All things come to an end

As my last week of training comes to an end I have mixed feelings. In a way it feels like I am back at University and it is the last week of term before graduation after which you will need to face the world. What do you do? Oh crap, Reality check! Laggan Dam
I look forward to the challenges of working offshore and seeing the world but I also miss my family and wish I could be sharing my experiences with them. Fort William has not been heaven of earth nor has it been a place I would recommend someone to come and stay at for more than let’s say… one hour. At the same time however, it has became part of my routine for the past 9 weeks and I have faced a lot of personal challenges (which I still face until the end of next week).
Cairngorms National Park
The trips back and forth to Aberdeen, taking different routs, and discovering Scotland’s landscape have been an eye opener and an eye closer as the four hours each way have been tiresome. I never will get the chance to do them again in the same way nor would I want to without my family which I miss everyday more and more. View of part of Cairngorms National Park

Week 8, Day 41

Today the day started off well as I found out I passed the Surface Supplied Top-up examination which means I only have two more examinations to go (besides the dive assessments). One of our dive assessments today was a surface standby rescue using scuba equipment and a buoy. After swimming down to 15m, one diver returned to surface while one gave an emergency signal pulling on the buoy under water. In this case the surface diver had to swim out to the buoy and follow the line down to the diver upon which you secured the diver and give the emergency signal on your lifeline (4 pulls and 2 bells). Then the tenders pulled both divers to the surface. It was a good day and we managed to catch up on our dives. Only one more week to go!

Week 8, Day 40

Today we did two identical dives. They both involved the use of a buoy and lifeline signals. Once we were in the water we had to follow a line down to a sunken wreck and remain at 15 meters for 8 minutes. After this we had to swim towards an armoured car and survey it for a further 7 minutes. After this four pulls were given (to ask the surface to leave bottom) and on the way up we stopped at 3 meters for 3 minutes (in-water deco). Not exciting stuff but the good news is that not all of us failed the exam on Tuesday… we will find out tomorrow who passed.

Week 8, Day 39

After finding out that the entire class failed the Surface Supplied Top-up Exam, we began our dives. The first dive was In-water rescue assessment. Basically you observe the diver and if he appears to be on conscious:
1. Inform the surface
2. Approach the diver (making sure it is safe to do so)
3. Close his bailout if he is breathing
4. Bring diver to surface holding his harness and using his suit inflation as a buoyancy aid
5. When on surface bring him to safety

It seems obvious but if like me, you had somebody bigger and heavier to bring up, it is very tiring and by the end of the dive my legs were shaky with all the swimming.

The second dive was meant to see how we can cope with zero visibility. Under the pier there are a series of ropes that form a square. Using another rope to divide each section into strips, in turns we each had our masks taped up and were given the task of searching each area for certain objects. CLAUSTROPHOBIC PEOPLE COULD NOT DO THIS as it can feel like wearing a box on your head underwater.

Week 8, Day 38

Today our dive involved the use of through water comms. Up until now we have used life lines and ‘bone’ comms, both of which have not worked well. The thought of another ‘non-working’ comms system was in my mind but, the truth be told, the wireless comms worked brilliantly. It was like having a walky-talky under water and the reception was crystal clear.
Here is a picture to give you an idea. Basically your mask has a button on the end to talk and two headphones attached. At the same time and there is a box on your side that transmits / receives the signal.

During our dive we had to follow directions from the surface and swim along the sunken tanks on the seabed. It was a nice and easy dive that we all enjoyed.

Week 8, Day 37

Today the weather was absolutely atrocious. Hard rain and strong winds hit us under the pier and there was nowhere to hid except during our dives. During our two dives we performed an in-water rescue following the same method as used with surface supply equipment (ie running commentary, ensuring the bailout is closed and asking for assistance back to surface) Our second dive was an assessment dive and we had to take measurements of a base plate that is on the seabed. Using a tape measure and a board, a rough sketch and accurate measurements were taken and transferred on to paper on surface. Tomorrow afternoon we have the surface supplied top-up exam which is 10 written questions.

Week 7, Day 36

Today the day flew by as we only had one short dive each, however we left behind our half masks and began using full face masks. In our case we used the AGA and Exo 26 masks. Both the AGA and Exo 26 masks are used for scuba and are great to use in water. The only problem with them are the comms. To get a clear sound out of them you need sometimes stop breathing and look up so the bubbles do not come out through the side and distort what is being said. After our dives we quickly made our way back to the Underwater Centre and had a quick shower. Our Surface Supple Top up (or Wet Bell) exam is next week so I have quite a bit of reading / studying to do.

