Abandoned at Sea - Sun June 26, 2005 - The Ibis, Dania Beach, Hollywood Fl.

[Bill51]

Also, I like the idea of getting plastic numbers clipped to each diver's bcd, and the boat doesn't move until all the numbers are back on the pegboard.

We did that when I DMed on a small live aboard and it’s the only way to go there. Even though I personally knew all 14 divers, there’s no way I could keep track of all them going diving at separate times. It wouldn’t hurt on a regular dive boat, but I’ve never had any problems or confusion with requiring all divers to walk to the sign in board and initial it.

 

[Rick Murchison]

I've alerted Southeast Oceanic Services to this thread. I suspect that soon Neil (or his replacement) will be doing genuine roll calls.
---
By the way, whenever I have a group on a boat that's in the habit of doing head counts, I get the names of all divers - my group and any others when we don't have the whole boat - and do a roll call myself.
Head counts are worthless.
Rick

 

[Corigan]

Don,

Sorry about your terrible event, atleast someone was looking out for you with the nearby private vessel.

Thank you for posting this event, as this is information that needs to get out. I had a less than stellar experience on a charter last weekend and decided to cancel my next day of diving due to feeling the crew/store was a tad bit incompetant. If a boat crew is endangering divers by not having a decent rollcall system in place, then people need to know. I will avoid that chater if I am ever in the area, and thank you for bringing attention to it.

Also after seeing Padipro's post, it seems you are correct on all counts, and the captain has gone back to a head count system (didn't they see open water?). Horrible when you know something is wrong, liable to get someone killed, and you do nothing to change your procedures.

Thanks Rick for letting Neil know about the thread here. Unfortunately (for Neil), the damage has been done. There are two seperate accounts here of Neil telling lies (which may or may no be true, but it appears they are). Even if Neil comes up here and argues that he's changed procedures to be the safest boat in the world, would anybody actually believe what he says? I know I wouldn't.

Matt

 

[djanni]

I see this post was moved to this particular sub-forum and it was also deleted/removed from the Florida Conch Divers and the Dixie Divers forums.

What is it about the nature of this post that would make SB want to limit it's distribution?

I'm surprised SB wouldn't want to provide the people with the greatest likelyhood of diving this boat with highest opportunity to read about the incident. Amazing!!!

No need to quote TOS...

Don

I've alerted Southeast Oceanic Services to this thread. I suspect that soon Neil (or his replacement) will be doing genuine roll calls.
---
By the way, whenever I have a group on a boat that's in the habit of doing head counts, I get the names of all divers - my group and any others when we don't have the whole boat - and do a roll call myself.
Head counts are worthless.
Rick

 

[Corigan]

Well, no need to post 3 threads in three different subforums for the same information. Trust me on this, We see it. Most of us use the new posts button and it will pop up no-matter what subforum it is stored under. For moving this one to near misses, that is what you had. I think this is the appropriate forum for this post. Then again though, who am I but just a poster.

Matt

 

[djanni]

There is only 1 reason why I posted this report; Neil broke his promise to me and in less than a week.

I just couldn't live with the thought that I could read in the paper some day that a diver(s) was abandoned at sea by the Ibis and were injured or died and I had done nothing.

 

[Charlie99]

By the way, whenever I have a group on a boat that's in the habit of doing head counts, I get the names of all divers - my group and any others when we don't have the whole boat - and do a roll call myself.
Head counts are worthless.
Rick

Headcounts definitely work on 6 packs, and are pretty good on most 12 passenger boats.

OTOH, I won't go out on a boat with more than 12 px that doesn't do a formal roll call. A couple years ago the captain on a 24+ passenger pontoon boat down in Big Pine Key, Florida was having trouble getting together a correct passenger list on a night dive where the majority were from a dive shop organized trip. There was a lot of confusion as he tried to integrate a mangled, marked up list from the dive shop group, with the list of other (including me) that had booked directly with the boat. The Captain declined my request to do another roll call with the corrected list. After he declined, I told him to take my name off the list as I was canceling, and started to gather up my gear. Only then did he throw the kibitzers off the boat and do a real roll call. It was wrong.

Just like in other areas of scuba, if it doesn't feel right, then fix it or don't do the dive (or boat trip).

Although the trip went well, in later reflection I question whether I should have gone ahead and canceled anyway. Sloppiness like this might very well be a sign of other problems that just didn't happen to bite us that night.

 

[Rick Murchison]

Headcounts definitely work on 6 packs, and are pretty good on most 12 passenger boats.

I assumed everyone reading this thread would realize we were talking about boats similar to the Ibis.
How silly of me
Rick

 

[Rick Murchison]

I see this post was moved to this particular sub-forum and it was also deleted/removed from the Florida Conch Divers and the Dixie Divers forums.

What is it about the nature of this post that would make SB want to limit it's distribution?

We don't do duplicate threads. Period. This keeps comments and responses together in a coherent fashion. It's the way we do things.
This event is a near miss, not an accident - so it was moved to where it belongs.
Don't worry, almost everyone on Scubaboard looks at "new posts" when they log in, and will look at your thread; neither its distribution not its importance are limited by its position in a "sub" forum.
Rick

 

[Charlie99]

I assumed everyone reading this thread would realize we were talking about boats similar to the Ibis.
How silly of me
Rick

People draw the line at different places. A 12 customer boat with 4 crew is borderline for just doing headcount if the boat layout is such that you can't see everyone simultaneously.

Having done search and rescue while in the Navy and knowing firsthand how difficult it is to find a person, or even a lifeboat, at sea causes me to take this stuff very seriously.