Bent in Belize--Blue Hole Incident

[tracydr]

Glad to hear that you're (almost) fully healthy!

Speaking for myself alone, if it were me that this happened to, I'd hang up my fins. Not out of fear, but just an abundance of caution. DCS is not an entirely predictable event. There are many cool things to do in this world -- diving is one of them -- if it were me I'd count my blessings and go find others. But that's just me.

Again, glad to hear you're healthy!

- Bill

Not me. But for me, diving is my most important sport, now that I don't foxhunt or do much riding anymore. DCS is really quite rare and as a recreational diver the risk of DCS is a lot less than my risk of getting in an accident on my way to work in PHoenix I imagine.

 

[victorzamora]

Thank you to everyone for reading, for the private messages, and for the genuine concern for my health and safety. I'm astonished that this thread has had over 40 thousand views and hundreds of replies and is still active(ish) after five months.

Thank you for posting this! I think that the main reason it's gotten as much attention as it has is because of your very good, detailed description of what went on. I learned something through every part of this story. You also updated when you got more news, something a lot of threads fail at. What's important is that you made it and you're still diving.

 

[frisby]

Here is where I am thoroughly confused - OP states he forked out $7K USD to sit in the chamber - according to
Belize Diving, Hyperbaric Chamber on Ambergris Caye, San Pedro

So I'm assuming the dive shop used to dive the BH - wasn't participating in the Chamber Access Program - ? Clearly DAN seems to be the best solution to avoid having to pay out of pocket out of countyry - But just curious if the dive shop in question participated in the Chamber Access Program ? Is this something one should ask of dive shops on Ambergris Caye ?

CHAMBER ACCESS PROGRAM
The chamber access program is a system whereby the dive shops pay a membership fee to become part of the program. After they become members, the dive shops are asked to collect a nominal levy or fee (typically $1 USD for each tank dived) - and forward to the chamber at the end of every month. This money is used to pay for stand-by operating expenses, which include doctors, utilities, technical maintenance, upgrades, salaries etc.

This program gives direct access to chamber service at anytime for dive shops that are part of the program and are current with their payments. The contribution however, is not an insurance, the diver will still be asked to supply the chamber with all their insurance information. The company will bill the insurance carrier of the patient. If patient is lacking any health/accident insurance, the chamber shall apply a nominal cost recovery fee.

WAIVING THE CONTRIBUTION
If you refuse to make the $1 usd contribution per tank dived and you may require our services, you will be requested to make a cash deposit of $2500 usd even if you have insurance. You will then be charged a fee of $850.00 usd per hour treatment. The company will provide you with medical records and evidence so that you can file for a refund in case you're adequately insured.

 

[peterbj7]

I think this question was answered early on. No time to dig through at present. But it is a fact that some dive shops that declare that they participate in the program but don't actually pay the Chamber, so their guests are excluded from the benefits. I think that's appalling, but no amount of representation here has so far achieved anything.

 

[frisby]

It's not only appalling - it's disgusting ( especially if they are collecting the dollar per tank ) and should be uncovered - I suspect having DAN eliminates the predicament of having to fork out $10K+ on credit - but ultimately anyone who has Insurance coverage for emergency overseas - is going to see their Insurance company either reimbursing themselves or DAN -

I'm going to narrow my list of dive shops that I am considering prior to coming down to Ambergris in May - and I'm going to call the chamber and see if they will tell me who's covered under the Chamber Access program and who is NOT - prior to making my decision -

 

[peterbj7]

A sensible precaution. If you ask me by PM about any individual shop I'll be able to tell you its status.

 

[Ayisha]

But it is a fact that some dive shops that declare that they participate in the program but don't actually pay the Chamber, so their guests are excluded from the benefits. I think that's appalling, but no amount of representation here has so far achieved anything.

That is disgusting and something needs to be done about it. I paid the fee years ago. I sure hope it went to the right place. If I go to Belize again, I will be sure to check which dive ops are honest. If I know anyone going to Belize, I will also be sure to tell them.

 

[klausi]

Man, what a story. Respect for sharing all of this honestly. I hope you recover 100%. I guess the lesson to learn is that people do unusual things in unusual circumstances (on vacation), but obviously it's not a surprise to get bent after dives like that.

 

[themagni]

Man, what a story. Respect for sharing all of this honestly. I hope you recover 100%. I guess the lesson to learn is that people do unusual things in unusual circumstances (on vacation), but obviously it's not a surprise to get bent after dives like that.

Whoo, this thread's the zombie version of the Energizer Bunny!

At no point - no point whatsoever - did any of the (two) shops that I dove through in Belize collect, imply the were collecting, or coerce me into paying an extra $1 to go towards chamber insurance. This thread is the very first I've ever heard of such a thing.

The reason I haven't named shops is because this could have happened at any shop, at any given tourist destination. The fault was mine, not the shop's, and it boils down to this: my dive computer may have broken on the deck, but my main computer just wasn't freaking working right. I've tried to capture my mindset at the time, but it's been a couple of seasons since the accident.

Yeah, I hope I get to 100% too, but what I have is good enough for who it's for. Residual tingling in the fingertips on the right hand and the top of the left foot. It's a hell of a story and frankly I deserved a hell of a lot worse. There are some emotional and mental effects in addition to the physical. When I mis-speak or trip, I wonder if that's just normal misfiring, after-effects of the incident, or if I've just been drinking. My daughter's favourite song, some pop hit, made me tear up because... well, I almost never heard it at all. Sometimes I'll start laughing when I'm looking at mountain scenery because hey, it's a great view. Sometimes I think about the thread that could have been, the one I never posted in. These are all good things, because for so long, too long, I've felt like a detached robot. (android?) I've been able to put on a couple of pounds and finally broke 160# a couple of months ago. I know that I'm significantly stronger, and I don't mean that in only the physical sense. Maybe I'm better than 100%, but with just a little scar on my spine.

I got a tattoo to commemorate the non-fatal nature of the dive. It's a skin-rip style, cutout in the shape of the Blue Hole, on my right arm (the one that tingles). The design has four wires (there are four nerves in your arm) and one of the wires is snapped. Apologies, I am not a photographer and I don't have a camera. You can't see the colours pop in this photo, but there's also a subtle nod to the dive flag in the background.

 

[JTemple]

Sorry to hear you still have some residual symptoms.

We should do a poll of bent scuba divers who got tattoos to commemorate the event and to celebrate surviving. We now know of 2, themagni and me. Mine is the logo of the North Sulawesi Water Sports Association, as that's where I got bent, and as a shout out to thank them for their assistance when I was at the chamber. Sea horse and tarsier monkey, on my forearm.