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have a general idea of where to locate your buddy. • Use the lost buddy procedure if you do lose your buddy. The common procedure is: 1. Get yourself vertical in the water and look in all directions for your buddy or their bubbles (figure 3-55). If you are in low visibility water (3 meters or 10 feet or less), return to where you last saw your buddy and start your search there. 2. Rise about 3 meters (10 feet) in the water and look again for your buddy or their bubbles if you did not find them the first time. 3. Ascend slowly to the surface after a minute if you do not see your buddy. Keep turning as you ascend and look for your buddy or their bubbles. 4. Surface, note your position relative to two points on the shore, and wait for your buddy. When your buddy surfaces, get back together and continue your dive. 5. Use one of the following options, depending on your circumstances: • If you are diving where help is readily available to assist you in a search for a lost buddy, signal for help if your buddy does not Chapter 3- Diving Skills surface within 5 minutes. It is your role in the emergency to contact and guide the help. • If you are diving in a remote location, you might be your buddy’s only source of help if your buddy is in trouble under water and minutes are critical. You will have to search for your lost buddy within your capability to do so, and be prepared to render aid as needed. Before you put yourself in this type of situation, prepare by taking the NAUI Advanced Scuba Diver course and the NAUI Scuba Rescue Diver course. As you and your buddy gain experience together and get to know one another, it will become easier to stay together. You will become familiar with each other’s diving styles and you will be able to function as a true team with minimal effort. Developing this harmony should be your goal, because diving with a good buddy is diving at its best. Your buddy also makes working with equipment easier. For example, if your cylinder slips out of its tank strap under water, it is easier for your buddy to refasten the cylinder than for you to take off your BC and fix the cylinder yourself (figure 3-56). A good buddy is more likely to notice developing problems, such as a loose tank strap, before you do. Diving Skills 81 FIGURE 3-55. BE UPRIGHT IN THE WATER AND LOOK IN ALL DIRECTIONS FOR YOUR LOST BUDDY.


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