Scuba police...

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Love the danglies hanging off the gendarme's left d-rings, plus the horse collar bcd is way cool.
 
Could someone maybe traslate the report? I'm courious as to what they actually said. It looks like a division of what we have here in Florida called Fish and Game or Wildlife Conservation Commission. However they don't chase you down underwater. They inspect boats and check fishing limits, etc...

Plongeurs, attention aux contrles de la gendarmerie ! - France - LCI

Wow... they do take cert cards seriously over there! ; )

For those who don't speak french, basically they do spot checks on divers (in the water!!), ask for they name, cert level and issue fines if they're diving outside their cert. The amount of divers controlled is probably really really small. They also check boats for safety equipments and instructors certs.
 
Remember, that is France you're talking about--------where the army wears brown pants for 'coverups'.....
 
"Wow, look at that pretty blowfish over there officer" (turn off his air) "C'mon buddy, make a swim for it!"

Good thing I always bring doughnuts with me when I dive.. :p
 
Here's my best shot at translating it, I'm a programmer not a translator, so the wording might be bit weird, it's surprisingly hard to translate something like that. Some terms might be a bit off.

Anchor: Having a cop ask for your papers is nothing surprising, except if you're underwater. Still, underwater controls are part of the job for the Var cops, especially during the summer vacation period. Nathalie Pelerin & Jean-Pierre Roland spent the day with those underwater cops near "Les Issandres".

Reporter: Like bikers cops, but over water, these cops on jetskis just spotted a boat going over the speed limit. The boat is contacted by the cops.

Cop: It doing 30 knots, the limit is 20 knots.

Reporter: Very often, pleasure boat owners are taking risks without knowing about it. They have poor knowledge of boating laws.

Boat owner: I thought the speed limit was 25, so I thought I was ok,.

Cop: The fine can be very steep. It's set according to the speed, like on the road. In this case it can vary between 1500 & 3000 euros. And maybe eventually a suspension of the boat driving license.

Reporter: In the end, it's the district attorney (note: not sure if it's the correct term) in conjunction with the marine administrators who set the exact amount of the fine.

<cop diver jumping in water>

Reporter: This time it's not about exceeding speed limits, but pay attention, this is really a police control. And it can really surprise people, controlled divers must write their identities on a slate. This is the first contact between the cop and the divers.

Scuba Cop: We didn't bother them for too long, because it's delicate to handle for the instructor.

Women on dive boat: Well, you don't expect to encounter cops underwater, nearly asking for your papers, well we have to deal with it, that's the way it is.

Reporter: Last summer, cops witnessed around 30 infractions committed by divers. Most of time for an excessive depth with regards to the students level.

Scuba cop: Essentially, you'll have people going for something like a Morray Eel that is a bit deeper, 22, 24, 30 meters when they're limited to 20 meters

Reporter: The control continues on the boat. Instructor certifications, student certifications, gear, safety equipment. Everything is checked. In case of severe infraction to safety rules, the school can be administratively closed within 24 hours.

I'd also like to add that my goal in posting this was to provide a bit of interesting trivia to the members of the board, not to mock the way to they do things over there.
 
I don't know what I would do if some knuckle head came up to me wearing a horse collier BC saying he is a cop. I think I would really laugh so hard I would almost drown. Then I might take a picture to show everyone on scuba board, LOL. It did not look like he had any offical ID on him.

And come on 20 knot speed limit in open water?? I know guys that do 50 knots down the Niagara River. Not saying that is right, but who the heck is the Gov saying what depth I can dive to and how fast I can drive on the ocean. Its not like a channel or narrow water way.
 
I think all the french is the same.. Here in Quebec, the scuba government (LOL) has to give you the OK and deem you good enough with enough skills to be able to scuba dive in the province of Quebec. I think its a crock...
 
I have a student who went to S France and told me they wouldn't really recognize your cert unless it was CMAS. Anything else had to take a DM with you. Or something like that.
 

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