I was thinking that if my certified dive buddy from my OW class and I decided to rent some gear and go dive in my local lake, we would really just have to figure out what to do on the spot if one or both of us were to become entangled.

I imagine that the thing to do would be to stop, get your breathing under control, think, and then act in a calm and non-panicked manner. Seems easy enough (right), but I am sure this can be very difficult to do under the stress of entanglement - especially if the stress was compounded by other problems such as having your mask knocked off, your air supply knocked from your mouth, or losing contact with your buddy.

So my questions for you are: Have you ever been Entangled? What was the progression of how it happened, and how did you react? and: What advice would you give to a recently certified OW diver about entanglement?

The risk of true entenglement in open water is near zero. Entanglement generally happens and the risk of it increases when doing certain types of diving.

Wreck diving, Kelp Diving and Limited Visibility diving in certain environments greatly increases the risk of entanglement.

I have been truly entangled only twice in thousands of dives. The first occurred while diving a wreck in limited visibility, the second while working under a boat in zero visibility. Remember that in clear water, you can see hazards and should go out of your way to avoid them. While it is true that monofiliment (fishing line) can be near invisible in the water... there is little chance of it grabbing you in mid water. It generally is snagged on a wreck... and the backdrop of that wreck makes all or at least some part of the line visible to you in clear water.

Kelp is certainly an issue if you're diving in areas where it exists. Just entering and exiting the water in a kelp bed is an experience all to itself. Once you've penetrated the canopy, swimming under the bed should lay fears to rest. It is mostly at the surface where kelp is a problem... that is where it is the thickest.

Recommendations on dealing with entanglement are always - Stop - Breathe - Think. In other words slow down and concentrate. Moving fast and getting anxious only complicate the problem. Methodical thinking is the key. Always carrying a cutting implement - especially when diving in an area of entanglements - is another key. If you stop, breath, think and have a cutting implement, you're in no major trouble.

The biggest challenge is finding yourself in zero visibility and entangled. This requires a great deal of self control and self sufficiency. A second diver entering this situation is likely only to make matters worse... as they too could become entangled making it harder for both to move and position themselves for extrication.

In most instances what becomes entangled isn't you... it is some part of your equipment. maybe your tank valve, a fin buckle, a dangling gauge or light. The best way to avoid entanglement is streamlining in your equipment set up and limited the number of clippy things all over you. If you're grabbed from behind, you may have to remove your equipment to clear the tangle. Know your equipment, where your weighting is etc... and think before you act.

In all honesty - as a new diver, I think entanglement should be way down your list of worries. For the time being - avoid diving where entanglements are expected and gain some experience before pushing into the more challenging territories.

Cheers - to happy and safe diving!

 

[Diver0001]

So my questions for you are: Have you ever been Entangled? What was the progression of how it happened, and how did you react? and: What advice would you give to a recently certified OW diver about entanglement?

I've had a couple of experiences that I can relay.

On one occasion a fisherman standing on shore nearly snagged me. when I realised that his line was tangled up in my tank valve and he was pulling his hooks (yes, there were more than one) toward me I wound my arm around the line a few times and wipped out my knife and cut it. At that point the line that was laying across me was everywhere so I just stayed still and hovered while my buddy got it off of me.

On another occasion I swam into a huge bow net with a student. The viz was bad and we didn't see the net until we were right inside. In that case we just stopped and very slowly backed out. In these cases (this is a tip) backing out works better than trying to turn around. If you turn around you're sure to make things worse.

On another occasion I got "hung up" on a wreck. I wasn't technically entangled because what had happened is a thin piece of metal hanging down from above the door I was going though slid right in between the A clamp on my regulator and the tank valve. In that case I couldn't move at all, not forward, back or turn/roll and my buddy was just out of sight. I could feel with my hand that something was jammed into the regulator but I couldn't get it out so I decided to take the BCD off and roll over so I could see it better. Just when I was in the process of doing that my buddy came back for me and helped me get out of it.

Tips:

For one thing it's really quite difficult to get "entangled" in a net by just touching it or swimming past it *PROVIDED* your gear is streamlined. The biggest "snag points" on your gear are the wheel at the back of your regulator, the clips on your flippers and a knife strapped to the outside of your leg. To "net proof" these, change to DIN type regulators, fins with low profile strap buckles and move your knife to a less snaggy location, like attaching it to the shoulder strap of your BCD.

If for some reason you *do* get entangled then remaining calm is the first thing you need to do. Do NOT roll over or try to turn around because you'll make it worse. Back out if you can, move slowly and remove whatever has you and move away slowly. The take-home message is GO SLOW and DON'T ROLL. Cutting it might be appropriate in some cases but cutting a line makes two lines from one and cutting a net just makes bigger holes that can get caught on bigger things. If you must cut it to get out ok, but I wouldn't personally reach for my knife until I had tried getting it off with my hands first. Also, speaking of hands. If your buddy is not entangled then your best bet is to just remain still and let your buddy take care of it.

R..

 

[jwc3]

Thanks for all of these stories. I just ordered some dive shears...

 

[Steve50]

As an instructor candidate descended into fishing line while taking two instructors on a mock first certification dive (what timing)..Had to cut the birds nest of line away from my fins with a knife.

 

[captain]

I carry three different cutting tools. A knife, shears and diagonal cutting pliers. I have a loop of bungee cord on the knife that I can slip my hand through before taking it out of the sheath. The shears are attached to my rig with one of those plastic coils used on key rings. The pliers are on a lanyard in a pocket. The knife and shears are on the shoulder straps.

 

[Diver0001]

I have a loop of bungee cord on the knife that I can slip my hand through before taking it out of the sheath. The shears are attached to my rig with one of those plastic coils used on key rings. The pliers are on a lanyard in a pocket. The knife and shears are on the shoulder straps.

I guess this is worth responding to. Someone in this thread also mentioned that they have their cutting implement attached to a long(ish) bit of cave line.

I'm not going to advise you (the op) not to listen to them becaue their way may work for you but personally I do something else. I attach a loop of bungee cord to my knife/scissors etc that's only big enough to get a finger through.

Why? for two reasons.

(1) that way (if you have you finger through it) you can't drop it
and
(2) *if* you drop it then it doesn't *go* anywhere and there is no line/lanyard/etc that can add to your problems..... and maybe
(3) it's the most compact, problem free and "streamlined" solution I can think of.

As I said above, I don't want to slag off the solutions that other divers have offered. I'll just add this one to the list of possibilities.

R..

 

[Thalassamania]

I like that - I use bungie sized to my wrist, I'm going to try finger sized. How 'bout a photo?

 

[Diver0001]

I like that - I use bungie sized to my wrist, I'm going to try finger sized. How 'bout a photo?

Here you go. This loop is made for dry gloves. Adjust to taste. Incidentally it also shows the famous keyboard I use to empart my wisdom to the internet.... LOL

R..