GUE Rescue Primer

Prepare for Diving Emergencies

GUE Rescue Primer is a focused safety course for divers who want to be more useful when a teammate is stressed, missing, injured, or unable to self-rescue. GUE describes it as training in basic rescue techniques relevant to scuba diving emergencies. The practical value is confidence with a purpose: not bravado, but the ability to recognize problems early, communicate clearly, and assist within a structured team response.

The course is recommended for divers who plan to continue in diving at any level, but it is not a first specialty. GUE lists prerequisites including minimum age 16, fitness to dive, swimming ability, non-smoking status, and completion of GUE Open Water Diver, GUE Performance Diver, or GUE Fundamentals. Applicants also need at least 15 non-training dives after that certification, recognized basic life support training within the previous 24 months, and Navigation Primer or demonstrated navigation competence with compass, natural navigation, and guideline use.

Training outcomes include assisting distressed divers on the surface and underwater, unconscious-diver recovery, missing-diver protocols, surface management of a diving emergency, and diving BLS skills related to decompression illness. GUE describes the primer as normally two days, with four in-water sessions including three dives and at least 16 hours of instruction. In High Springs, Florida, it is a valuable course for divers who want their team skills to include prevention, response, and calm emergency management.