Propeller accident after diving at Galápagos Islands

[Quero]

Nathalie, thank you for recounting that chilling story with such vivid insight into your own feelings and sensations. It's rare to actually be able to imagine so clearly what it's like to be rescued when you're in mortal danger--just simple things like noticing when the rescuers were removing your scuba gear, waiting for oxygen, etc., make it so immediate and real. Very scary. So glad you survived and are on the long road to recovery.

In regards to your quest to encourage safety in relation to boat propellers, are you aware of the DAN Europe safety campaign along the same lines? I'm wondering whether they can use your account of your accident to illustrate and promote their goals and at the same time further your own goal. Here's a link.
DAN Europe - Safety Campaigns

Best of luck to you in your continued recuperation, and I hope you regain the use of your leg and foot very soon. Mad props for your boyfriend's cool head during the whole ordeal as well. He's a keeper (that means don't let him go)!

 

[Nathalie_nl]

Dear all,

Many thanks again for your kind and supporting words. I'm slowly getting better at walking with crutches. This season is lost, but next year I'll be diving again and hopefully teaching as well. A couple of student divers have told me they'll wait with their next course until I'm ready to teach them. How sweet is that! I'll be sure to tell all my future open water students about smbs and have future advanced open water students practice with it.

#32 Peter69_56: Dear Peter, thank you so much for your extensive personal story. At the moment I'm 35 years old. This is way too young for a knee replacement, and this is why the surgeon in my home country wanted to perform an other surgery to my knee. He now hopes it will take a couple years longer before my own knee has eroded to a stage that I do need a replacement. Which in the end is inevitable. I'm not sure if I'm allowed running in the meanwhile, I'll have to ask, but I'm sure diving is a healty option.

#41 Quero: I contacted DAN. They were interested in my story and want to use it in an issue of their Alert Diver Magazine. It's also going to appear in a British and in a Dutch diver magazine. My campain goes on!
And yes, you are quite right. My boyfriend is a keeper!! <3

Take care, Nathalie.

 

[Peter69_56]

Nathalie,

I hope all goes well for you. Keep in touch and let me know if I can help in any way.

Peter

 

[3william56]

Hi Nathalie. Thanks for sharing your story. I've just come back from the Galapagos too, and I hope you got to see some of the wonders there before your accident.

The boat that hit you - I'm presuming from the "200hp engine" that it wasn't a small zodiac, and that it was something bigger? My Galapagos diving was from a livaboard with small zodiacs, all with propeller guards. The point being that surface buoys are only effective if you're well clear of larger boats; as the boat was so close when you surfaced, most likely it wouldn't have helped (though your advice to use one at all times is absolutely still the best practice).

For the folk wondering how you'd miss a boat engine, it would be easy. Standard Galapagos kit is a 7mm hood, which kills your hearing (especially if you're not used to it). I'm a tropical diver, so never worn a hood before. If Nathalie was wearing one of those, it doesn't surprise me that she'd miss the sound of an idling engine. Add a bit of distraction (sounds like she made friends with one of the happy hog fish there), and missing the sound of the boat is entirely understandable.

I guess there are a few basic lessons we continuously need to remind ourselves of:

1) When diving from a large boat, anchored or zodiac recovery is far safer. The larger the boat, the greater the separation needed when ascending. And always wave at the guy at the controls, and get a response so you know he's seen you, before approaching or letting him come near. He might be heading for someone behind you. It pays to be paranoid around large unanchored boats.

2) On boats, check zodiacs have propeller guards. Especially when there's current, the driver may have to keep the motor running to keep station, or may (as in Nathalie's case case) make a mistake. I didn't check before we dived like I should have, but it became obviously necessary on the first recovery in strong currents - was a bit late when I ducked to check for a prop guard when waves were washing us to the back of the zode.

3) Make sure to look up before the ascent, and continuously spin 360' when doing safety stops (however fascinating the stuff in front is!). It keeps you safe, and as a bonus also means you don't miss the 15m whale shark approaching right behind you. Yeah, I did that (got a heck of a surprise when I turned around and she was a couple of metres away - just about swallowed my reg).

4) A surface buoy is an essential piece of kit, though be aware that they might not be suitable in high wind/high current places. On our boat, we were all issued with flags on a 6 ft collapsible pole, as safety buoys tend to get blown flat by the wind. They also handed out air horns, and radio locators to every diver, which gives you an idea how serious Galapagos diving can get.



We all hope you make a speedy recovery, and get back in the water soon.

 

[Mandy3206]

This is my personal story about my accident with all my pain, my sorrow and my emotions. I recently shared my story on the Dutch scubaboard. I received many positive feedback and that is why I would like post it also on the US scubaboard. The main reason for sharing my story, is because I feel my accident could have easily been prevented. By sharing my story I hope to achieve that other divers are more aware of the necessity of using a surface marker buoy, even if there is only one boat nearby.


My accident happened on May 9th of this year, while ascending from a beautiful dive at the Galápagos Islands. The captain did not notice me, my buddy and the diveguide. He ran us over. My left leg got cought up in the propeller of the motorboat. My whole story I've written down and can be read in my blog: Going home after 16 nights in Ecuadorian hospital - Reisverslag uit Guayaquil, Ecuador van Nathalie - WaarBenJij.nu The first part is Dutch, but when you'll scroll down, you'll find the full English translation.


