Chapter 7- Search and Recovery
Search and Recovery
77
RECOVERY INTRODUCTORY DIVE
You will need some extra equipment for this dive,
including a compass, a marker buoy, an underwater
slate, some line, and a lift bag. Your instructor may
provide some or all of it or make arrangements for
you to obtain it. If you want to always be prepared to
recover small items underwater, you may see the value
of purchasing your own gear for this activity. Your local
NAUI affiliated dive center can aid you in selecting the
equipment, but be sure to point out that at present, you
are only interested in simple operations and in salvaging
lightweight objects.
When you arrive at the dive site, your instructor will
brief you on the area and the dive and explain in detail
the search and recovery procedures. You should practice
the rigging procedures and the search patterns on land.
Practice as buddy teams and use the opportunity to
establish any signals you might need underwater.
The objects to be found and recovered may be
known to the instructor or may be placed in known
locations in advance with a marker buoy placed nearby
to mark the starting point. You will usually begin your
dive by swimming to the starting point and then searching
by teams. There may be several objects placed in the
area so each dive team will have an opportunity to find
and salvage something. If you are unsuccessful in your
first couple of searches, your instructor may interrupt
your searching, place you closer to an object, and have
you start again so you will be successful in finding an
item and so you will have the opportunity to salvage it.
So both members of a buddy team can gain experience,
it is common to re-sink an item after it has been
recovered, for the diver who rigged it to unrig it, and for
the other diver to then rig the object and salvage it again.
The salvaged items may be brought to shore or returned
to the bottom – whatever your instructor directs you to
do.
After the dive you will meet and discuss what you
did and how well it went. Problems will be reviewed and
your instructor will offer suggestions to help overcome
them. Your logbooks should be completed and signed.
You will find that the time goes quickly on this
dive because it is interesting and fun. You will also refine
some diving skills, learn about a new dive site
and find out how well you like search and recovery as
a diving activity.