Location: Green Island, Antigua
Today we spent the better part of the morning finishing up our theory to complete the PADI Rescue diver course. We learned valuable information on what to do in a diving emergency and how to react. Once we finished all of our written work, we anxiously went upstairs to perform the in and out of our water skills necessary to perform a rescue in all settings. The deck was rather hot from the sun, which made setting up dive gear a battle to find shade. Thinking about the warm sun and the temperature outside reminded me how awesome it is that I am missing all the cold weather up in Maine. The beautifully clear water surrounding Green Island felt marvelous to dive into on this hot day. We searched for many missing divers (i.e., weight belts and buckets) and found all of them using different search patterns. There was even a cup that was recovered that was lost overboard the other day. We finished the day strong by practicing towing “unconscious” divers back to the boat, all while administering rescue breaths and taking their gear off to get them out of the water easier. The rescue course is very taxing; all of us were ready for bed before dinner. However, the knowledge we learn will help us become safer and smarter divers while broadening our horizons within the diving field.