Near miss with an experienced diver

[SapphireMind]

I am not said experienced diver! I was going on a boat dive to try and do my deep diving cert dives. I hadn't slept well and didn't eat enough for breakfast, and on my first dive, it was like I had never dived before. My buoyancy was terrible and I had to start ascent at 10 min down because I was just a mess. Got back on the boat, started eating and decided to scrap my second dive - I was scared at how absent my brain felt and that I was just not "on" and I figured discretion was the better part of valor.

So that brings us to the near miss. Another diver on the boat, a very experienced one and an instructor, gets in the water for the 2nd dive, has some comments about his regulator not breathing well. Doesn't immediately get out of the water. He surface swims a little and has more issues and gets back on the boat. The captain checks his tank - nearly completely empty! We check his other tank to see if he didn't change tanks - nope, that one is also low, as it would be after a dive. He didn't check his pressure gauge and do test breathing on his reg when he switched tanks.

It was very eye opening, because obviously this was someone who had a lot of experience and knowledge, but missing basic steps could have been life-threatening if he had done an immediate descent!

 

[Edward3c]

Complacency is the cause of a lot of incidents. It doesn’t matter how long someone’s been diving, we all have our off-days. A moments distraction when preparing your kit is enough for the scenario you described.

 

[Diving Dubai]

A good lesson better to witness than have happen to oneself.

No matter our experience, we're all fallible. Never believe otherwise.

Even though I have AI with my gas contents on my computer, I still have a full size SPG on every reg set.

I use it to check contents when I set up my gear, and always look and take a few breaths before I drop in the water.


On quite a few occasions I've had to ask someone to turn my gas on because I've forgotten - I've even in teh past thought my gas was on because my SPG read full, where in fact I'd check my gear, turned off my cylinder for the SI and not dumped pressure. Again the idiot check of a few breaths high lighted the issue.

I'm happy to admit I've forgotten to turn my gas on, but the simple check has alerted me to my mistake, I'm also happy to admit that I've never once jumped in with my air off or a low cylinder

 

[Ghosty]

Glad he caught it in time. Where was this and what dive company were you out with?

 

[lv2dive]

Just curious as to what the dive company has to do with anything?

On multiple occasions in S FL and the Carribean I've gotten empty tanks instead of full ones. Since I checked the gas in all my tanks before we left the dock, so it’s been a slight inconvenience to get a new (full) tank. Anyone can make a mistake, it’s my responsibility to check in time to make a difference.

Glad he caught it in time. Where was this and what dive company were you out with?

 

[chillyinCanada]

I check every single time without fail . . .uh, except for that time I didn't and guess what?

 

[drbill]

Trust but verify

 

[Barnaby'sDad]

“Complacency kills” is a common saying around the military (and I’m sure other circles, as well).

Plenty of people have been killed by ‘X’ (where ‘X’ can be pretty much anything) because the person assumed they were good to go...rather than verifying that a piece of equipment or machine was good.

 

[Bob DBF]

I've even in teh past thought my gas was on because my SPG read full, where in fact I'd check my gear, turned off my cylinder for the SI and not dumped pressure.

After an imbarrassing but uneventfull incident, I insure when the tank valve is off the SPG must read zero. I don't do a negative entry often, but that incedent gave me a lot to think about, and made all my pre dive procedures serious.



Bob

 

[Tournesol2000]

On the 2 dive boat companies I use in Florida, both of them do checks before boat leaves.