Hi All,
I am asking the question because it seems difficult to get a definitive answer, and from time to time I can see on newspapers (I live in Europe) descriptions of accidents with a similar situation.
Basically I am talking about what should be done when your buddy (or another nearby diver) is experiencing severe problems (e.g. cardiac issues) and has lost consciousness: in other words, he/she is not breathing; I understand that the situation would be already critical on the ground.
My view on "what to do" is the following, please give me your opinion:
1. Underwater, there is almost nothing I can do to help him/her: even if I have been trained to practice mouth-to-mouth respiration and hearth massage, there is no way I can do underwater, while at the same time I have to breathe, ascent carrying the unconscious diver and monitor the ascent speed (I am assuming no-deco dive profile). Therefore, we have to reach the surface ASAP first.
2. The diver is not breathing, meaning that the hearth will stop soon (or it is already stopped) so all the risks related to not respecting the proper ascent speed are marginal: I unlock the weight belt, inflate the BC and shoot the diver to the surface; at least there it will be possible to help him/her (vent the lungs at the very least) and perhaps someone is there (another diver, the boat, ...)
3. Now, the big problem: what should *I* do? If I shoot to the surface, I will put myself in danger, but if I ascent following the rules (even if I ignore the 3 minutes/3 meters safety stop) it may take some minutes before I will be able to do something.
I find extremely difficult to take a decision. According to my limited first aid notions, practice hearth massage is the key to have some chance of surviving since it will allow a certain amount of blood to reach the brain, therefore preventing the brain cells from dying. But it is very difficult to do that in the water unless there are no waves... Only on a boat (or on any flat & hard surface) it would have some effectiveness.
I am inclined to think I would ascent to the surface exceeding the "safe" speed, making no safety stop, but NOT shooting to the surface. Is that wrong? Should I risk more?
Thanks for any answer,
DareDevil
I am asking the question because it seems difficult to get a definitive answer, and from time to time I can see on newspapers (I live in Europe) descriptions of accidents with a similar situation.
Basically I am talking about what should be done when your buddy (or another nearby diver) is experiencing severe problems (e.g. cardiac issues) and has lost consciousness: in other words, he/she is not breathing; I understand that the situation would be already critical on the ground.
My view on "what to do" is the following, please give me your opinion:
1. Underwater, there is almost nothing I can do to help him/her: even if I have been trained to practice mouth-to-mouth respiration and hearth massage, there is no way I can do underwater, while at the same time I have to breathe, ascent carrying the unconscious diver and monitor the ascent speed (I am assuming no-deco dive profile). Therefore, we have to reach the surface ASAP first.
2. The diver is not breathing, meaning that the hearth will stop soon (or it is already stopped) so all the risks related to not respecting the proper ascent speed are marginal: I unlock the weight belt, inflate the BC and shoot the diver to the surface; at least there it will be possible to help him/her (vent the lungs at the very least) and perhaps someone is there (another diver, the boat, ...)
3. Now, the big problem: what should *I* do? If I shoot to the surface, I will put myself in danger, but if I ascent following the rules (even if I ignore the 3 minutes/3 meters safety stop) it may take some minutes before I will be able to do something.
I find extremely difficult to take a decision. According to my limited first aid notions, practice hearth massage is the key to have some chance of surviving since it will allow a certain amount of blood to reach the brain, therefore preventing the brain cells from dying. But it is very difficult to do that in the water unless there are no waves... Only on a boat (or on any flat & hard surface) it would have some effectiveness.
I am inclined to think I would ascent to the surface exceeding the "safe" speed, making no safety stop, but NOT shooting to the surface. Is that wrong? Should I risk more?
Thanks for any answer,
DareDevil