December 2015

Pez Maya

Decompression Illness Scenario

Objectives:

Complete a decompression illness scenario to complete the PADI Divemaster course as well as
testing our emergency action plans

Summary
Being in a secluded area, and performing copious amounts of diving, we like to be prepared for all
possible emergencies. In this case we focused on the possibility of decompression illness and dealing
with the situation in full from start to finish. In addition we integrated the scenario in to the current
PADI Divemaster course we are running on base as an assessment of rescue skills.
Report
In Pez maya we are located far from medical facilities so we like to be as prepared as possible to deal
with any situations that may arise in an efficient and thorough manner. In the month of November 2016
we were in the process of completing the PADI Divemaster course for Adam, one of our scholars, who
only had the final assessment of his rescue skills left before finishing the course. We took this as an
opportunity to test our emergency action plan as well as the skills and competency of all staff and
volunteers on base, in addition to completing the Divemaster course.
We decided to start the dive as any other without any volunteers being aware of the pending scenario
looming over them. All divers descended into the depths to complete a 40 minute dive. After
approximately 30 minutes one of the divers in Adams group became unresponsive, simulating a
horrendous diving injury known as decompression illness.
Adam immediately responded and took charge of the situation to his instructors delight. He approached
the diver rapidly to establish responsiveness and upon concluding the diver was unresponsive he
immediately began the procedures for surfacing the diver with a sense of urgency and yet maintained a
graceful and safe disposition. Upon reaching the surface all of Adams training continued to flood back
and he immediately established buoyancy and alerted the captain to the situation.

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Figure 1 Rescuing an unresponsive diver underwater

The captain, Bradley Harris, being a weathered seaman knew exactly what to do and let his years of
training take over. In a flash he was in motion getting the emergency action plan, recalling all other
divers, informing base of the situation as well as the other boat and finally preparing to swoop in and
pick up the victim and rescuer. During this small window of time Adam had proceeded to begin
providing rescue breathes and remove the victims equipment in a race against time, preparing to be
picked up by Captain Harris.
Adam continued to provide care and watched as Captain Harris made his final approach and perfectly
positioned the boat, as if threading a needle. Adam was coiled and ready to strike. The moment the boat
was in reach he was in motion positioning the victim for exit and booming commands left and right to all
personnel available,
Take the hands!!
Pull them on board!!
He commanded, and
people were in motion
immediately,
not
questioning his orders for
a second due to his
confident
and
authoritative demeanor.
The crew were seamless Figure 2 Pulling unresponsive diver on to the boat
and extracted the victim
from the sea and on to the boat in seconds. Adam meanwhile leapt from the ocean and onto the boat,
and was in position to begin CPR. Captain Harris, being the man that he is, had already set up the

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emergency oxygen which allowed Adam to begin medical care in a matter of seconds. All crew back on
board Captain Harris began to push the boat to the limit, still racing the clock, on the journey back to
shore.
Upon arriving at the golden shores of Pez Maya the crew found that their colleagues had performed
with the efficiency of a welloiled machine in preparation
for their arrival. The staff
stood poised ready to move at
a moments notice with the
stretcher. The volunteers
forming immaculate lines for
boat push as if creating a
runway in the crystal waters
of the Caribbean. Once again
Captain Harris glided in with
the precision off a surgeon.
Without
a
moments
hesitation the crew were in a
frenzy of motion pushing the
boat onto shore as Adam
continued CPR throughout the
commotion.
Figure 3 Boat push with injured diver on board

When the boat was at

the ideal point the staff
broke in to action,
gently placing the
victim on the stretcher
and traversing the
short stretch of beach
to the truck with the
urgency only a fellow
Pez
Mayan
could
understand. After mere
seconds they reached
the truck which, not to
their surprise, was Figure 4 Evacuating injured diver
running and positioned

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perfectly with all necessary medical supplies to make the journey to the nearest medical facility which
stood again as a tribute to the efficiency and thoroughness of the personnel on base throughout this
simulated catastrophe.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, concluded our scenario. Adam successfully rescued the victim therefore
passing his Divemaster course and our emergency action plan worked perfectly. All staff and volunteers
on base did an excellent job as well throughout the simulation. All in all a very successful day and a great
example of the great team that Pez Maya has.

Figure 5 Staff getting ready to drive the injured diver to medical facility

If you would like you read more about this monitoring project please visit
http://www.gvi.co.uk/programs/marine-conservation-expedition-mexico .

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