Training

[Greg D.]

Mike,

in referance to haveing the beans to call a dive, we were called out to a car in the water at a local lake, it reaches depths in excess of 130ft. myself and another diver followed a anchor line down to about ninety feet where it was rather dark and rather cold, and we had yet to reach bottom. We limit our SAR dives to about 100ft which we had not reached but were relativly sure that it was going 100+ and called the dive, no questions asked no presure to dive again.

The lake is a local hotspot for ditching cars perps have shall we say lost their use for

but I apreciate all of the input but it sounds like I am on the right track, there is a DR-I class next month, gotta get in. that and I need to find a dive buddy for this weekend!

One other question I have since I have some expert divers in this thread... what in y'all opinions is the best OW cert program my wife wants to get her c card and we have the option of going NAUI or PADI. any suggestions?

 

[Gary D.]

Mike,

in referance to haveing the beans to call a dive, we were called out to a car in the water at a local lake, it reaches depths in excess of 130ft. myself and another diver followed a anchor line down to about ninety feet where it was rather dark and rather cold, and we had yet to reach bottom. We limit our SAR dives to about 100ft which we had not reached but were relativly sure that it was going 100+ and called the dive, no questions asked no presure to dive again.

The lake is a local hotspot for ditching cars perps have shall we say lost their use for

but I apreciate all of the input but it sounds like I am on the right track, there is a DR-I class next month, gotta get in. that and I need to find a dive buddy for this weekend!

One other question I have since I have some expert divers in this thread... what in y'all opinions is the best OW cert program my wife wants to get her c card and we have the option of going NAUI or PADI. any suggestions?

Greg, We are by no means expert divers. EX is a used to be and Pert is a Shampoo. Nobody here is used up soapsuds.

We are hopefully just well trained divers doing an unpleasant, unusual but necessary job for reasons most of us can’t explain totally.

I have pulled the plug on a lot of dives over the years not only for me but for other team members if not the entire team. It all boils down to Risk Vs Benefit. The risk should never outweigh the benefit. Do we risk our lives to save a life? Sure we do in more ways than we think of. Just the occupation of being in Law Enforcement, with a Fire Department or Public Medical Services causes us to risk it but with proper training and practice we can minimize that risk. Diving just adds a little to the list of hazardous situations we get ourselves into.

And I can’t stress enough “DO NOT LET PEER PRESSURE PUSH YOU INTO ANYTHING YOU DON’T FEEL COMFORTABLE DOING!!!” You will live longer that way. I know I’ve said it but you will hear it again and again and again.

The DR-1 is expensive but well worth it. You know that you have to recert every 3 years or it goes away.

Here is a little hint that you can start now and take back to the team. Start a map. Take a good map of all the areas the team is responsible for and start marking depth, conditions, hazards and access points on it for each site you dive. Include driving routes, parking areas, landmarks, LZ’s, power lines and anything else you can think of. So the next time someone has to dive in that spot they will have a chunk of info already at hand. Dispatch is one good area to keep a copy of that map.

Pick the instructor not the agency for your other half.

What Mike said about being a Rookie or Newbee is very true. Put me in a cave and I'll show you a Newbee/Rookie/ Pee in the wet suit diver. You might even see #2 by the ton, I don't mind tight spaces at all but I don't like caves. There are some wonderful dark wet spaces on this earth but I will enjoy mine above ground

Got your PM and we will be in touch soon.

Gary D.

 

[Boater Dan]

Greg:

You have received good information from the other guys. I had listed another post regarding the mental aspect of PS Diving. Being mentally prepared to dive in zero visibility while you know you are looking for a lifeless victim is not for everybody. In this situation, the buddy system is out the window and you need to be prepared to take care of yourself. The stress level involved is probably most than most average people can handle. Make certain you are up for the task before spending a lot of time, money and effort on gaining the training.

The ratio of saves to recoveries in this field are minimal, so the only satisfaction you can derive is in knowing you were able to bring closure to a family.

Make wise choices in all you do and do it safe.

Dan

 

[Greg D.]

Looks like DR-1 is in my future, there is a class coming up the first weekend in June and If there is an opening I'm in! I should know for sure monday. Cant wait should be and interesting course.

 

[Gary D.]

Looks like DR-1 is in my future, there is a class coming up the first weekend in June and If there is an opening I'm in! I should know for sure monday. Cant wait should be and interesting course.

DR-1 is good training but it is just the basics. You should enjoy it and it isn't a hard class at all. It can be in conflect with sport tactics but that will depend on who the instructor is and how agressive they are.

Have fun and keep us posted.

Gary D.

 

[Scuba Cowboy]

Something for you PSD's to check out is TDI has created an agency just for Public Safety Diving. ERDI ( Emergency Response Diving International). I've heard good things about it but have no first hand knowledge of it. Their website is www.tdisdi.com , click on ERDI logo.

 

[indypddiver]

In reference to the two firefighters to whom which Mr. Ferrara refers, I knew them both and was present, and searching, after the call came out. Without going into too much detail, I can tell you that the fire department training, at the time, was handled by an outside trainer (the same trainer on both incidents) who was certified as an NAUI instructor. He had also been a diver in the Navy for many years. However, with that said, I can also offer my opinion that that particular instructor also went well beyond anything that NAUI or any other recreational agency would ever recommend, to the detriment of the class and to the divers who were lost. Since that time, the trainer has been fired (and sued) and the fire department has completely overhauled its dive program. Because the PD and FD work closely together, the PD has also moved in the right direction. Both teams now have several Public Safety certified scuba instructors (DRI) and teach very stringent Public Safety type training. It is night and day compared to what it was at the time.

While I think that PADI, SSI, NAUI, etc. type training is good (and I have been through a lot of it), it does not even remotely begin to touch the training necessary to be a safe public safety diver. Recreational diving (again, I've done lots of it) cannot be compared to public safety diving. It just cannot. Recreational training is good for what its supposed to do, that's it.