If you and your buddy become separated, which option describes the recommended course of action?

If you and your buddy become separated, which option describes the recommended course of action?

• A. Immediately surface
• B. Surface after long search
• C. Spend no more than one minute looking then surface
• D. Return to buddy's last known position

Answer: (C)

When divers become separated, the priority is to conserve air and re‑establish contact quickly. The recommended course is to do a brief underwater search for your buddy—about one minute—using signals and scanning the area around you. If you can’t find them in that short time, surface in a controlled, slow ascent to regroup. Surfacing avoids wasting air on a long underwater search, reduces the risk of entanglement or drifting apart in currents, and gives you a clear chance to reconnect from the surface or plan a new search together. Returning to your buddy’s last known position underwater or surfacing immediately without any search can leave you further apart or without a reliable way to rejoin, so a brief search followed by a surface regroup is the safer, most effective approach.

When divers become separated, the priority is to conserve air and re‑establish contact quickly. The recommended course is to do a brief underwater search for your buddy—about one minute—using signals and scanning the area around you. If you can’t find them in that short time, surface in a controlled, slow ascent to regroup. Surfacing avoids wasting air on a long underwater search, reduces the risk of entanglement or drifting apart in currents, and gives you a clear chance to reconnect from the surface or plan a new search together. Returning to your buddy’s last known position underwater or surfacing immediately without any search can leave you further apart or without a reliable way to rejoin, so a brief search followed by a surface regroup is the safer, most effective approach.