The shift that went from perfect to nightmare in 90 minutes

Last Tuesday off the coast of Galveston, I had one of those days that started amazing and then flipped hard. We were setting anodes on a pipeline in 80 feet of water, vis was crystal clear at 15 feet, and my lift bag work was spot on. Then my pneumo line got tangled in a riser clamp and I spent 45 minutes hanging upside down trying to undo it. By the time I surfaced, my neck was wrecked and I had salt water in every crevice of my drysuit. Has anyone else had a single piece of gear just ruin an otherwise perfect shift?

3 comments

3 Comments

danielm8013d ago

A lift bag gone rogue is one thing, but your whole pneumo line turning you into a human piñata is a whole other level. Guess that crystal clear vis just made it easier to see exactly how screwed you were. Hope your neck is feeling better, but the saltwater in the drysuit is a loss you'll never get back.

alice92813d ago

Man that saltwater in the drysuit is basically a rite of passage at this point lol. My neck is fine now, just a little stiff when I turn quick but honestly the worst part was explaining to my wife why I smelled like a harbor for three days. She was not impressed when I told her the pneumo hose decided to redecorate the interior of my suit with a hundred PSI of ocean. At least the crystal clear vis meant I got a real good look at my own panic face reflected back at me, pretty sure that's gonna haunt my dreams more than any bent neck ever could.

davis.olivia13d ago

Take it from someone who learned the hard way - once you get that pneumo fitting sorted, swap out the inflator hose quick connect o-ring too. That little rubber ring is usually what causes the line to lock open, not the hose itself. Also pro tip for the saltwater in the suit: fill it halfway with warm water and a capful of fabric softener, slosh it around for a few minutes, then drain. Gets the harbor smell out way better than just rinsing.