Week 7, Day 35

Today in Scuba we had two dives during which we had to know our life signals. During the first dive we had to find a clap that was thrown into the water and we were guided to the location. During the second dive (which was an assessment dive) we had to find a washer half the size of a credit card. This might seem easy but I had to search through a 'Forrest' of kelp and the sea bed was littered with small rocks and pieces of steel pipe. As I looked beneath the kelp the seabed would stir up and limit my visibility. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack and it took me 40 minutes to find. It is crazy to think, but after so much time looking for a silly washer you get a buzz when you find it. Finally I passed my Surface Supply exam that I took yesterday.

Week 7, Day 34

As we got the Scuba gear ready (fill the bottles and do a pre-dive check on all the equipment), we were given our daily brief and quickly got dressed. The dives included a swap of demand valves (or regulators) and emptying our masks before we were set off to do our task.
the dives involved the use of 'lifeline signals'. These are use to tell the diver where to go / what to do without the use of comms. While the divers were underwater, the supervisor would throw a shackle on a piece of rope and we had to find it by following the instructions given to us from the surface:

From the tender to the diver:
1 pull - Get the divers attention
2 bells - face your umbilical and head out
3 bells - face your umbilical and head right
4 bells - face your umbilical and face left
5 bells - face your umbilical and head back
2 pulls - I am sending you down a rope's end
3 pulls - You have came up too far, go back down slowly until checked
4 pulls - come up
4 pulls and 2 bells - come on, hurry up, come up for surface decompression

From the diver to the tender:
1 pull - to call attention, made bottom, left bottom
2 pulls - Send me down a rope's end
3 pulls - I am going down
4 pulls - May I come up
4 pulls and 2 bells - I want to come up (assist me)
sucession of pulls (more than 4) - Emergency

Week 7, Day 33

Today we went down to the pier and got all the equipment for our Scuba dive at the Ocean Frontier. We learnt how to setup all the equipment and the safety measure and shortly after we were taking turns in the water. Before we are allowed to swim in the ‘deep end’ of the tank we had to prove that we could empty our masks underwater. This is done by securing your mask, looking up and blowing air out of your nose. As the air fills the mask, the water is pushed out from the bottom. As we did this, we followed the instructor into the tank and began undertaking the exercises. Besides the taking off the mask and emptying it, we had to take our regulator in and out of our mouths and follow a pipe (without any mask on) blindly until we were allowed to put our mask back on. It was a great dive and being the last group in the water we were allowed to stay in a little longer. A kiss for my wife and kids!

Week 7, Day 32

Today as I headed down to the pier to get the hats ready for today's diving there was a large truck delivering a new 'toy'. In this case it was a 30 million pound mini-sub. It looked amazing and, as far as rumours that were being spread, a Chinese company had paid the centre to use its facilities to test the mini-sub. After getting ready we quickly got through our rotation and finished our Wet Bell diving by doing a surface standby rescue and an in-water rescue. This means no more hot water suits :( but it also means no more coming out of the water wet :).

Tomorrow we are due to begin our Scuba part of the course using half masks and scuba gear!

Week 6, Day 31

Today was a productive day as I managed to complete two Wet Bell dives and pass my First Aid practical.

The First Aid practical exam was straight forward but involved a lot of questions (luckily I revised last night). After blowing into the doll and performing chest compressions, I was asked about secondary assessment and head trauma. The questions then focused on heart attacks and trauma. Although it was not a 100% perfect exam, it was good enough for a pass.

During the first dive one of us left the bell and headed down to 60 feet after which a loss of comms was announced. After no response from one pull on the umbilical, the tender had to deploy the man-lift, open the Wet Bell bail-out and flush the canopy. Following this the tender had to leave and bring the diver back to the bell.

Our second dive was nearly the same but involved a loss of gas and comms during which the diver returned to the bell after four pulls.

Accident

As we were heading back along the pier from our days diving, a car that was heading towards us began swerving left and right and crashed into the piers' gate. As we saw this a few of they guys ran towards the car to find an older man suffering from what looked like a 'fit'. As his eyes rolled up and his mouth closed he was pulled from the car and put into the recovery position until an ambulance and the police arrived on scene. It was quite shocking seeing this unfold in front of our very eyes but also ironic as we are due to have our first aid practical tomorrow morning!

