Drift Diving Hazards and Problems.

The above techniques reduce the likelihood of problems in drift diving, but it’s wise to understand possible concerns,

how to avoid them and some solutions should they occur.

Drift diving makes the current do most of the work of swimming for you.

When a diver tries to fight the current, however, the current will eventually win and exhaustion becomes a possible hazard.

Signs and symptoms of exhaustion include fatigue, laboured breathing, air starvation, headache, cramping and stress, which can elevate to near-panic.

You prevent exhaustion by keeping exertion below levels that induce heavy breathing.

Underwater, stay at or near the bottom where the current is slower if you must work against it for a short distance.

You may try pulling yourself along the bottom against the current by holding on to nonliving portions of the reef.

If you can’t swim against a current, don’t try to fight it.

If you are out of position and can’t fight the current, ascend no faster than 18m per minute or as stipulated by your computer,

inflate your BCD at the surface and rest.

When drift diving from a boat, signal “okay” overhead, and the boat will come to you.

When drift diving from shore, swim for shore without fighting the current by swimming across it.

Besides exhaustion, currents can create psychological stress for divers who aren’t used to them.

In the grip of stress, a diver may try to swim against or fight the current, leading to exhaustion.

He prevention is remembering to use proper drift dive techniques, and to not try to fight the current.

A final problem currents can cause is buddy separation. During a descent or ascent,

a buddy who delays in descending (perhaps due to equalization problems) will drift faster in the more rapid surface current than deeper buddy.

Or on the bottom, if one buddy can be carried far down current before noticing.

Just be careful where you grab the bottom – protect the living reef creature.

You can easily avoid these problems with good buddy contact. Stay close together during ascents and descents,

and always signal each other before stopping in the current.

 

 

Getting Lost.

During a drift dive from a boat, there’s generally no exact exit point.

The float or the dive group itself is the dive boat’s reference to pick you up.

If you separate from the group, the boat may not have this reference when you surface.

Getting lost can also be a problem when shore-drift diving if only the group leader is familiar with the appropriate exit location.

This is why it’s important for the group to stay together.

For the purpose of drift diving, a diver is “lost” when the diver can’t see the float line or the group.

he diver and buddy may be together and have a feel for where they are, but for the purposes of drift diving, the team is lost.

If you should find yourself “lost”, with or without your buddy,

look around for the group for no more than a minute before ascending to the surface at 18 meters per minute or slower,

or as stipulated by your dive computer. If you think you’re up current from the group, you might try swimming to catch up.

If you believe you’re down current, you can try swimming against the current (but not at a pace that would cause exhaustion)

or try holding on to a nonliving portion of the bottom to see if the group catches up with you.

Keep in mind though, that if the group changes course, the current may be separating you farther.

Should you fail to find the group and begin surfacing, look for the float line and bubbles.

If you spot them during the ascent, try stopping your ascent and rejoin the group.

When diving from a boat, ascend carefully so you don’t surface in the path of the boat.

Upon reaching the surface, inflate your BCD and signal for the boat to pick you up.

If you reach the surface but cannot see the boat, inflate your signal tube.