My comms cable got snagged on a wreck off Galveston last Tuesday

Honestly, I was doing a simple hull survey on an old barge in about 80 feet of water. I turned to move to the next section and felt a hard jerk on my helmet. Ngl, my main comms line had looped around a piece of rebar sticking out of the deck. I had to signal my tender on the backup line, go hands-on, and carefully work it free without putting tension on my umbilical. Has anyone else had a close call with a simple snag in low viz? What's your go-to move to avoid it?

3 comments

3 Comments

wesley1811mo ago

Ever get that slow-motion feeling when you realize you're hooked on something? I was working a salvage job in the river, super murky, and my knife pouch strap caught on a bent hatch handle. For a second I thought it was my air hose. What do you do first, check your gauges or just freeze?

harperg761mo ago

Man, that slow motion thing is the worst. What worked for me was to stop moving completely first, then check your gauges. Your brain is screaming panic, but moving makes it worse. I had a line snag on a grate once, similar feeling, and I forced myself to just hang there for a solid ten seconds. After that, I slowly felt around with my free hand to figure out what was actually holding me, not what I thought was holding me. Checking gauges right away can throw you off if you're already breathing fast.

parker_price1mo ago

Read an article once by a dive medic who said the first thing your body does in a panic is dump adrenaline, which actually makes you dumber for a few seconds. So freezing and breathing is like hitting a reset button before your brain can trick you into making it worse. Honestly that trick of feeling around with your free hand is smart too, forces you to process what's actually happening instead of just reacting. Ngl the gauge thing is real too, I've burned through air way faster just from hyperventilating after a scare.