We’ve all heard the stories. Divers enter the water and when they surface, the boat is gone. It happens way more often than you’d think.
Here are just a few true stories from around the world:
http://www.today.com/id/30820957/ns/today-today_news/t/scuba-couple-survive-hours-open-water/
http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/stranded-at-sea-without-a-boat-a-true-story-20130814
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/couple-stranded-sea-scuba-diving-article-1.1520873
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/jun/29/australian-boat-left-scuba-diver-behind
Any rational person would wonder how a dive boat operator could be so irresponsible that they could actually drive off without double and triple checking that everyone was back on board. But with tens of thousands of diver operators around the world, each running several boats and each boat going on several dives/day, we’re talking about a lot of chances for something to go wrong. Over the course of a year, around the world, there must be millions of boat dives. Accidents can happen. The law of large numbers is not on our side.
But one thing is certain… It doesn’t have to happen to you. There are things you can do.
First of all, you can make sure that the boat operator is making a proper count and that the staff is actually counting as people get on and off the boat.
DAN makes Diver IDentification System (DIDS) that they offer to all boat operators.
https://www.diversalertnetwork.org/membership/biz/dids.asp
Unfortunately, as a diver I have logged more than 1000 dives in various locations around the world. I’ve never been on a dive boat that has one of these boards. It’s a great idea but if the dive boat doesn’t have one of these, you won’t know it until you get there. And by then, its too late.
Divers need to have their own system that they take with them. Luckily, a simple inexpensive TAG may be just what you need to keep from getting left behind.
It’s your tag. You take it with you. It attaches to your BCD with a snap ring. When you’re just about to begin a dive, remove it from your BCD and hand it to the crew member whose job it is to keep count of the divers. Tell him or her that you’ll retrieve it after your dive. It’ll make it that much harder for them to leave you behind if they are still holding onto your DIVER DOWN TAG.
Get yours at www.scubadivertag.com