Tried a rebreather on a wreck dive in Norfolk, nearly blacked out at 90 feet

Last month I figured I'd finally get my rebreather cert since more jobs are asking for it. Did the training, felt fine in the pool. First real checkout dive on the old tug off Norfolk and my CO2 just spiked out of nowhere. I got this burning in my chest and started seeing spots around 90 feet. Buddy had to grab me and we did a direct ascent. Turns out my scrubber packing was too loose, I must have shaken it during descent. Lesson learned, double check that packing before every single dive. Anyone else have a close call with scrubber packing or CO2 buildup on a rebreather?

2 comments

2 Comments

josephbutler20d ago

That burning chest feeling sounds exactly like what my buddy described before he passed out in training.

ellis.mia21d ago

That "seeing spots around 90 feet" part gave me chills, honestly. I've never had a CO2 hit that bad, but I know a guy who got one on a cave dive and he said it felt like his lungs were on fire too. Scary stuff, glad your buddy was right there and you got up safe.