grantwiscour
Contributor
I like Dennis' thought/action process. My wife and I hold the SSI MD card (oh the horror!). We are competent and self-sufficient divers with @ 165 dives in varied locales including blue and brown water. We don't get teamed up with another very much because we are our own buddy team but it has happened a few times.
We have also invited a diver to join us at the local scuba parks because they were solo and we didn't want them to die. One guy at Athens SP looked like an accident waiting to happen so we let him join our threesome, buddied up into twos, and watched him like a hawk DM. In the end, he had an excess of weight, lost a fin (I recovered for him), didn't have a solid command of his fancy dive computer and had a plethora of fancy gear that some LDS sold him and didn't teach him to use properly and safely. The guy lived and made it back to pick up his wife from the mall before their trip home. The guy was rusty and needed more experience but had a good attitude and followed our instructions. My morale compass doesn't allow me to watch someone like that jump in the water right next to me and swim off by themselves. Athens SP doesn't get very deep but why not show some Texan Friendliness and increase the odds by doing the right thing? I remember when I was "new" and the divers who impacted my dives in both positive and negative ways. The potential liability in a situation like is this less than what I would call my responsibility to mankind.
As for rescue situations...if it is with my buddy or I am first on the scene I will take action and direct the rescue until turning over to EMT or someone with more training/experience. If I am not the primary, I will advise the crew, etc. that I am certified and experienced in EFR/CPR and that I am willing to help..."what can I do to assist?" Instead of worrying about cards I'm hoping that we don't lose a life.
We have also invited a diver to join us at the local scuba parks because they were solo and we didn't want them to die. One guy at Athens SP looked like an accident waiting to happen so we let him join our threesome, buddied up into twos, and watched him like a hawk DM. In the end, he had an excess of weight, lost a fin (I recovered for him), didn't have a solid command of his fancy dive computer and had a plethora of fancy gear that some LDS sold him and didn't teach him to use properly and safely. The guy lived and made it back to pick up his wife from the mall before their trip home. The guy was rusty and needed more experience but had a good attitude and followed our instructions. My morale compass doesn't allow me to watch someone like that jump in the water right next to me and swim off by themselves. Athens SP doesn't get very deep but why not show some Texan Friendliness and increase the odds by doing the right thing? I remember when I was "new" and the divers who impacted my dives in both positive and negative ways. The potential liability in a situation like is this less than what I would call my responsibility to mankind.
As for rescue situations...if it is with my buddy or I am first on the scene I will take action and direct the rescue until turning over to EMT or someone with more training/experience. If I am not the primary, I will advise the crew, etc. that I am certified and experienced in EFR/CPR and that I am willing to help..."what can I do to assist?" Instead of worrying about cards I'm hoping that we don't lose a life.