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Mesh Body Bag Problems

Recently, my team was bagging a body underwater, and the diver was taking longer than usual. I knew there was a problem with the bag just from experience. When there is a problem with the bagging, either the diver leaves everything down on the bottom and comes up and tells us what the problem is, or he surfaces with the bag with no body inside and explains the issue, or he comes up with the body in the bag, but the bag is not zipped up, and sometimes the body is hanging out of the bag. This time, the diver surfaces with the bag and the body and tells us that something was wrong with the zipper. After we got the bag and body on board our boat, I examined the bag and discovered a major problem. The zipper was not sewn properly on the bag, causing the mesh to interfere with zipping the bag. The mesh was sewn to the bag, running alongside the zipper's teeth, causing it to get caught in the zipper. I also discovered that the float the manufacturer put on the zipper pulls broke when the diver tried to zip the bag. The bag was obviously a cheap body bag, mass-produced in China.

Here is a picture of the bag on the boat after getting it out of the water. You can see the bag opened due to a stuck zipper, mesh material exposed, and the float is broken after its first use.

In this picture, you can see that the end of the mesh material was sewn improperly, running alongside the zipper's teeth rather than being sewn out of the way. Anyone can see that the zipper's teeth will get caught in the zipper when you try to zip the bag.

This image is a close-up of the zipper caught in the mesh

We sent a message to all our divers, instructing them to check all our body bags to ensure they were sewn properly.

Unfortunately, all our bags were defective and taken out of service.

I then went home after the dive to check my personal bags. I had bought six bags from a well-known company, thinking there was no way they would be defective. Unfortunately, all six were. Here is a picture of one of my new bags after taking it out of the plastic.

As you can see, the end of the mesh material is improperly sewn right next to the zipper's teeth.

I'm taking my hands and pulling back the material in the way of the zipper

So, how should the end of the mesh material be sewn to the bag? Here is an American-made bag showing you how it should be sewn.

The mesh should be folded over away from the zipper, sewn so that the zipper is clear of any mesh material.

Also, if your bags come with some type of styrofoam float on the zipper pulls, give them a squeeze to make sure they don't break apart easily.

I'm adding this discovery to my website so you may take a closer look at your bags in stock and hopefully catch the problem before your divers go underwater.

PS, I also started to search for an American-made body bag company that did not charge an arm and a leg for something that should be used once, meaning a disposable bag, and I found "The Body Bag Store." I called them, told them the issue, and found that their mesh body bags are made in Texas. I ordered one to see if they were sewn correctly, and the picture above shows one of their bags. As of the writing of this page, the price is $54.95, which is a fair price. I've linked their site here, so if you are interested, give them a call. I do not make any money if you do. I'll just be happy if your recovery goes as planned. As always, be safe and Quit Dinking!

Water Recovery Body Bag - Adult Size

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