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Dive Logs for Vance Stevens PADI open water scuba instructor #64181 Dives 503-504 August 7, 2003 Abu Dhabi Delta Buoy and Cement Barge

Diving with: ADHFC (Abu Dhabi Health and Fitness Club)
Dive buddies: Rola Sbat, completing her Open Water certification
Others in dive party: Martin Corrado, Calvin Ponton, Michel Giguere, Ade Lambo (a divemaster who located me on the Internet and emailed, said he'd be in town, and I invited him to assist us)
Conditions: 40 ish, breezy but sea conditions good, though came up slightly in afternoon
Visibility: 6 meters - could make out dark objects at 10
Wetsuit: lycra skin
Weight: 8-10 kg (overweighted to give off to other divers)
Diving from: Sheikh Thanoon's boat

Thursday, August 7, 2003

My 503rd Logged Dive since 1991

Dive site: Delta Buoy
Training conducted: Rola Sbat: 3rd Open Water training dive; Martin Corrado: Advanced Open Water Boat Dive; Calvin Ponton: Rescue Diver exercise 4, distressed diver underwater, and Exercise 2, Panicked diver at surface

Interval on computer from previous dive: nil, first dive of day

Pressure group in, from tables or wheel: n/a new diver

Time down on dive computer: 10:16
Max depth: 12.8 meters
Time started up from chart: 49 min
Dive time from computer: 51 min
Min Temp: 33 degrees centigrade
No-stop time left on computer: 99 min
Nitrox 21% (normal air), no deco

Description of dive:

I organized this dive and recruited divers for it. I had three trainees, all at different levels, a divemaster, and a fun diver. Martin was doing his first dive since 1998 so I buddied him with Ade, the divemaster, who I'd asked to assist in return for free air and equipment. Calvin was doing a rescue course and was paired with Michel. I buddied with Rola, in Open Water training under my direct supervision. We motored to the D Buoy in half an hour and I had Alex, our pleasant boatman, anchor in 10 meters of water east and slightly north of the buoy.

In addition to the boat briefing I outlined a plan in which we would go down the anchor line and then do a square for exploration, ending up back at the line. My plan was at that point to take Rola up in an emergency swimming ascent while we had a reasonably vertical anchor line to travel. However, I failed to make clear that I wanted everyone to remain on the line going down, a currently swiftly took us out of view of the line, and someone was underweighted so by the time we got us all to the bottom we had lost the anchor line (I had told everyone I would have extra weight and was able to correct the weight problem at the bottom). I took a compass bearing and tried to find the anchor but gave up after a few minutes. While waiting for Martin and Ade to catch up I had Rola flood and clear her mask. I found a ridge and built a cairn and led us in a square from there. On return I found the ridge ok but never could relocate the cairn. Current must have thrown me off. I led us east up the ridge against the current till the ridge petered out but still didn't see my cairn. I then led us south and west and then meandered northwest back to the ridge. In all this time the bottom had been plain with (to me) a disappointingly mundane texture of coral dollops but not much fishlife to speak of. When we hit the ridge again I took us west along it till it too seemed to level out. I checked everyone's air, Martin was at 70, so I led us northwest to the next ridge over and this one was pretty with colorful yellow grunts and some healthy groupers. It was in 12 meters, and I'll get us dropped there next time, a bit further north and east of the buoy. We explored this area for a few minutes till Martin hit 50 and then as prearranged I had him and Michel buddy pair for the ascent. Ade pretended to become suddenly disoriented and distressed and Calvin rushed in to reassure him, giving a clear stop signal, motioning for steady breathing, making contact. Ade signalled out of air and Calvin took him to the surface on octopus. I signalled out of air to Rola and she took me up on buddy breathing. Martin and Michel surfaced normally.

We came up to find ourselves at least 100 meters from the boat current against us. Alex made no move to come for us so I took the opportunity to have Rola do tired diver tows and thus instruct Calvin. I then became distressed and had Calvin rescue me and move me closer to the boat. I had meant to be a distressed diver but Calvin did not assess my condition and treated me as a panic case, so we worked on that angle. In any event, we got a good lesson in how hard it is to move people against a current which is when an accident is likely to occur, in something other than lake-like conditions. Unencumbered by training Michel and Ade and Martin made it to the boat. I shouted for Ade to pull anchor and Alex finally came around to collect us. I didn't want to stress my people by insisting we actually make the boat in training, not wanting to risk a real tired diver scenario while fighting current under the weight of a tired diver.

Pressure group out, from tables or wheel: 99 min from deco so ok

My 504th Logged Dive since 1991

Dive site: Old Cement Barge
Training conducted: Rola Sbat: 4th Open Water training dive for Certification; Martin Corrado: Advanced Open Water Wreck Dive; Calvin Ponton: Rescue Diver search for missing diver underwater

Interval on computer from previous dive: 1 hour 22 min.

