31/05/2023 | ZMT recently joined forces with the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) to conduct a special training course in order to qualify scientific divers for the responsible role of dive mission leader. During the one-week course on Helgoland, which was led by Prof. Dr. Philipp Fisher (AWI), Dr. Michael Schmid (ZMT) and Dr. Markus Brand (AWI), three research divers underwent the training and took the exams. In addition to preparing risk assessments, they had to prove their ability to lead a diving expedition in practical exercises. And unlike dive missions in the tropics this time the water temperature was 8 degrees Celsius with 14 degrees Celsius on land.
The dive operation leader has a prominent position in the dive team. Only highly experienced and certified scientific divers can take on this role for which they must be appointed in writing by the company (institute management). As dive operation leader, the person is legally responsible for all areas of the dive expedition from planning to risk assessment to the dive operation and the divers' safety.
"Since a lot of responsibility rests on the shoulders of a dive operation leader, it is incredibly important to have successfully completed this training as certified by the German professional association Berugsgenossenschaft and to regularly apply what one has learned in practice," emphasises Dr. Michael Schmid, head of the Scientific Diving Centre at ZMT.
Four divers who wanted to regain their diving ability also took part in the course and were thus able to act as "test subjects" in the exercises.
"This interaction of prospective dive leaders and divers who wanted to regain their diving ability has proven to be a very sensible and successful combination," says Schmid.
All participants mastered the courses with flying colours. Dr Marleen Stuhr is one of the research divers who will now be allowed to lead future diving missions.
Dr Marleen Stuhr: "It was a great pleasure to be back on Helgoland for the course and I am very happy to be part of the ZMT dive team and receive this continuous training. For us as divers who mostly work in tropical areas with clear and warm water, the conditions in the North Sea always represent an exciting challenge! It was very interesting to have the possibility within this course to exchange experiences with scientific divers from different institutions, working in a variety of marine environments, all having their own challenges. From my perspective, having the chance to learn from each other in this mix of refreshers and scientific diving supervisor candidates made the course very fun and efficient. Since the role as supervisor for scientific diving comes with a lot of responsibility, I am thankful we are being prepared thoroughly for this task, and can thereby contribute to future marine research projects being conducted in a well-planned and safe way. Dickes Dankeschön ans Ausbilderteam und ans AWI Centre for Scientific Diving!"
Prof. Oscar Puebla also passed the exam to become a diving operation leader: "The tropics and the poles joined forces last week in Helgoland for the dive mission leader course held jointly by the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) and Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) scientific diving centres. For the first time this course included both dive mission leader candidates and divers who needed fresh dives to reactivate their scientific diving certification after a forced break during the pandemic. This combination turned to be effective, with four scientific divers reactivated and three new dive mission leaders certified in one go. A big thanks to Philipp Fisher, Michael Schmid and Markus Brand for making this happen!"
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