Safety on the Dive Boat

[RonFrank]

I have dove with a bunch of boats, and expect the Capt to take care of his boat. I know the requirements, but don't always check. However there is generally a solid briefing on the way out, and I have been impressed by every single one as you can tell they take pride in their boat.

Diver tracking is something I worry about. However most crews have that down as well. I think if anything is going to go wrong that maybe it. I try and ask questions more so I have a better chance of being remembered. I was interested in seeing how the great escape handled a full boat and the answer was very well. Then again I could have swam to shore we were that close to Catalina on all three dives.

 

[lv2dive]

What do I really expect from a dive boat ?


1. Beyond the norm air quality.
2. Tanks filled to 3000 psi, not less in well maintained tanks (I'm not mentioning other gear as I always use my own gear).
3. Enough space for each diver, so as to be able to don and doff dive gear and suit comfortably.
4. A safe count system so as no diver is left behind.
5. Drinks and light food.
6. Enough boat speed so as to arrive and go out to/from the dive place in less than an hour.
7. A well maintained dive boat. Paint, gear, comodities, machinery, etc.
8. A private and comfortable dry place to change wet clothes.
9. A hot shower for those cold days for wet divers.
10. All the safety gear quickly available and well signalized.
11. A clean bathroom.
12. An easy way to climb the boat from the water after dive.
13. Availability of minor dive tools and hardware (tools, o-rings, mask and fin straps, reg plugs, some wet jackets, hoods, etc.).
14. A rest space for inter-dive time.

Do yourself a favor and don't make any plans to dive the offshore wrecks coming out of Morehead City, NC. There are several good operations there and although I would trust most of them with the three-four safety-related items you note, most would not meet the "comfort" expectations by a long shot. And none of them are going to be able to accomplish #6.

Where do you dive that you have these expectations? **Genuinely curious** My expectations - or preferences - are aligned with maybe a third of these of your list. Others i'd love to have but I've never seen them outside of liveaboards. At the end of the day, I want to dive - If the only thing that can get me out there is a rib (St. Lawrence river, for example), I'll give up everything but #4, #7, part of #10, and part of #13...

 

[Wookie]

Seeing how far you operate from normal ports, I would think that you'd require divers to carry a "safety sausage" of X length. ?? (just curious).


regardless if you don't require it, diving without one that far out, it sure is a LONG swim back to key west. (about 70 miles)

Good call. The National Park Service requires all divers to carry a safety sausage, and we enforce that requirement as a condition of our permit.

 

[TMHeimer]

re--emoreira's list: All the saftey things to me are of course imortant. As far as the comforts go, as long as there is a head (dirty is fine) and they let me collect shells, I'm happy.

 

[Brendon]

What do I really expect from a dive boat ?


1. Beyond the norm air quality.
2. Tanks filled to 3000 psi, not less in well maintained tanks (I'm not mentioning other gear as I always use my own gear).
3. Enough space for each diver, so as to be able to don and doff dive gear and suit comfortably.
4. A safe count system so as no diver is left behind.
5. Drinks and light food.
6. Enough boat speed so as to arrive and go out to/from the dive place in less than an hour.
7. A well maintained dive boat. Paint, gear, comodities, machinery, etc.
8. A private and comfortable dry place to change wet clothes.
9. A hot shower for those cold days for wet divers.
10. All the safety gear quickly available and well signalized.
11. A clean bathroom.
12. An easy way to climb the boat from the water after dive.
13. Availability of minor dive tools and hardware (tools, o-rings, mask and fin straps, reg plugs, some wet jackets, hoods, etc.).
14. A rest space for inter-dive time.

I wish... Most of those standards could be met, yet by those standards you listed we have just excluded 80% of the dive boats in Florida... I'll stick with my safe, reliable and fast boats... If they have anything else it's a bonus!

 

[RonFrank]

What do I really expect from a dive boat ?


