Buddy in trouble---leave or stay?

[boulderjohn]

I know of three separate cases in the past couple of years in which roughly the same scenario played out: divers get involved with a major siltout causing buddy separation, one team member either gets our or is never in the situation, and that diver leaves the buddy and heads for the exit, looking for help. In one case, that help successfully rescued the divers. In another case, the help encountered the exiting diver who appeared to have been on the way to self rescue. In the third case the diver in toruble got out and died just before reaching the end of the cave, meaning that he probably would have lived if his buddy had not left to get help. I am also thinking of another incident a few years ago in which one diver went into a restriction that was beyond the abilities of his buddy. The buddy eventually went out looking for help, and his buddy was eventually found dead in a location far from the restriction in which he was last seen.

I am not looking to revive any of the specifics of those incidents. I am curious about the issue in a more generic sense. In my cave training, I was of course trained in the lost buddy procedure, but I don't recall being trained in the "buddy is stuck somewhere in a mucked up mess" procedure. I am wondering what kind of thoughts people have on what they would do. I imagine a lot of responses will begin with "It depends..." OK, then--on what does it depend in your mind?

 

[Redshift]

The last accident led me to think about this same issue.
I don't know if the exiting buddy had any gas left... so we cannot assume that it would have been enough to rescue the buddy. Yes, looking at the distance from the entrance where he was found maybe, but decisions are always easier in hindsight.

In such a situation I'd first try to secure the line. Then maybe move along the line in the direction of my buddy, but if they're not there, I don't think there is much one can do in a silt out. Probably I'd move towards the exit and wait once the visibility got better.
Then there are two choices. 1) Wait / try to find buddy or 2) exit and call for help. If the first is chosen, than the diver will leave the cave almost without gas. Therefore calling for help at that time is almost pointless because the lost buddy will also be running out of gas and further inside the cave. Besides, it may not be fast to get a team ready to go in for the rescue. Option 2) gives more time for a team to go in and search, but may mean they reach the lost diver a bit later than what would be necessary. It will also depend on the dive site. Some are more popular, in others you may be the only divers...

 

[PfcAJ]

Imo, the non-stuck diver should get on the line and wait somewhere clear (or reasonably clear) for his buddy. I generally think that going to 'get him' will make it worse and the silted out buddy really just has to sort out his business on his own.

Heading for the door isn't acceptable, imo. Use that reserve gas for what it's for.

---------- Post added April 30th, 2015 at 12:07 PM ----------

The last accident led me to think about this same issue.
I don't know if the exiting buddy had any gas left... so we cannot assume that it would have been enough to rescue the buddy.

1500psi in double 85s or 95s when she surfaced.

 

[Steve_C]

1500psi in double 85s or 95s when she surfaced.

Total in the two tanks I assume?

 

[Redshift]

1500psi in double 85s or 95s when she surfaced.

OK, that's still a lot of gas...

But also highlights the problem with the planning. Taking scooters to a silted and narrow passage where buddy loss was probable and not having enough gas to get out on his own while swimming (when loss of scooter is something else to take into account when planning)...

 

[Hetland]

I understand from another incident, buddies were separated, and one went for help. He could have left a stage on the line, but did not. The remaining diver survived because he knew about a safety bottle that had been left nearby. He located the safety, and used it (and his back gas) to exit.

Seems like a minimum safety procedure for scooting is a redundant bottle on each diver. A neck ring, or burst disk failure would have made any of these incidents immediately fatal (assuming BM, but eventually fatal in SM). In a hypothetical, the exiting buddy could, after assuring adequate back gas for exit, leave a stage/buddy bottle on the line in clear water if he's forced to exit before meeting up with his lost buddy. An AL40 would have been enough to get the last guy out unless he was also having medical issues.

