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Old timer on the rig taught me a hand signal I'll never forget
I was working a saturation job in the Gulf about 2 years ago and got paired up with this guy named Gene who had been diving since the 80s. We were doing some valve work at 200 feet and he grabbed my arm hard, made this weird fist over his chest. Turns out he was signaling that a line had snagged on my tanks and I was about to get yanked. Spent the next hour learning his whole set of custom signals. Has anyone else picked up unique hand signals from an old diver that aren't in the standard training?
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wade_kelly772mo ago
Bet Gene had a dozen more signals for bad tenders lol.
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taylor9572mo ago
Ngl, I gotta push back on this whole "secret hand signals save lives" thing. I get that Gene meant well, but honestly, making up your own unofficial language underwater is asking for trouble. If a new guy comes in and doesn't know Gene's special fist move, the whole system breaks down and someone could get hurt. Standardized training exists for a reason. Same reason we don't let electricians invent their own wire colors. It's not about disrespecting the old timers, it's about making sure every diver on deck speaks the same language.
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