1. Beyond the norm air quality.
2. Tanks filled to 3000 psi, not less in well maintained tanks (I'm not mentioning other gear as I always use my own gear).
3. Enough space for each diver, so as to be able to don and doff dive gear and suit comfortably.
4. A safe count system so as no diver is left behind.
5. Drinks and light food.
6. Enough boat speed so as to arrive and go out to/from the dive place in less than an hour.
7. A well maintained dive boat. Paint, gear, comodities, machinery, etc.
8. A private and comfortable dry place to change wet clothes.
9. A hot shower for those cold days for wet divers.
10. All the safety gear quickly available and well signalized.
11. A clean bathroom.
12. An easy way to climb the boat from the water after dive.
13. Availability of minor dive tools and hardware (tools, o-rings, mask and fin straps, reg plugs, some wet jackets, hoods, etc.).
14. A rest space for inter-dive time.

You have eliminated EVERY dive boat I have ever been on. The plush ones don't often get to a site in an hour (or ever over night!) and the rest just don't have the space to accommodate your pampered arse.

A six pack would be out of the question as you pee in the water, or between the outboards! There do get you there fast however...

 

[koozemani]

Never thought about this topic. I guess the main thing would be...Don't leave my a$$ behind

 

[Latitude 59]

In my eyes the Captain is responsible for the safety of all souls on board while they are on deck and are free to set whatever rules they feel necessary to ensure safe conditions within their control, weather not being one of them. I appreciate when there is a zero tolerance for distraction during briefings and diver counts, whatever process is used. Once the diver jumps, they are responsible for themselves. In my book the captain has complete authority to change plans midstream to err on the side of caution due to weather or illness of anyone on board to prevent emergency at sea or possible loss of life and any diver who feels differently should argue their differences back at the dock. I do expect boat crews to be well versed in emergency procedures although no one is able to assess that in advance. Failure of emergency equipment (02 being empty, AED not being charged, etc) I would hold the captain and crew responsible for. It's one thing not to have it, it's another thing to have it and not be in state of readiness. I do expect there to be a lookout for divers in distress from the time the first person submerges till when last safely onboard. (Surfaced once in Bahamas with son who had called 4th dive early due to chilling to find captain asleep and no one else on board!)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

All I ask is that the boat operator say what they mean and mean what they say. As long as I know what to expect, I am content to be responsible for making my own decisions.

Boats in many parts of the world don't operate to USCG standards. I'm the one who posted about the boat that didn't have life jackets ... and I wouldn't hesitate to go out on that boat again. As long as I know ahead of time I'll make my own contingency plans.

I've only ever been on one boat that I can honestly say I'd never go out on again ... and it wasn't because of any equipment deficiency or lack of maintenance ... it was because I didn't feel the captain was competent. The boat was fine ... he was an idiot ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[emoreira]

Do yourself a favor and don't make any plans to dive the offshore wrecks coming out of Morehead City, NC. There are several good operations there and although I would trust most of them with the three-four safety-related items you note, most would not meet the "comfort" expectations by a long shot. And none of them are going to be able to accomplish #6.

Where do you dive that you have these expectations? **Genuinely curious** My expectations - or preferences - are aligned with maybe a third of these of your list. Others i'd love to have but I've never seen them outside of liveaboards. At the end of the day, I want to dive - If the only thing that can get me out there is a rib (St. Lawrence river, for example), I'll give up everything but #4, #7, part of #10, and part of #13...

Perhaps this should have been a wish list.
I often dive with a dive boat in Bombinhas Brazil, which fullfils at least 9 of all those points (1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14). It´s an old boat, spacious, well maintained, but deadly slow.
I dive normally in quarries, where no dive boat is available and is always entering by the coast.
I have dived in San Diego CA with the Humboltd (WaterHorse Charters) and in Miami FL with the Big-Com Ocean (RJ Diving). Those boats also fulfills many of the points, but those two cannot account for point No. 4, as both had recently problems related to this.