Week 6, Day 30

Today I had my first dive in a Wet Suit. Putting on my 'spandex' under-suit, the Wet Suit and a pair of steel caped welly boots I was ready to go into the water. During the first dive I nearly jumped out of my suit and helmet as the cold water came in contact with my body (a takes a few minutes to warm up) and my chest instantly felt freezing. We did three consecutive dives: one as a Rescuer, one as a Victim and the final one as a Surface Standby.

After reaching 40 feet the 'Victim' leaves the Wet Bell and the Rescuer uncoils and gives him umbilical until he is 20 meters from the Bell. The surface then says that the diver is not responding. In this case there are three steps to take:

1. Ensure the Wet Bells' Bail-out cylinder valves are open.
2. Flush the Bells' canopy.
3. Release the man-lift for when the diver is back in the bell.

After ensuring all three tasks are done, the Rescuer/Tender uncoils his own umbilical and picking up the divers' umbilical, follows a Job-Line until he reaches the stricken diver (informing the surface of what is happening during the entire rescue) At the same time the Surface Standby is sent in to coil both divers umbilicals as they return to the bell. Securing the Victim in the man-lift, the Rescuer pulls him up into the air pocket in the Bells' canopy. Both divers remain inside while the Surface Supply diver finishes coiling up both umbilicals and fits the security chains. Once this is done the Surface Supply diver stands on top of the Wet Bell and everybody is pulled to the surface.

Week 6, Day 29 'Nature'

Unfortunately today I did not dive due to the lack to time and problems with some of the equipment. However the weather was nice and I had a chance to walk around deck. Throughout my time here at the underwater centre I have noticed a lot of empty muscle shells scattered around the pier and the vessels.

After closer inspection and a little waiting I realised here the where coming from. The local sea gulls are swooping down during low tide and taking muscles from the pier legs. Then they fly high with them and dropping them onto the concrete pier / steel vessels to crack them open and eat them. This is truly amazing and reminded me a lot of a David Attenborough video.

Week 6, Day 28

Today we started off in the classroom going through three different PowerPoint presentations from the Surface Supplied (Top-up) Course. The first presentation was on D.P. Vessels (or Dynamically Controlled Vessels). These are ships that can keep their position on the sea without having to put an anchor down, no matter what the weather conditions. They do this via Anemometers (wind sensors), Gyro Compasses, Vertical Reference Systems, Position Reference Systems (such as Artemis and Taut Wires) and Hydro-Acoustic Systems. It is amazing how on board computers can manage this.
Secondly we looked at Wet Bell Diving and how to manage the panel on the bell. It is different from what we have done up till now as the divers umbilicals are attached and controlled at the Wet Bell rather than the surface. There is quite a lot to take in and the checks before a dive are quite extensive and repetitive but always... safety comes first.
Finally we looked at Hot Water Suits and how they work. Underneath the suit, instead of wearing a woolly bear (or all in one warm suit) you wear a thin neoprene suit which looks and feels like Spandex. I can imagine seeing a bunch of guys wearing this is not the best sight in the world but if it works then so be it. On top of this you put on the Hot water suit which is like a wet suit but with tubes than run up and down the body, arms and legs pushing hot water throughout. It like wearing a warm sprinkler system.
As we left the classroom and headed towards the barge we each got our ' Spandex suits' and were shown the Hot Wet Suits.
Our first dive involved going down in the Wet Bell and as one diver left the bell the other tendered him (this means de-coil and coil his umbilical). We did a quick loss of comms where the surface switches the bell lights on/off and the tender blows the wet bell pneumo twice to signal the surface. Following this one pull followed by four consecutive pulls is given to the diver outside the bell and as he returns the tender coils his umbilical. We only did 20 meters worth but it was very tiring.

Week 6, Day 27

Today we did our final practical assessment for the surface supply course. As usual the weather was miserable as it rained heavily non stop. We had to swim down to 144 feet and put together some scaffolding to form a cube. Armed with an Allen key and your hands it is not a hard task but it is mainly about teamwork rather than the building. After that we had to spend 28 minutes doing in-water decompression.

Week 5, Day 26

Today we did a repeat dive of what we did yesterday. At the underwater centre a lot of the deeper dives are repeated in order to make sure divers are fully competent and can cope with the lack of visibility and pressure. Needless to day everything went well.