Pressure group in, from tables or wheel: I would guess B, but have students calculate

Time down on dive computer: 12:37
Max depth: 10.4 meters
Time started up from chart: 8 min
Dive time from computer: 9 min
Min Temp: degrees 33 centigrade
No-stop time left on computer: 99 min
Nitrox 21% (normal air), no deco

Time back down on dive computer: 12:57
Max depth: 10.7 meters
Time started up from chart: 46 min
Dive time from computer: 47 min
Min Temp: degrees 33 centigrade
No-stop time left on computer: 99 min
Nitrox 21% (normal air), no deco

Description of dive:

We found the OCB through the usual combination of luck and skill. Somehow the fresh batteries I'd put in my GPS were no good and I was turning it on only to actually locate the sites (giving Alex the bearings and taking the ETAs then switching it off till he'd gone the prescribed distance). We never found a 7 meter blip on the fish finder but the waypoint OCB3 on my GPS was pretty good. We circled till we appeared pretty close to the wreck. The GPS had already gone off once and I figured we'd better drop anchor. I took three GPS waypoints and determined a 100 degree arch in the direction it was likely to be. Ade and I went in to look for it and I took Rola along because her air is excellent and I figured I could have her do an ESA on ascent back up the anchor line this time. In the water we noticed a stiff current trying to sweep us behind the boat so we clawed to the anchor line and then pulled ourselves down it. It was stretched to a 30 degree slope. We were right on the wreck, as before. Possibly we had anchored far side of the wreck and had dragged anchor and grappled it. While down there we checked out a debris trail leading off the wreck to the east and Ade and I agreed to position him there as a missing diver at the end of the trail where you couldn't see the wreck but if he wasn't found he could follow the debris trail back as a double check to going west on compass. We then went up the anchor line where Rola attempted an ESA. She had hold of me on the way up and didn't fin like she was trying to reach the surface, so I treated it as a dry run. My students usually get it right the second time and figure out from the dry run what they are supposed to be doing.

We got the others and took them down to the wreck. The school of batfish was alive and well. Lots of snappers as usual, and gobies in the sand with little crabs behind. I looked off the bow and stern for rays and barracuda. I haven't seen barracuda on that wreck in a long while and I don't think I've ever seen a ray there. We went all around the wreck and then I signalled Martin to buddy with Michel and Calvin, ascertained that all understood, and then Ade and Rola and I disappeared into the gloom. We positioned Ade, saw he was comfy, and returned to the wreck to tell the others that our buddy had gone missing.

I need to point out that proper procedure in case of missing buddy is of course to surface and look for your buddy for one minute and if he doesn't appear invoke the pre-arranged recall of divers and then conduct the search starting at the surface. However, finding missing divers using search patterns is the main part of the skill so I intended to give Calvin practice in that even if we didn't really carry out the scenario. I suppose there could be a case where divers would report a missing buddy underwater, and you could send THEM to the surface to look for him there while you conduct a quick search, but working out what's best to do underwater might save precious time but could lead to disorganization. If you wrote instructions on a slate it might work. In any event I wanted to give Calvin practice and I had a divemaster who I could leave on his own so I took advantage of that.

Calvin immediately finned off on his own but checked back so I had him hold up and get with his buddy. He then led Michel 30 kicks east and then headed north parallel to the wreck. I hung inside where I could see both him and the wreck in my periferal view. Rola and Martin were now with me. Calvin went 30 kicks to the first item in the debris trail (a long pipe) and then turned in toward the wreck. He reached it and turned north again and finned alongside the wreck. I could fault him here as his view west was blocked by the wreck so if I'd been him I would have been about where I was, in the sand, where I could see all the way to the wreck and further off it as well, but he was sticking to his preset pattern, and there can be reasons for doing that (ie. avoid confusion). About this time I also saw Ade where I'd left him so I watched Calvin, on the far side of my vision, turn east at about the bow of the wreck and swim well north of Ade 50 kicks he said later. He then turned south to come back on a widening square spiral. On this pass he found his man, so it was an effective pattern, and well executed. We hadn't discussed surfacing an unconscious diver so we did nothing further in that scenario.

We all returned to the wreck, split into separate pairs, and finished our dive picking over any details we'd missed. I looked hard for nudibranchs in the soft encrustations, but saw only clams. I then led us into the sand on another ray and barracuda hunt. Rola was nearing 50 and wanted to go up so swam back to the boat and up to the anchor line, saw bubbles the other side, found Ade and Martin there, and signalled Ade that Rola and I were departing. I had Rola do an ESA up the anchor line and she did it perfectly this time.

Everyone had a great time, diver recovery rate was again 100%, and all objectives were accomplished in the way of progress on various certifications, so we were feeling pretty chuffed on the ride home.

Pressure group out, from tables or wheel: 99 min no deco time

News from Ade Lambo: "I am undertaking a Phd with the University of London in collaboration with the Kenyan Wildlife Service ( the kenyan equivilant of the EWRDA). the work is on the shallow water reefs between Malindi and Watamu on the coast and the subject is The effects of coral bleaching on reef fish communities in Kenya. Basically i am invesitgating the effects of the 1998 El Nino induced global coral belaching event and seeing what sort of ecological and economic effects are/will be felt. I was lucky enough to be born and raised in Kenya and so spent most of my childhood by the sea (hence my love of diving) and was given the opportunity after my MSc to continue and do a PhD; neddless to say I jumped at the chance! "

Ade if you read this it was nice to have you diving with us and hope to take up your offer of diving in Kenya one of these days - Vance