 

[kensuf]

Back in 1998 myself and another guy spent somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour looking for the third member of our team in a silted out passage (Mount offshoot in Madison, from the gold line up to the beginning of Rocky Horror). We eventually had no choice but to leave due to gas constraints. By the time we got to that point, I was convinced our missing guy had bolted on us and gone for the door. I even suggested it to the guy I was with, but he was convinced our third member would never leave us.

On our way out, we were met by another team that was coming in to get us. It turned out our missing guy was in the parking lot, and called for help.

This stuff isn't really rocket science, and AJ's right. Get in clear water and wait until you can not wait any longer. Shine your light in the direction of the lost buddy, use it as a homing beacon for them. If our guy had done that, rather than boogeying for the door, our afternoon would have been a lot better.

In terms of how long is "until you can not wait any longer," the answer to that one in my mind is "it depends." As a general guideline, I would say half of your reserve thirds is a reasonable amount. But burning all of your reserve may not be enough to get you out in the event your departure is slowed, or your SAC rate goes up due to stress and anxiety, etc. And if I got to the surface and had gas in my tanks, after calling for help, I'd re-calculate thirds and head back in.

Additionally, I would encourage everyone to adopt the practice of every person on a team dropping a cookie at every navigational decision. When you leave, you pick up your cookie. In the event that you have no choice but to leave someone, your missing teammate would at least have an idea that you've gone and not sit there waiting for you.

Final comment, it's easy to sit here behind a keyboard and say what we all would/should do. But this sport is not for everyone, and the reality is, when you're in a cave, thousands of feet from the exit, and the fit is hitting the shan, and that voice is screaming in the back of your head, that's when you're really going to find out what you would do. My personal experience was that one guy I used to dive with got scared and fled, and I understand he gave up cave diving shortly after. That was probably the best long term decision he could make and it probably would have been better if he was 100% honest with himself before he got into the situation that spooked him.

 

[boulderjohn]

Initial thoughts on an "It depends" list:

Amount of Gas: I was taught that the first thing to do in a lost buddy situation is look at your remaining PSI and decide how much gas to budget for the search before leaving for home to prevent a second loss of life. I assume that would be the first step here, as well.

Nature of the Silt: Some silt will settle reasonably quickly. In the second case described above, the troubled diver waited until he could see better and was then able to make his way out. Some silt will obscure vision for well past gas supply limits.

Proximity of Effective Help: If you walked past a couple of the world's most famous cave divers on your way to the cave and got into a siltout 500 feet in, that would be different from a night dive 3,000 feet back with no one else around. This decision making should include how quickly that help could get to your buddy. If you saw a class with a solid instructor getting ready to go, help might be able to get there in a hurry.

Potential for Active Intervention: In the first case mentioned above, the rescuer tied off a line and went into the totally mucky passage in search of lost divers. When he came upon one, he backed up out of sight, fearing that the diver would see him and grab him in panic. He approached from a different angle to make the rescue. Now, that all requires skill beyond the typical cave diver. Do you feel good enough in your skills to be able to do that sort of thing for your buddy, or are you more likely to create a second victim?

Scootering Potential: Are you in command of an effective scooter that you are confident will not quit on you and will be able to bring you and possibly your buddy out at a rate that will impact your decision-making relative to the amount of gas you are willing to devote to the effort?

Ability to leave help behind: In the second case, the diver was ale to get out on his own, but probably did not have sufficient gas to get to the exit. He knew where other gas was to be found stashed in the cave, and he got it. If I have enough gas to exit on my back or in one sidemount tank, should I leave a stage I am carrying or my other sidemount tank behind in the hope my buddy can use it if he or she gets free? If I have a working scooter but have enough gas to swim out without it, do I leave it behind?

 

[Hetland]

Ideally, this is something that should be discussed before any cave dive, and with all team members before getting in the water.

 

[Wookie]

There you go invoking solo tech diving. That's another thread. I never expect a buddy to bail me out of my own stupidity, nor do I expect someone else to come along and throw me in the weeds. Best to just dive by myself, I guess.