Common sense is the first and foremost rule of thumb
Every year scuba divers across the globe get lost at sea and some end up dying or never found. The majority of these divers sign up for a diving trip on a tour boat and due to inexperience, lack of common sense, negligence and just plain bad luck are subjected to the worse experience in their lives.
Many of these divers are swept away by currents, get separated from the other divers or encounter adverse underwater conditions that affects their sense of direction and time. The problem is that in a third world country the tour boat operator may be less concerned with the divers safety than keeping on schedule. And if you have a problem there are no lawyers that will sue someone.
Basically you are on your own or if you are diving with someone then it is imperative that you look out for each other throughout the dive. I did a dive in the Bahamas a couple of years ago and while clearing my ears upon the decent the dive master and three divers disappeared by the time I got to the bottom. In fact I never saw the dive master again until he surfaced forty minutes later. Luckily I had my friend watching out for me and waiting for me until I descended!
If you Google lost scuba divers you will be amazed at the number of lost divers and some of the tragic stories that ended in death. So what is a diver supposed to do to prevent you or your dive buddy getting lost in the middle of the ocean?
Common sense is the first and foremost rule of thumb! Don't wander off, be aware of where the dive master is at all times, keep an eye on your other fellow divers, be aware of the strong currents that can move you at over 5 miles an hour, when you surface deploy your BC and look for the dive boat and other divers, have a signaling light or safety light with you.
Obviously there will be situations where you will find yourself in trouble but the key point is not to panic! Especially if you get to the surface and you are unable to see the dive boat or other fellow divers. This can also happen if the swells and waves are over four feet high and since you are floating low in the water the boat actually might be a hundred yards away and not be able to see you.
If you panic you will not be able to think clearly and you will waste precious energy. Time is against you because if there are strong currents they will be moving you farther and farther away from your starting point and you will start losing heat despite wearing a wet suit. Another thing to consider is if you are floating in the ocean you will need drinking water long before you need food and the sun will burn you.
Some basic precautions may improve your chances for survival. They have an inflatable signal devise that might be helpful but where do you keep it is the question. Another solution which is more helpful at dusk and at night is a signal light that obviously needs to be waterproof and long lasting.
Presently there are some lights on the market that will provide some help based on the color of the light, duration of the light, flashing or solid color, depth ability of the light, size of the safety light and durability.
Based on basic physics the most visible light either underwater or on top is a white flashing led light. Many of the lights that are supposed to be visible are solid and in different colors. Not the best choice if you want to be seen.
My preference is a water activated light that is bright white and flashing. There is a new company called diver savers that sells two types of lights that can literally last more than a 150 hours of continuous usage. Better than most of the others that rely on alkaline batteries that at most will burn for only thirty hours which is just over a day and probably not long enough in most cases.
Some of the lights on the market are the Trident Led Light Stick, the Trident Mini Flashing Light, the \waterproof Scuba Diving Strobe, the I Torch Firefly, the Princeton Tec Aqua Strobe, the Tek Tite Led Strobe, the Dive Buddy locator and the Diver Snorkel Beacon Light. These lights range from ten dollars up to sixty five dollars and some are plain junk and others are very well made.
The key points to look for is the construction, the size, the brightness, does it flash and how long does the battery last while in the ocean? Personally I prefer the water activated safety dive lights because they can last for over a hundred dives and not only make you visible on top of the water they will also make you visible to the dive master and fellow divers underwater.
Malvan is a small town in the district of Sindhudurg district. It also boasts of serene calm beaches with the longest shoreline. Tarkarli beach is a part of Malvan and is the next most hit. The closest beach to Malvan town is the Chivla beach. Apart from offering a perfect beach destination, Malvan is also known for its fiery cuisine. Malvan food is prepared in a unique way with ample of coconut used in Malvani dishes. Malvani cuisines actually are a blend of Maharashtrian and Goan cuisines.
Tarkarli is now becoming a hot destination for water sports. The Tsunami Island, which is in the Karli backwaters is fast emerging as the focal point of all the adventure water sports in Tarkarli. Scuba diving and snorkelling are the most favourite activity of the tourists here. The mystery of underwater life and the corals never fails to enchant the divers here. You can catch glimpses of shoals of fishes like Barracudas, Angelfish, Parrotfish, Rock Cod, Tuna, etc. You will also find Sea Cucumber, Turtles, Lobsters, Cuttlefish, Shrimps, etc. There is plenty of corals near Tarkarli along with clear water is a blessing for the scuba diver. Many scuba diving operators take an underwater photograph so that the tourists can carry back good lasting reminiscences of their diving trip at Tarkarli beach scuba diving.
