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Chapter 5 — 24
Surface detection aids include:
•
Surface marker buoy, Decompression buoy, Delayed SMB, safety
sausage or blob
•
Red or yellow collapsible flag - high visibility, robust, bungeed to
cylinder
•
Glow stick - for night diving
•
Whistle - cheap, will only be heard by people far from engine noise
•
Torch/flashlight - if at sea after night fall
•
Strobe light - needs long-lasting batteries
•
High pressure whistle - expensive but effective
•
Orange water dye - increases diver's visibility from search helicopters
•
Mirror, such as a used compact disc, to reflect sunlight or searchlights
•
Red or Orange Pyrotechnic flares -for helicopters and lifeboats
•
Emergency Position-Indicating Rescue Beacon (EPIRB)
A
whistle
may be of value on the surface, in attracting support from the boat crew or
other divers. Another system of drawing attention and demonstrating the divers
position on the surface, where most accidents either commence or end up, is a depth-
resistant
distress signal
(smoke for daytime, flare for night).
A 2 metre orange plastic tube, able to be inflated by scuba or mouth, is of value and is marketed as
the
Safety Sausage
. If erect, it is easily seen from aboard boats. Aircraft can identify it more easily
when it is laid flat on the water surface. It is also known as the "Diver's Condom".
Underwater a diver can be contacted by a variety of transmitting and homing devices.
Lights
are of
real value at night, if the visibility is good.
It is a sad fact that most divers’ bodies are retrieved only after a search — and usually death occurs
without the buddy-diver's knowledge. Many deaths could possibly be prevented by the proper use of
such simple and cheap systems of communication.
Most divers rely on diving close to each other, with visual communication only. Variations, such as
one diver leading the other or diving with a group, results in an antithesis of the buddy system – as
there is no clear and complete responsibility of each diver for the other.
A
buddy–line
keeps a pair of divers in close contact. It consists of a short length of cord (2–4 metres
in length and preferably of floating line) which is attached to each diver's arm by a detachable strap.
Any emergency affecting one diver will soon become apparent to the buddy even if he is not
watching. Possibly the only instance where the buddy line should be discarded is when snagging is
likely, or if a large shark takes a serious interest in one's buddy