Scared at Peacock

[Jim Wyatt]

Several of us witnessed O/W checkout dives being conducted all the way into the chimney at Little River long ago. The divers had Ace Hardware flashlights in zip loc bags as primary lights.

We filed a QA with padi & the instructor was canned by padi.

[RN]

Whew, I come home after a great 3 day weekend in cave country and I'm getting slammed on my own forum...

Funny how things look from other's perspectives... Saturday morning, my associate, Peter, was teaching a cavern class of two, my wife an intro class of three, and I, one cavern student. This was Saturday morning. The rest of our 'mob', from Orlando, California, North Carolina, Alabama and Germany were friends and past students there to dive and enjoy themselves. Most, on Saturday, were off doing their own thing.

Tfaris overhead a conversation of the team of three (Sean, Intro with H valve, his dad Mike and Adrian, both apprentice divers) talking about the 800' and 900' line marker on the main line to Olsen.... Well, there is none.. Adrian was confused about it... and we were explaining the mid-point markers, etc. I think he saw the '600' ... upside down.... who knows... I figured they turned their dive at one of the 600' markers...

Sorry we showed up with a crowd at Peacock... We were, at least 18 in number (2 were not diving)...

Below are most of them, next day at Little River...


I don't post too often on the main forums... but while I'm at it...

Friday morning at Morgans was great. Basin not so clear, but cave was perfect!

Saturday afternoon, Denise and I traded classes and I did lots of skills with the Intro boys while she followed the cavern student (Nicole) running line in the cavern.

Sunday morning, at Little River, Peter worked with the 3 cavern students, Denise the intro students, and I dived with the apprentice divers, and one full cave diver, twice... Oh, and the single tank cavern and sidemount Intro divers ALL passed!

Later on Sunday afternoon, after most divers were headed home, Denise swam with Adrian, one of the apprentice diver, out to the Nickolson tunnel and back (conditions not so good), then down the Well line. Chris, a full cave diver, and I ran a line from P1 cavern down to the Well line, then went to the end of the Well line, looked around all the jumps down there, back out to the main line beyond the sign, over to Pothole, crossed over to the Breakdown room on the Peanut line, via the Sidemount tunnel there, then back to P1 cavern, down to the Well jump to pull the line we left there. Great dive, 85 mins no deco.. and barely past thirds when done and on safety stop.

Great weekend...

Thanks, TJ. It sounded like there had to be some reasonable explanation. Thanks for clearing it up!

[phillip1]

Hi all,
well I must admit that the cave part of the story with recreational divers was a bit scary..!!
I'm a dive instructor living in Akumal (Mex) and every now and then I see things that make my hair rise high above my head but, hey... its Mexico, its more relax and there is no such a thing as strict standard procedure. Its the art of adapting to the environement...
But I was thinking that in the US, (Motherland of the Biggest training agencies) the diver education was a bit more seriously considered. What I mean by that is, for exemple, PADI has QAs and so have the other agencies. How come there are instructors, still active, doing things like that?
I don't know where this dive took place, is it on private land or state park but surely the practice of such a bad instructor should be brought to light.
No??




Cheers

You mention PADI but in the DR the instructors taking OW divers to over 1000ft Penetrations on "guided" dives are the problem, they should know better. Doesn't PADI and other OW training agencies teach that to the instructors?
It is "excusable" in an era were the general public did not really know about the hazards of cave diving but now!!
PADI and other training agencies should be sanctioning instructors for putting unsuspecting OW divers lives at risk.
I spoke to the PADI top brass when they were here a few weeks ago and told them of the problems here, I asked them if them could send an email to the various PADI dive schools here just reminding them of the difference between cave and cavern zones.
The answer I got was "if the PADI instructors are not taking OW clients 1000ft into a cave as part of a PADI sanctioned class we can't do anything"
I don't think they really care.
The OW training agencies should be sanctioning they're instructors for such blatant violations of the most basic overhead diving rules.
The above pertains to the DR but I am assuming it is a fairly similar situation in other countries too....

[Sludge]

PADI and other training agencies should be sanctioning instructors for putting unsuspecting OW divers' lives at risk.

Ya think?

[ajimmythekid]

I was at Peacock yesterday and can confirm that there were a few classes in the basin and cavern zone when we returned to exit around noon. We didn't observe anyone back in the cave on the Peanut side that appeared to be inappropriately geared. There was a lot of silt coming out of the Waterhole passage, but that isn't particularly unusual and I have no idea who was in there. I didn't personally observe or hear anything alarming. I would not consider a conversation that "appeared to be" enough evidence to complain to training agencies, the park of anyone else.

I also found a backup light that I am guessing was dropped by one of the students, so if someone can ID it, I will arrange to get it back to you.

Bobbi & I was in there Sat. (water hole and back no prob. or poofs) before taking out jump I ran a line & went to look into "little hole on the right" well it got smaller, but could see gold line again and made it through {very small 30' tunnell}. I belly floped it gettint back to to jump.

Since the cavern looked worse it lessened my personal awareness of "Silt Guilt"

[DogDiver]

Hey tj, the three of us sat quietly on the cavern celing with our lights out for about 15 minutes. You couldn't buy better entertainment than we saw. Thanx lol. Ken