Dan Fitzgerald and his student Stu spent almost 24 hours at sea, having been swept off the dive site (Flat Rock, North Stradbroke Island) by strong current. They aborted the dive and ascended only to find that the weather had kicked up. The dive boat was a distant image, only seen as they crested the now 2.5m waves. Dan and Stu were adrift.
Search aircraft passed overhead. Their signals went unseen. And as daylight faded, they faced the prospect of spending the night in open water, with no way of knowing when they would be found.
In this episode of The Scuba GOAT Podcast, Dan takes us back to those hours. The decisions, the doubts, the humour, and the determination to stay together and make it through until morning.
Dan also speaks openly about the mistakes they made before the dive. Sharing those errors takes courage, and he does so to help other divers learn from their experience and avoid making the same mistakes.
He reflects on the lessons he carries with him and his gratitude to the search teams and Gold Coast Westpac rescue helicopter crew who helped bring them home.
This is Dan Fitzgerald. And this is Adrift.
Watch or listen now on The Scuba GOAT Podcast website and YouTube.
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00:00 Introduction: Dan Fitzgerald, Adrift
01:03 From surfing to scuba instructor
06:14 Island life and diving in Niue
19:42 From Melbourne to North Stradbroke Island
22:15 Diving Straddie: mantas, sharks and marine life
25:09 Getting into technical diving
31:17 Rebreathers and closer wildlife encounters
38:51 The incident: planning the Flat Rock dive
42:43 Decisions before the dive: safety gear left behind
45:59 Finding a site in strong currents
49:07 The dive plan and abort procedure
52:26 Swept away: calling the dive
54:09 Surfacing beyond the boat
57:19 The search begins
01:01:14 Search aircraft overhead, but still unseen
01:04:45 Preparing to spend the night at sea
01:09:35 Survival priorities and ditching twin cylinders
01:14:06 Cold, thirst and staying mentally strong
01:21:05 Sunrise after a long night
01:23:28 Swimming for shore after drifting nearly 30 km
01:30:44 The life raft drop
01:33:25 Radio contact and rescue boats arrive
01:35:58 The Westpac helicopter rescue - with footage
01:40:42 Hospital checks and recovery
01:44:56 Processing the experience
01:46:18 Lessons learned: locator beacons and safety gear
01:48:13 Finishing Stu’s course and returning to diving
01:51:29 Meeting and thanking the rescue teams
01:54:48 Credits, Photos and Thanks