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Be Aware of Failure Points

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The final in a series of three excerpts from Simon’s new book: Scuba Exceptional…

Ian back-rolled into the water and dropped down fast to 20m, at which point he reached for his inflator to inject some air into his BCD to halt his descent. However, when he pressed the inflator button, all he did was inject a stream of air directly into the ocean. He looked down and, to his surprise, saw that his inflator mechanism was connected only to the low-pressure inflator hose. His corrugated BCD hose was nowhere to be seen.

He continued to drop. He tried finning up to arrest his descent but this just slowed him down. He was still descending with no means of correcting his negative buoyancy. He was using a wing and harness BCD with a 7kg stainless steel backplate and had no free weights to ditch. Luckily, his diving companions were close by and came to his assistance. They got him back to the surface, so he lived to dive another day.

Ian had come up with the idea of wearing a heavy backplate with his BCD because he didn’t like wearing a weightbelt or weight pockets. He always worried that a belt might slip over his belly and fall off, causing him to shoot to the surface. And weight pockets always made his legs drop, giving him a seahorse-like posture.

Ian had never considered that his BCD might fail during a dive. All BCDs have multiple failure points. The wing can tear, dump valves can shear off and inflators can fail in multiple ways. Every diver should always make sure they can reach the surface and stay afloat once they get there without the assistance of their BCD. This is usually achieved by dropping some or all of their weights. All Ian’s weight was in his backplate. There was nothing he could do to make himself positively buoyant, except remove his equipment entirely, which, at depth, might have been disastrous.

The problem that had caused Ian’s BCD to fail on this occasion was that his corrugated hose was only connected to the BCD pump mechanism by a single cable tie and this cable tie had broken and come off. Cable ties are notorious failure points, which is why all good BCD systems have TWO cable ties or a permanent heavy-duty screw fitting at each end of the corrugated hose.

Good BCDs also have some sort of permanently fixed bridging or wrapping device connecting the corrugated and inflator hoses. This device is there so that if the corrugated hose comes off the pump, it will stay in place next to the inflator hose. The diver can then reattach it to the pump and hold it in place manually while they inflate the BCD. Ian’s BCD had no such connector, so his corrugated hose just floated off behind his back. He might have been able to reach it but he was so bewildered, he didn’t even think of that.

Be aware of the potential failure points in every item of your equipment and make sure you know what to do to survive when a failure point fails.


This piece is adapted from a chapter in Simon Pridmore’s new book Scuba Exceptional – Become the Best Diver You Can Be available now from Amazon, iTunes, Kobo and other online bookstores.

Simon Pridmore is the author of scuba diving books, travel books and, as you might expect, scuba diving travel books. Originally from the UK, Simon has lived in Asia for over 30 years. As well as his books and guides, Simon writes regular columns for a number of magazines. He and his wife Sofie currently live in Bali, Indonesia but spend a lot of time exploring other places trying (but failing so far) to find a cure for their itchy feet. Simon's latest book - Scuba Exceptional – Become the Best Diver You Can Be - the follow-up to his best-selling Scuba Confidential, is available now in paperback and e-book versions from Amazon stores worldwide. Find out more about Simon and his books on www.simonpridmore.com

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Four opportunities to go pro in 2024 with Dive Friends Bonaire

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idc

Dive Friends teaches the Instructor Development Course (IDC) several times a year to students who are eager to share their passion for diving with the world.

Dive Friends is known for the personal approach throughout the course. Their in-house course director will lead the students through every essential step, mentoring them to achieve their fullest potential as a dive instructor.

Applications for the following IDC start dates are now open:

  • 12 April
  • 5 July,
  • 20 September
  • 29 November

Partnership with Casita Palma

If the student opts for the IDC-Deluxe or IDC-Supreme package, their accommodation will be arranged for them at Casita Palma. This small and quiet resort is within walking distance from Dive Friends Bonaire’s main dive shop location and has everything you need to relax after an intense day of IDC training. Breakfast is included, so the student will always be fuelled and ready for their day.

