Flooded my drysuit in 30 feet of water off Port Fourchon

Was doing a pipeline inspection near the mouth of Bayou Lafourche. My neck seal let go during a roll check. Water just poured in. Felt like a ice bath down my back. Had to abort the dive and surface slow. 40 minutes of prep wasted. Now I check my seals with a mirror before every entry. Anyone else had a seal fail on them mid-dive?

2 comments

2 Comments

jenniferh8313d ago

Man that cold water check trick is smart but I wonder how many guys actually do it before every dive. Seems like the kind of habit you only pick up after getting a surprise like yours or hearing a story like that guy locking out his computer. Do you think most seal failures happen because of that warm-to-cold stretch difference or is it usually just old rubber giving out?

the_river14d ago

That sudden cold shock when a seal goes is no joke. Had a guy on my old boat lose his neck seal at 50 feet. He shot up so fast his computer locked him out for 24 hours. Lucky he didn't get bent. The real trick nobody mentions is checking your seals in cold water before you even get in. Warm seals on the boat stretch different than cold ones in the water. Dunk your head in the shallows first and tilt around. Catches the weak spots before you're breathing regs at depth. Saves the prep time and the dry suit headache.