The latest fad catching up here is Parasailing. You can get a birds-eye view of the backwaters and also have a direct look at the beautiful convergence of the backwaters and the sea. Do not miss on the dolphin watch rides into the sea to view the frisking, friendly dolphins playing gleefully in the sea. For all the speed lovers, try out the crazy speedboat ride racing furiously on the waves. Feel the droplets of water on your face and the salty breeze in your hair, as you try out Jet Skiing. Experience the fun of togetherness with your group on a banana boat ride. Though Tarkarli remains pleasant throughout the year, the Tarkarli water sports season is best after the monsoons.
Goa, being blessed with the long shoreline, is a hot target for all the water sports junkies. Monsoon water sports combo in Goa offers activities like kayaking, windsurfing, jet skiing, parasailing, banana ride and water surfing. Beaches like Sinquerim offer Scuba Diving in Goa and snorkelling along with other water sports. Try out windsurfing and Paragliding to maximise your fun in Goa.
At the end of the instructor development course, there is an exam - the feared PADI Instructor Exam! It is human nature to focus on passing this exam, but it isn't the real test at all! The real test is the first class you will teach a PADI instructor.
This is why it is so important to choose the right IDC. You want to learn from a course director who teaches you to be a good instructor, NOT how to pass the IE. Course directors that focus on getting the perfect score in the IE often do so as the cost of preparing you for the real-life problems that the IDC should be preparing you for. The experience your course director has will play a big part in this. When I first started teaching the Instructor development course as a new course director (coming up on ten years ago) I fell into this trap myself. I was more concerned about my candidates passing the IE than taking the time to focus on more real world training.
As time passed and my confidence built I started to focus on the problems I knew my instructor candidates would face in their day-to-day work after they had passed the IE. My new-found confidence allowed me to do this because I now knew that passing the IE would be a natural result of this approach. I had taught a few IDCs and no-one had failed. My fear of one of my candidates failing diminished. My focus on the Instructor Exam during my training reduced. Therefore my training focus altered. I wanted my instructor candidates to hit the ground running. Teaching safe fun and well-organized PADI courses. It's one thing to pass the IE, but once you land your first job, if you make a mess of the first few courses you teach, you are going to lose that job. I realized it was my job to make sure that didn't happen. The moral of the story - Find a course director with years of experience. They will train you to be a successful scuba instructor, not just to pass the exam.
Train in conditions similar to those you plan to work. The IDC certainly isn't easy, it is made much harder by cold water and low visibility. So choosing to take the IDC in such conditions certainly, adds an amount of task loading. However, if you are going to teach in those conditions after passing the IE it may well be worth training in those same conditions. There is another option, though. You may decide to take the IDC in nice warm tropical waters and get the OWSI rating under your belt, and then take MSDT training in tougher conditions, similar to those in which you plan to teach.
Many of these divers are swept away by currents, get separated from the other divers or encounter adverse underwater conditions that affects their sense of direction and time. The problem is that in a third world country the tour boat operator may be less concerned with the divers safety than keeping on schedule. And if you have a problem there are no lawyers that will sue someone.
Basically you are on your own or if you are diving with someone then it is imperative that you look out for each other throughout the dive. I did a dive in the Bahamas a couple of years ago and while clearing my ears upon the decent the dive master and three divers disappeared by the time I got to the bottom. In fact I never saw the dive master again until he surfaced forty minutes later. Luckily I had my friend watching out for me and waiting for me until I descended!
If you Google lost scuba divers you will be amazed at the number of lost divers and some of the tragic stories that ended in death. So what is a diver supposed to do to prevent you or your dive buddy getting lost in the middle of the ocean?
Common sense is the first and foremost rule of thumb! Don't wander off, be aware of where the dive master is at all times, keep an eye on your other fellow divers, be aware of the strong currents that can move you at over 5 miles an hour, when you surface deploy your BC and look for the dive boat and other divers, have a signaling light or safety light with you.
Obviously there will be situations where you will find yourself in trouble but the key point is not to panic! Especially if you get to the surface and you are unable to see the dive boat or other fellow divers. This can also happen if the swells and waves are over four feet high and since you are floating low in the water the boat actually might be a hundred yards away and not be able to see you.
If you panic you will not be able to think clearly and you will waste precious energy. Time is against you because if there are strong currents they will be moving you farther and farther away from your starting point and you will start losing heat despite wearing a wet suit. Another thing to consider is if you are floating in the ocean you will need drinking water long before you need food and the sun will burn you.
Some basic precautions may improve your chances for survival. They have an inflatable signal devise that might be helpful but where do you keep it is the question. Another solution which is more helpful at dusk and at night is a signal light that obviously needs to be waterproof and long lasting.
Presently there are some lights on the market that will provide some help based on the color of the light, duration of the light, flashing or solid color, depth ability of the light, size of the safety light and durability.
Based on basic physics the most visible light either underwater or on top is a white flashing led light. Many of the lights that are supposed to be visible are solid and in different colors. Not the best choice if you want to be seen.