Contact Dive Friends Bonaire’s Course Director Eddy for more information: coursedirector@divefriendsbonaire.com.

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Scubility: Achieving Success through Adaptability

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Introduction to Scubility

Being a scuba diving professional, I am always fascinated by the beauty of the underwater world, filled with colorful coral and a variety of marine species. Every dive site around the world has something unique to offer, attracting the diving community to immerse themselves time and time again. The feeling of being underwater is a unique experience, akin to being in space, where you can escape Earth’s gravity to enjoy the freedom of movement. However, water sports are often believed to be accessible only to those with good physical strength, leaving others to only dream of being there.

The Genesis of Scubility

Scubility was developed as a way to help people with disabilities experience the magic of scuba diving or snorkeling. A few years back we became involved in the SDI Scubility program as a way to use our diving experience and knowledge to bring disabled people beneath the ocean. To empower them with a feeling where they can forget their disability and limitations. The image of a Wheelchair Hero from the movie ‘AVATAR’, who could walk and run only in dreams, was the first seed of the idea for a local Scubility program.

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Launching the Scubility Course

Since 2014, my friend has dedicated himself to helping disabled people. Knowing that I am an SDI/TDI Instructor Trainer, he called upon me to help bring them into the world of scuba diving. Captivated by this idea, I decided to offer a special diving course adapted for disabled people: the SDI Scubility Course. The sole purpose was to bring happiness and a feeling of belonging back to our precious disabled students, by giving them an immersive experience under the sea. Perhaps, the mother ocean has a way of treating us all equally, to rebuild confidence and give hope of being alive.

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Adapting Diving for All Abilities

Initially, most Scubility divers in our programs were wheelchair users. The main challenge was to design a unique technique suitable for each Scubility diver, based on their limitations. To do so, we set up a protocol keeping in mind all the scenarios that could arise during diving, starting from boarding the boat, to diving, and the communication signals during the dive. Training was also provided to volunteer participants, mostly instructors and assistant divers.

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The Scubility Program in Action

In the last four events, we have enrolled many Scubility divers in the program. We also have a team of trained instructors and assistants; without them, this wouldn’t be possible. The main objective was to make safe and comfortable diving experiences for Scubility students. In fact, in the last Scubility program, which concluded in March 2023, we included a blind diver along with six other Scubility divers. We also had 8 instructors and more than 10 assistant participants to make this possible.

scubility

The main challenge for blind divers is to set up a communication signal. So, I designed a unique ‘touch signal’ for blind students where they just need to touch an arm to convey a message. For example, when an instructor touches your arm twice, it means he is asking, “Are you okay?”. In case of any emergency during the dive, the blind diver just needs to squeeze the arm of the instructor to get his attention to solve the problem. For each Scubility diver, there were at least two personnel, an instructor, and an assistant, assigned.

Impact and Emotions of Scubility

The most satisfying experience of this program was to see Scubility divers happy, with emotional, teary eyes. I could imagine that probably for the first time, or perhaps the only time, some of them could walk, stand, and move again underwater without a wheelchair, feeling alive again. Seeing a courageous Scubility diver overcoming all challenges and obstacles to make it possible definitely inspires me to organize more events like this.

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“Scuba Diving for All” Event

The biggest local Scubility program, named “Scuba Diving for All,” was organized in Khao Lak, Phang-nga Province, south of Thailand, from October 30 to November 5, 2018. We invited international Scubility participant divers for this event. Leading up to this program, we put in lots of effort, preparing hotels and resorts in a friendly design, making sure of choosing good dive sites, and above all, to bring a smile to our precious Scubility students.

scubility

I hope that this endeavor will serve as an inspiration for people worldwide to achieve what may seem impossible, while also raising awareness about the importance of charity and kindness in our society. I look forward to welcoming you soon to our joyful underwater realm.

As an SDI TDI & Scubility IT, Dan Phutthakhun Prungkananon, owner of All Star Diving Academy located in Thailand, has a deep-rooted passion for ensuring safety and fun in the water. Keep up with Dan and the All Star Diving Academy via Instagram  or Facebook and by checking out their Dive Center Facebook.

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