Part 3 : What you can do when super-strong current hits you So, what’s happens when a super strong current hits you during the dive. There are few steps to ascend safely. 1. Stop-Breathe-Think & Act : The standard methods which I will teach my Rescue Divers in any situation faced. Most probably, you can’t stop yourself in the current, so look for a large corals or boulders to hide behind. Once you are hiding behind the current, stop and breathe – relax. Assess the best logical method to ascend without endangering yourself and your buddy. If you cant’t shelter, then think on the go, but be calm. 2. Stick close to the reef and geko diving : If you are close to the reef, you can do some geko diving. Hold on to coral reef, or boulders and slowly pull yourself up while finning. We all know that breaking corals is a bad practice in scuba diving, but it is about saving yourself from being dragged 60 meters underwater – then do it! 3. Be careful about fast ascents : Going too fast to the surface will endanger yourself to Decompression Sickness (DCS) or lung over-expansion injury. So, try to do a safety stop where possible. You can still hang on to the coral reef while you do your safety stop for your last 5 meters. If conditions does not permit, then just surface at a safe rate. 4. Getting to the surface : Some divers recommend inflating your BCD to get to the surface, but I would say your best choice is to fin hard. Why because when you inflate your BCD, most likely you would have an uncontrollable ascent. Try to fin diagonally to the surface if it is an upcurrent, but control your ascent rate. Do CESA if required! 5. Ascending on top of reef or open water – If there are changes in currents, you may be swept back down to the reef. So, ascending on top of the reef would be better, than being dragged deeper in the open sea. Sometimes, you may also decide to swim away from reef, as the currents get weaker away from the reef. 6. Stick with your buddy : I put this as the last thing because this is what I teach my students, and this should be your normal practice. In Part 1, both my buddy and I stick together even though we were flushed out by the current. It makes a difference mentally when you have your buddy close, while you figure your way out. So what’s the best solution? Well, it all depends on you. You need to think it out, and find the best way to safely ascend if you get caught in something like this. Next : Types of currents youtube/watch?v=Yx2Gbwv9dwA
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 06:05:44 +0000
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