There are only a few things that will plunge the heart into your gut faster than surfacing from a dive to find the boat is nowhere to been seen. You look left, then right and then left again... the heart starts to pound. Floating alone, you feel like a piece of driftwood with no control over where you are going or what might happen. The vast ocean all around, just bobbing, waiting & waiting.
Get Noticed
If you want to get noticed, then you’re going to need a few things to help.
Surface Signaling Devices (SSD) will start that process and can be put into 4 categories: audible, night-use, visual and electronic. Depending on the surface conditions, each brings its own advantages to the rescue equation.
Audible
There are many conditions when these will come in handy, low–light, foggy, misty or choppy seas. A blast from a whistle will get pointed ears searching in your direction. Standard whistles can be heard for about 250m. But to dramatically increase the chances of being found calls to be equipped with a pneumatic horn. The Dive Alert & Dive Alert plus from Ideations has saved many a life from being lost at sea. This compact device fits between the BC’s power inflator head and the Low-pressure hose. A quick push on the button draws air from the tank and lets out an almighty ear-piercing honk that will be heard up to 1.5km away.
The Dive Alert Plus delivers a loud audible signal above & below the water. The manufacture claims it can be heard up to 1.5km away, the testers can verify that as correct. The quality of sound is similar to a smoke detector but 100 times louder. It will quickly get a dive boats attention on the surface or the dive buddies at depth with a touch of the button.
Night-use
Worst case scenario… night comes and nothing “beams” like a torch beam. Always carry a pocket sized torch in your BCD’s pocket, a chemical light stick or small light on top of a signal tube will get everyone’s attention. Waving that torch wildly will help the approaching boat zero in on you.
Visual
The most common signal device, the “safety sausage” or Signal tube. A standard sausage can be effective for up to 500m, while bigger/longer one can be up to 1000m or more. Colour can make a difference, orange is good in bright sunny conditions where fluoro yellow better in overcast conditions.
As soon as you surface you should be ready to deploy the safety sausage as you may be out of range within a matter of minutes. Wave it over your head and remember 2 is better than one. Get your buddy to wave one as well. Another good item is a reflective tag, this uses the sunlight to reflect your position with effective range. Small enough to fit in a BC’s pocket.
Electronic
For local diving the new electronic waterproof handheld VHF radios allow you to stay in contact with the boat – or any that are in range – or send emergency distress call to the coast guard. These are very expensive and most divers would find these over the top and out of their reach.
To sum it up... the best coarse of action would be to mix it up and carry 2 of the above – for example, a safety sausage and an air horn (dive alert) or torch and a diver alert plus.
Stay safe - be heard, be seen!