On Saturday May 25th we arrived at the airport of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. An ambulance took me straight to the academic hospital, where on Monday a they performed a new surgery on my knee. Because of this surgery, it might take a couple years more, before I need to have my knee replaced with an artificial one. Nerves and muscles are damaged. In total I spent 43 days in a hospital. First in Ecuador, later in my home country, the Netherlands. At this moment I'm staying at a recuperation clinic. I've been here now for four weeks and will have to stay at least a couple weeks more. It's too early to tell if over time my knee and ankle will fully function again. I know that I need at least one more surgery. Recuperation will take at least six months up to a year.

Nathalie.

Wish you a speedy recovery, thanks for sharing your story..........God Bless you Nath

 

[Snow-star]

Hoi Nathalie,
om je te laten weten dat ik het super vind dat je het ook op dit board post, mijn berichtje aan jou in het Nederlands, want op een Nederlands forum heb ik het niet eerder gezien, dus je bereikt zo veel (meer) mensen!
Wat een verschrikkelijk verhaal! Kan het niet in woorden uitdrukken hoe goed hoe jij gereageerd hebt, en Eke, en Jen en Lynzi!!
Hoewel wij bij een hele goede duikschool onze ow gehaald hebben en op veel meer dingen geattendeerd zijn dan standaard in de ow opleiding, is ook dit bij ons wel genoemd tijdens onze ow cursus, maar wij hebben ons nooit de impact gerealiseerd tot het lezen van jouw verhaal! Eigenlijk waren er altijd wel duikers bij die een oppervlakte boei bij hadden, maar bij het lezen van jouw verhaal besefte ik me pas dat iedereen er 1 bij moet hebben!
Bij deze heb je dus in ieder geval weer 2 duikers enorm geholpen met het plaatsen van je verhaal! Voor onze volgende duik gaan we eerst 2 boeien halen!!
Nogmaals complimenten voor jezelf en de betrokkenen en dank je wel voor het plaatsen van je verhaal! En uiteraard heel, heel veel succes met je, hopelijk spoedige, herstel!!
groetjes Brigitte

Translation:
Hi Nathalie,
To let you know I think it is wise to post your story on this board as well, I wrote my story in dutch. I haven't seen it on dutch scuba forum before, so I think you will reach (more) people this way!
What a horrible story! I can't express in words how well you responded, and Eke, and Jen and Lynzi!
Although we did our ow with a very good diving school that explained and pointed out much more than the standard ow course required, and although the SMB certainly was mentioned during the course, we never realised the impact of carrying our own SMB until we read your story! There were always divers present during every dive carrying a bouy, but reading your story made me realise everyone should have their own!
This said, you helped 2 divers with telling your story! Before our next dive we will first get 2 SMB!
Again; compliments to you and all people involved en thank you for sharing your story!
And of course: a whole lot of luck with your, hopefully speedy, recovery!!
Kind Regards, Brigitte

 

[starelf]

Nathalie,

Thank you very much for your posting. It do remind me that I need to learn how to use my SMB, although I have bought it ever since I got my OW. I will also forward this thread to my girlfriend who also doesn't pay a lot of attention on the SMB. I wish you a speedy recovery and the best luck in your future.

 

[Nathalie_nl]

Dear all,

My goal for this week was to walk my first steps without crutches. That I did not manage, but I'm nearly there. I have my hopes up for next week! In the meanwhile I practise, practise and practise some more. When you've ever broken a leg, you know how fast muscles disappear and how hard it is to get some back... In the evenings I read your comments and again they've been very supportive. Thank you! Here are two replies from me:

#3william56: I hope you had a great time at the Galápagos, our time was too short. My accident happened on the second day there. As soon as I'm fully recovered, we'll go back there. I believe it to be very therapeutical to go back to the place of my accident and hopefully dive there again. We also need to see the islands.
The boat was a larger 'day'boat. I strongly believe that if I had sent a smb to the surface a couple minutes before surfacing myself, the captain would have seen the smb.
I was wearing a hood, but I don't think that it killed my hearing. My boyfriend does recall the sound of the engine (also wearing a hood), but only for a couple of seconds while the boat went overhead and then he saw I was hit. The captain had just turned on the engine about the same time I surfaced.
All the points you make I fully agree on.

#46 Snow-star: Thank you. Pleased to read you're going to use smb's! There are threads in Dutch on the Dutch and on the Belgium Scubaboards. The Dutch one is still active and because of all the positive replies that I received there, I decided to put it on the Belgium and US boards.
Overvaren na duik op de Galápagos Eilanden
Overvaren na duik op de Galápagos Eilanden | duiken.be forum
Another thread I read this week here on scubaboard and which I particularly like is a discussion on why use or not use an smb:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ba...b-deploys-depth-before-ascending-surface.html

Take care, Nathalie.

 

[DandyDon]

Nathalie, you're my diving hero. :medal:

But you do what you go to do sometimes.

 

[Diveflag UK]

Nathalie, thank you for sharing your terrifying experience, may I join the rest of the community here in wishing you a speedy and complete recovery. You are a very brave lady, but next time ~ listen to the fish I think that bit is amazing...

Hope you are blowing bubbles again soon...