BOATING SAFELY - DIVING

Sport diving operations flag

International Code diving operations day flag signal display 'Alpha'

International Code diving operations night light signal display 'Alpha'

One of the aspects of boating safely is diving safely.  Living in South Florida most times when we go boating we meet up with divers.  It is popular sport in this area with many marked locations for divers - would that the divers were as well marked as those locations.  


NAUTICAL LOG is not a diver so in an effort to learn more about things we made visits to the diving section of local marine chandlers and dive shops themselves.  It is an eye-opener sometimes to see the state of the shop with equipment, tools scattered about, little organisation, with tanks connected up every-which-way.  Also the people doing the work in such a place makes one wonder at the quality of that work.  Usually amongst seafarers the 'turn out' of the person gives an accurate indication of the quality of their work. 


It seems that the USCG are also concerned as there is a report published this morning "Diving deaths spike in Florida."  On Thursday 10/27 a training exercise was held in Biscayne Bay, FL.  As usual in this type of Post we quote directly:

"The number of injured-diver incidents has risen in Florida this year with 60 so far compared to 44 for all of 2010, the U.S. Coast Guard said.  Most of the incidents occurred in South Florida.  Coast Guard Sector Miami, which goes up to Fort Pierce, had 43 of those 2011 dive incidents.  Thirteen (13) divers have died off Sunshine State shores so far this year with nine (9) fatalities in South Florida."


What is being done about all this, well the Coast Guard strongly urges divers to take safety classes and make performance checks on their equipment.  NAUTICAL LOG would add to that check out those dive-shops and compare them before entrusting your equipment to their hands because you are also entrusting your life.


Good Watch.

Now that British Merchant Navy vessels and those of other Nations are going to have armed guards perhaps we can expect a reduction in the numbers of piracy attacks.  Since extreme prejudice has been authorised perhaps the numbers of pirates will also be reduced.  However let us not forget that 400 of our fellow seafarers are held captive by pirates off Somalia.  It now becomes even more important that they are rescued.