My preference is a water activated light that is bright white and flashing. There is a new company called diver savers that sells two types of lights that can literally last more than a 150 hours of continuous usage. Better than most of the others that rely on alkaline batteries that at most will burn for only thirty hours which is just over a day and probably not long enough in most cases.
Some of the lights on the market are the Trident Led Light Stick, the Trident Mini Flashing Light, the \waterproof Scuba Diving Strobe, the I Torch Firefly, the Princeton Tec Aqua Strobe, the Tek Tite Led Strobe, the Dive Buddy locator and the Diver Snorkel Beacon Light. These lights range from ten dollars up to sixty five dollars and some are plain junk and others are very well made.
The key points to look for is the construction, the size, the brightness, does it flash and how long does the battery last while in the ocean? Personally I prefer the water activated safety dive lights because they can last for over a hundred dives and not only make you visible on top of the water they will also make you visible to the dive master and fellow divers underwater.
Malvan is a small town in the district of Sindhudurg district. It also boasts of serene calm beaches with the longest shoreline. Tarkarli beach is a part of Malvan and is the next most hit. The closest beach to Malvan town is the Chivla beach. Apart from offering a perfect beach destination, Malvan is also known for its fiery cuisine. Malvan food is prepared in a unique way with ample of coconut used in Malvani dishes. Malvani cuisines actually are a blend of Maharashtrian and Goan cuisines.
Tarkarli is now becoming a hot destination for water sports. The Tsunami Island, which is in the Karli backwaters is fast emerging as the focal point of all the adventure water sports in Tarkarli. Scuba diving and snorkelling are the most favourite activity of the tourists here. The mystery of underwater life and the corals never fails to enchant the divers here. You can catch glimpses of shoals of fishes like Barracudas, Angelfish, Parrotfish, Rock Cod, Tuna, etc. You will also find Sea Cucumber, Turtles, Lobsters, Cuttlefish, Shrimps, etc. There is plenty of corals near Tarkarli along with clear water is a blessing for the scuba diver. Many scuba diving operators take an underwater photograph so that the tourists can carry back good lasting reminiscences of their diving trip at Tarkarli beach scuba diving.
The latest fad catching up here is Parasailing. You can get a birds-eye view of the backwaters and also have a direct look at the beautiful convergence of the backwaters and the sea. Do not miss on the dolphin watch rides into the sea to view the frisking, friendly dolphins playing gleefully in the sea. For all the speed lovers, try out the crazy speedboat ride racing furiously on the waves. Feel the droplets of water on your face and the salty breeze in your hair, as you try out Jet Skiing. Experience the fun of togetherness with your group on a banana boat ride. Though Tarkarli remains pleasant throughout the year, the Tarkarli water sports season is best after the monsoons.
Goa, being blessed with the long shoreline, is a hot target for all the water sports junkies. Monsoon water sports combo in Goa offers activities like kayaking, windsurfing, jet skiing, parasailing, banana ride and water surfing. Beaches like Sinquerim offer Scuba Diving in Goa and snorkelling along with other water sports. Try out windsurfing and Paragliding to maximise your fun in Goa.
At the end of the instructor development course, there is an exam - the feared PADI Instructor Exam! It is human nature to focus on passing this exam, but it isn't the real test at all! The real test is the first class you will teach a PADI instructor.
This is why it is so important to choose the right IDC. You want to learn from a course director who teaches you to be a good instructor, NOT how to pass the IE. Course directors that focus on getting the perfect score in the IE often do so as the cost of preparing you for the real-life problems that the IDC should be preparing you for. The experience your course director has will play a big part in this. When I first started teaching the Instructor development course as a new course director (coming up on ten years ago) I fell into this trap myself. I was more concerned about my candidates passing the IE than taking the time to focus on more real world training.
As time passed and my confidence built I started to focus on the problems I knew my instructor candidates would face in their day-to-day work after they had passed the IE. My new-found confidence allowed me to do this because I now knew that passing the IE would be a natural result of this approach. I had taught a few IDCs and no-one had failed. My fear of one of my candidates failing diminished. My focus on the Instructor Exam during my training reduced. Therefore my training focus altered. I wanted my instructor candidates to hit the ground running. Teaching safe fun and well-organized PADI courses. It's one thing to pass the IE, but once you land your first job, if you make a mess of the first few courses you teach, you are going to lose that job. I realized it was my job to make sure that didn't happen. The moral of the story - Find a course director with years of experience. They will train you to be a successful scuba instructor, not just to pass the exam.
Train in conditions similar to those you plan to work. The IDC certainly isn't easy, it is made much harder by cold water and low visibility. So choosing to take the IDC in such conditions certainly, adds an amount of task loading. However, if you are going to teach in those conditions after passing the IE it may well be worth training in those same conditions. There is another option, though. You may decide to take the IDC in nice warm tropical waters and get the OWSI rating under your belt, and then take MSDT training in tougher conditions, similar to those in which you plan to teach.
Comments
Post a Comment