Video: SCUBA Failure at 80 Feet, Yesterday

[TSandM]

Thanks, but if you take a moment to think about it... I asked my buddy to shut down one of the tanks.. If I want to know which one was off, I can just press the purge button on the second stage from each tank and I will have my answer in 2 seconds.

I was asking him for information that I should have been able to determine on my own.

In my technical training, this type of scenario (massive gas loss from undetermined site behind my head) was common. The first and most basic rule for the buddy coming in to help was never to turn off the gas the "victim" was breathing. We were taught, as we approached, to ascertain which reg the diver was using, and if he was using the one that needed to be shut down, to signal him to switch and confirm that he had done so before shutting the valve. I don't know if your son did this or if he even thought about it, but since it was your pony reg, it wasn't a big issue, until his attempts to tell you which reg he had shut down caused you to try to switch!

Having a standardized and practiced set of signals for dealing with this type of situation is useful. We tend to use a finger pointing to the piece of gear that is no longer operational, followed by the middle finger salute

 

[Deep South Divers]

Having a standardized and practiced set of signals for dealing with this type of situation is useful. We tend to use a finger pointing to the piece of gear that is no longer operational, followed by the middle finger salute

Same on this coast. In fact, we use it to signal anything that's "f-d up" or "inop" (inoperative), to include things we're working on (ie - signal applies to anything, not just gear). Glad to know it seems to be a ubiquitous sign.

I do it here at the 4:32 mark to signify that the large boat I am working on should not have fishing line ("mono") wrapped up in it's propeller ("wheel") under it's cutlass bearing guard:



For what it's worth, the vessel - "Eyelander" - is one of the 4 or 5 stars from the reality TV show "SWORDS" from the Discovery Channel. She is a part of the small fleet that was featured in the novel/movie "The Perfect Storm." She's a longliner - meaning that she fishes the North Atlantic with a single line of mono laid out over 10 or 20 miles... With a baited hook and leader every 10-20 feet. This entanglement is what happens when winds and currents push the mono under the boat and into the "wheel." The stuff is almost a 1/4" thick and melts onto the shaft and hub and solidifies and damages the vessel, it's engine and transmission if it's not removed.

I use an all-aluminum and stainless steel folding (not retractable) carpet knife equipped with a disposable titanium "hook" razor blade as a cutting tool, as well as hammers and chisels and even hatchets for "cutting" melted, solidified mono.

I'm thinking seriously about marketing my own version of cutting tool. What's in the market now was woefully inadequate for the job, and there's room for improvements even in this carpet knife, specifically customized for diving.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

In my technical training, this type of scenario (massive gas loss from undetermined site behind my head) was common. The first and most basic rule for the buddy coming in to help was never to turn off the gas the "victim" was breathing. We were taught, as we approached, to ascertain which reg the diver was using, and if he was using the one that needed to be shut down, to signal him to switch and confirm that he had done so before shutting the valve. I don't know if your son did this or if he even thought about it, but since it was your pony reg, it wasn't a big issue, until his attempts to tell you which reg he had shut down caused you to try to switch!

Having a standardized and practiced set of signals for dealing with this type of situation is useful. We tend to use a finger pointing to the piece of gear that is no longer operational, followed by the middle finger salute

Thanks! I've not had any technical training, but I learn stuff on the internet every day

.

 

[Islandheart]

Thanks for the video, mind if I use it with my students .
Bob

 

[dumpsterDiver]

It's a public video.....We dove that same reef today. I have to admit, I was just a little nervous, but nothing "happened".

We did see a big bull shark, but it was not interested in us and moved off within 5 -10 seconds.

 

[ferris213]

Bright kid you've got, light years beyond a number of insta-buddies I've been partnered with in the past.

Instabuddies?? He's got the drop on quite a few DM's I've seen!

+1 on the spear fishing debate, sure it might look a little confronting to some, but it has to be the most humane and ecologically sustainable method of collecting fish there is.

Nice video.

 

[scallop]

I enjoyed the video. Both the professional way your son reacted to the equipment issue and the spearing as well. There is absolutely nothing wrong with taking some critters for dinner, on land or in the water. Never spear fished but looking forward to doing so the next time we make it to Fla.

 

[Sorrows]

You seem like a really busy diver... Two cameras, a reef hook, a pole spear, a catch bag, a pony, at least three second stages, a dive flag and reel... And how many lights? Add your son (who is clearly not any kind of hinderance), his pony, his spear gun, his reef hook... THEN all of the "normal" dive gear... And you want MORE (as in taking fish)?

Look, man, I know a lot of people fish underwater, but it almost seems unsportsmanly... You just swim up and stab 'em... I mean, here we are, looking at the sights and the pretty fishes and all of the most wonderful things, and... *THUP* you stab 'em. Almost seems... I dunno... Mean. Predatory.

Sorry if I seem whiney - I just have this thing about life and conservation and God's creatures. For that matter, the reef hooks are a concept I'm not comfortable with either.
...
You know, if you took all of the sharp impliments away from you, you'd still have too much gear.

I don't find you whiney at all, SeaJay. Let me add a fervent AMEN!

Sorry, but I find all this incredibly irresponsible. Carrying so much gear and engaging in so many activites, it's a wonder something more serious didn't happen--which isn't to say it won't in the future. And why do you need to use a reef hook, exactly? And yes, spearfishing while scuba diving does seem unsportsmanlike and also potentially dangerous.

Sorry to be the buzz kill mom, but I figure you've received enough of the "dude, awesome!" comments already.

Okay, I've said my piece.

 

[Tigerman]

...<hillarious video here>...

I guess the mooray wanted fish for dinner
And yeah, we do single-tank dives all the time. Per basic training your redundancy is your buddys tank anyways, and you seem to have a calm little buddy there. I mean, its not like HES screaming like a little girl

I'm still stuck at the 13 year old at 80 feet. He certainly protected you a few times. You're the most vocal diver I've ever heard... Good thing it was just the pony. That's unusual for the o-ring to let go at depth, isn't it? I've seen them go above water, especially when they've been pressurized for a long time.
​

I have seen it happen and its ugly.
A link to the full story might be in my signature, but lets just say that my buddy blew her o-ring at 17m depth (55ft) and it was freeflowing for about a minute. This was probably 5 minutes or so into the dive and we shared my air for the last part of the grand total 9 minute dive. She had lost 80 bar out of a 200 bar tank. My tank still had 170 of the 190 bar that I went in with left. (The total sac on my tank was a great total of 0,48 cuft/min to give some idea of how little of those 80 bar she lost she actually used herself)

Edit: the link IS in my sig, its the one called a lesson learned​

 

[Splitlip]

Seajay: I've had my disagreements with DD, but I see nothing bad in this video.
Dan is right on with his comments.

(it almost appears you're dog piling)