Week 5, Day 25

Today we did a dive down to 144 feet. At this depth the visibility is very poor and you vocie sounds like Donald Duck. At the same time you can feel the effect of narcosis. Its like being slightly drunk but you know what you are doing. During out 10 minutes a the bottom we had put two wire rope clips across a piece of wire to form a loop. It was straight forward however, one aspect I enjoyed was the R.O.V.'s that were following us during the whole operation.

It reminded me a lot of the movie 'batteries not included'... as this 'robot' was moving around us with lights and cameras.

Week 5, Day 24

Today we did a repeat dive of 128 feet using the hydraulic drill.

The only main difference was the weather. In this case it rained non stop the entire day.

Bruises

Strange but true!! One of the aspects that shock me about diving is the amount of bruising that I am getting with the suit. Looking at the pictures you would say that somebody is beating me but in fact the pressure of the water on the suit is making most of the divers bruise.

Week 5, Day 23

Today was sunny and warm all day After moving the barge, we began diving today to a depth of 128 feet. Initially we let the bell go down with all the necessary equipment then we had to swim down in complete darkness using the guide wires as a reference. As the Bell has lights we managed to find it after 2 minutes. Out task was to drill through some steel with a hydraulic drill. This was fairly easy and funny as we all suffered a bit of air narcosis at that depth. After finishing we were promptly on out way up again. The ascent however had to be controlled and took a total of 15 minutes (10 of which where done at 10 feet holding the guide wires. The best thing about this dive was the fact that we were using helmets instead of the band-masks. This kept our heads warmer and the comms were very clear.

Anniversary

Happy anniversary Rachel. The traditional gift for a 2nd wedding anniversary is cotton. Since cotton isn't an impressive anniversary gift I hope you enjoy your gifts and are thinking about me. I am missing you and I am counting down the days till we are together again.

Always Yours,

Michal

Week 5, Day 22

This morning we were back on the barge early and after getting everything setup we began our dives. Today we had to do in-water tending, and in-water rescue and due to the depth we were are (98 feet) we had to spend 28 minutes in the decompression chamber breathing oxygen. It was a straight forward dive and all went well. The only interesting part was the tide as it dropped 2 meters from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm.

Birthday Weekend

Happy Birthday to me
from my family
I miss you all so much
my wife and kiddies!!

This weekend I headed home to treat myself to some home comfort. After a 4 hour drive through the middle of Scotland I arrived home and quickly offloaded all my laundry. Soon after I opened my cards and my gifts. I don't know how women do it but they know exactly what to get guys. My wife is especially good at getting me gifts. In this case I got a Nintends DS lite with two games.

Thank you Rachel, Noah and Chloe for a great gift. Dadou!!

Deep down inside all guys are kids and I am no different for others. I was quickly opening the package, putting a game in and playing (Obviously we don't read the instructions). It brought me back to my youth in Spain and a life with no worries. The next morning I got up and went into town to buy a few things, get a haircut and in the evening I went out for an Indian Meal with my mother. One thing that never changes is birthday cake. Ever since I was a baby my mother has always gotten me a birthday cake and easter egg. Thanks Mum!

Week 4, Day 21 - Panic

Today, I must admit, was one of the scariest times of my life. As we began to dive Jupiter was in alignment with mars and the moon… no just kidding! The high tide meant that the water was choppy which meant very little visibility underwater. As I got ready I noticed how a lot of the divers before me were coming up covered in Jellyfish. After getting dressed and lowered into the water, I had to walk 20m to the wreck which lies at 75 feet underwater. I was making my way across the seabed when my mask got all fogged up and despite my best efforts I could not clear it. Adding to this was the fact that every time I took a step, the silt on the seabed would stir up and reduce my visibility even more. Thirdly, at 75 feet there is not a lot of light so I had to move around in darkness (except for a crappy flashlight) trying to find the wreck which I finally walked into. To top it all off my comms began to fail and I could not hear what the surface was trying to tell me. During all this, my right eye began to burn. As I struggled to get my bearings, I began to breathe heavily and think of my wife and kids.

This picture I found online can give you an idea of little visibility

Truly this job is harder than I thought. After telling the surface that I could not see anything, I made my way back to the diving bell by pulling on my umbilical and found myself surrounded by a smack of jellyfish. As my eye continued to burn on the way up to the surface I had a quick loss or air exercise. A final spell in the decompression chamber on 02 and the dive was over. I found out later that a jellyfish tentacle had managed to get into the hat and caused my eye to burn.