Semi Dry
Again witnessing someones misfortune of a flooded dry suit in this case the comfort zip not properly shut brought an earlier misfortune of mine rushing back, it’s so easily done.
Let me set the scene, picture four drysuited divers sat in a rib on a warm summers day anchored waiting for slack above a well known shipwreck on the NW coast of Mull. We had been anchored above the wreck by now for about 20mins the weather was gorgeous but our tempretures were climbing. We knew from previous visits to the site that once the window opened on the tide there wasn’t time to hang about. “Right lets get in the water now” Now I don’t like rushing at the best of times. On this particular day in a overheated dry suit my thoughts were focussed on the fact that the cool chilled relief of the sea was going to be a blessing. A bit of help with kitting up ok signals and my buddy and I rolled backwards off the side of the boat. I made my way to to anchor line at which point my buddy shot off below me. I duck dived and started to fin and pull myself down the line towards the wreck.
Now when you know when you get that feeling that something just isn’t right? I just couldn’t quite put my finger on it. “Oh Dear” somethings not right, I now realised that the something not right was gallons of seawater rushing down the back of my neck and back. I wasn’t panicking maybe I should have been, what i did know was i needed to break surface and get back in the boat. Only a couple of meters below the surface I headed back up the line I was starting to feel alarmingly heavy and by now the weight of the water colecting in the lower part of my suit was streching my arms. I grabbed one of the rope cleats on the side of the boats, the other occupants one of who was supposed to have checked me out looked a little bemused “What have you come up for”? Can you get me in the boat please? A picture paints a thousand words the look on my face was sufficient to tell them that perhaps my request was a little understated!!. Getting into a rib with a drysuit full of waters not an easy task, I took my set off in the water and I tried to pull my self in “No chance”. With effort from me and the herculean task of two diver pulling both arms I was manhandled sideways onto the side of the boat I still couldn’t move. I lay there for about several mins with what seemed by now like the rest of the north atlantic gushing out of the now gapingly obvious half open shoulder zip that hadn’t been zipped up, this comic site much to the amusement of the other divers. I was just glad to be back on ther boat. I did ask what had happened to the buddy check before it all went pear shaped, having said that I did ask someone to unzip me before diving as I was hot.
Lessons learnt
I now don’t rush getting in even on a hot summers day
I always try to have a quick look round to see if everyones zipped up.
oh yeah and for those who maybe think that you can simulate this as a drill in the pool, well it just hasn’t got the same realism.
What do they say don’t try this at home!!!!!
