"Hey, let's be careful out there."

[Karl Huggins]

As common sense would dictate, no lobster is worth your health or life. However, every year divers push themselves into trouble on their quest for the California Spiny Lobster.
Lobster season begins at 12:01am Saturday morning (October 1, 2016), which means many divers will be hitting the water shortly after midnight for a very dark (new moon) night dive. For some of these divers it will be the first dive they have done for months! I urge everyone who is heading out this weekend (and any time you dive) to do all you can to reduce your risks. Some suggestions are:

• Make sure your are physically and mentally fit for the exertion and stresses of lobster diving
• Ensure your gear is in good operational condition
• Perform shake out dives with your gear before hitting the water at 12:01 am
• Dive dive sites in the day before diving them at night
• Plan your dive, and dive your plan
• Dive with a buddy and have a set plan in case of separation
• Monitor your air on a regular basis
• Stay well below the limits of your dive computer (or decompression tables, or deco software)
• If you have problems, or start to feel anxious, abort your dive and calmly and slowly return to the surface - Understand that unresolved problems or anxiety can progress to a panic situations

It would be wonderful if we did not have a repeat of the beginning of last year's Lobster season where, in the first three weeks of the season, we had six divers brought to the Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber; which is same number as the first three weeks of the season from 2010-2014 added together! (These numbers do not include the fatalities who were not transported to the chamber).
The Accident Prevention section of the Chamber's web pages offer suggestions on reducing risks (http://dornsife.usc.edu/hyperbaric/...).
And an article from DAN presents case summaries and has additional suggestions (https://www.diversalertnetwork.org/...).
So, in the immortal words of Sergeant Phil Esterhaus... "Hey, let's be careful out there"

 

[Sam Miller III]

Thank you Karl for your post---Lets hope the number will zero.

And lets hope the Participants
Catch
Photograph
Release
ANY Lobster over 10 pounds

Look forward to seeing you in April..

Sam 111