Team Safety Article – always a good reminder
Every operation has its own set of unique demands and safety precautions, none-the-less there are common precautions pertaining to all operations. When called out the team should notify all related organizations that the Dive Team is activated. This would be organizations such as the EMS, Police, Fire Department, and Coast Guard (as needed). When operating in a port, notify the Coast Guard and let them make contact with the Port...
Basic Search and Recovery
The first rule of search and recovery is to determine where the object went down, and start there. This is because in most situations, the object of search, whether, person, gun, boat or motor will be found in a radius equal to the depth of the water from the point it sunk. So if the exact point of a sinking object is known, then it can be found most rapidly. This is where good witnesses reduce search time. Once decided on the area to...
Lost Team Member
Most dive operations use a predetermined plan for lost contact. As soon as a diver loses his buddy, he proceeds right to the surface. When both buddies do this they should meet at the surface about the same time. When a diver surfaces he must give the ”OK” to the Divemaster, or do nothing. Many divers get into a bad habit of as soon as they surface, they give the ”OK”, if your buddy is not with you, you are not...
Scene Setup
When first arriving on location every member of the team must be able to quickly survey and analyze the situation, then make sound decisions based upon observations. These actions will be influenced by all preplanning and training done before hand. When sizing up the situation rescuers must know the facts about the scene, understand the probabilities, know their own situation as to manpower, equipment and training, and finally make a...
Gases & Gas Laws
Gases Knowledge of how gases behave, or their characteristics requires absolute comprehension by the rescue diver. Keep in mind that the most common gas is air. Compressed air (air under pressure) is utilized by divers to breathe underwater. Oxygen is almost never utilized at depth. There are diving systems that use pure oxygen called CLOSED CIRCUIT SCUBA or O-2 RIGS. These systems are mostly operated by the military and research...