Question about downwells

[T_H]

I've been reading about some of the downwells in Cozumel, Mexico recently where some divers would suddenly get caught in one and start to rapidly descend, while other divers just a few feet from them would be just fine. We all know we should stay with our buddy. However, what if your buddy is suddenly caught in a downwell and starts to rapidly descend (say 20-30+ feet within seconds), but you are not caught up in the downwell yourself. What do you do?

 

[RickyF]

I can't tell you what to do or say what is absolutely the right thing to do, but I would be watching to see how my buddy is handling it and if they seem to be having a problems, I believe that I am going after them and help to the best of my ability without causing myself harm. Just my .02

 

[PeterNBiddle]

I can't tell you what to do or say what is absolutely the right thing to do, but I would be watching to see how my buddy is handling it and if they seem to be having a problems, I believe that I am going after them and help to the best of my ability without causing myself harm. Just my .02

I think that's worth a whole dollar.

 

[g1138]

If you're buddy is caught in the downwell and you're not, there's probably no chance you can catch up to them even if you tried. From what I've heard the down current is usually pretty strong.

It be best to brief your buddy on down currents, and explain to swim away from the wall (which is where I've heard it most often occurring).
From there on, in the dive should it occur, descend to as far as it's still safe and try to reestablish contact with your buddy.
If that fails, consider it a lost buddy protocol and follow your established procedure on that.

 

[boulderjohn]

If you're buddy is caught in the downwell and you're not, there's probably no chance you can catch up to them even if you tried. From what I've heard the down current is usually pretty strong.

They come in a variety of strengths. Some are barely noticeable. Others require more effort, including inflating the BCD and finning, to stay at your depth. Some will take you down even with that effort. If you assume that your buddy is making an effort, then you will normally be able to catch up. Your buddy should meanwhile try to get out of it. It is often similar to a waterfall.

 

[t-mac]

The first principle of rescue is not to become another victim. With that, if my buddy gets whooshed away by a downwelling, I doubt I would chase them into it. I've never experienced it myself so I'm not sure what I would do besides try to stay out of trouble and maintain at least visual contact until it become clearer I can do something without harming myself. If I lost visual contact, I'd follow the lost buddy protocol. I'd be curious to hear from people who have actually experienced this.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

Thanks for the candor from everyone, who like me, know what should be done but recognize the compulsion to follow after the buddy in trouble. Briefing before the dive and articulating "escape maneuvers if in a downwell is critical. Remember to move across the current (even a down current) to attempt escape. The buddy who is unaffected, if safe to descend, should do so parallel to the buddy in the current, so the buddy in the current knows a direction to go. The buddy out of the downwell needs to be close at hand, outside the zone of danger, so that if the buddy in the current does have to drop weight and inflate to escape, the other buddy can then close in and assist in buoyancy control as able. The key, as prior posters note, is to not put yourself in the danger zone. There is a difference between rescue and sacrifice. On the other hand, if the affected diver was my lifelong dive buddy and wife Debbie, well, we are going to sink or swim together. We made a pact.
DivemasterDennis