The era saw a more ‘ handsy ’ approach to marine life
Around this time , Linden and I emerged from the cave through clouds of silt and mud . We waited for Ron . After a few seconds , it was clear that he was not following us , and I made several attempts to get back in . As the visibility was now nil , I knew that if I went in too far , there would probably be two of us lost , thrashing around , trying to find the entrance again . Posting Linden at the cave entrance , I rushed for the surface to get a spare line from the boat some distance away .
Meanwhile , Ron was breathing slowly and still holding on to his lobster . After several minutes the air in his single cylinder was becoming hard to breathe as the pressure dropped . He pulled his reserve lever *, which gave him a few more minutes at that depth , still holding onto his lobster !
Back at the surface , I used all my energy and as soon as I was within range , shouted to the boat that we had an emergency , and to get a line and a spare set of cylinders for me . They
“ I knew that Ron ’ s life was ebbing away ... Whether he lived or died depended on me now .” handed me a length of rope and another set . I knew that Ron ’ s life was ebbing away in the blackness below , and that every second counted . Whether he lived or died depended on me now . I didn ’ t wait to take my nearly used set off , but clutched the new one to my chest together with the line , and spiralled downwards .
Back in the cave , Ron was calmly tapping on his cylinder and being answered by Linden outside , although there was nothing she could do to help him . His air became ‘ tight ’ again and he knew that he was now in a desperate position . He finally let go of the lobster .
Ron was wearing one of the first adjustable buoyancy life jackets , which had a small air cylinder for inflation , but which could be used to breathe from , in an emergency . It wasn ’ t easy changing mouthpieces and letting enough air into the bag for a few breaths . Ron decided to breathe each breath twice , although he knew that this would result in a build-up of carbon dioxide gas from his exhaled air .
This gas began to make him weary , and he couldn ’ t think clearly . He slowly moved his mask on to his forehead to allow him to breathe out more easily . He felt a warm sensation and everything became red and cosy . There was a roaring in his ears and he found himself slumping over . His last thought was : “ God , I could do with a good cup of coffee .”
[ Footnote ] * This passage describes the function of a J-valve , which pre-dates the submersible pressure gauge . This pressure-set spring valve kept a proportion of gas in reserve for a last-minute ascent , if the diver had lost track of time . To release the pressure , the diver would pull on a lever to release the last 35 bar , opening the reserve valve and completing the dive before the reserve was consumed .
Rocks at Zembra , now an army base
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