Diving Accidents

[Diving Dave]

On another thread about how DIR diving might benefit rec divers, ScubaVP wrote "I would be interested in some hard facts related between dive accidents and the related dive method "

I was flipping through fatalities case studies of the 1997 DAN Diving Accident and Fatalities Report at the LDS a few nights ago. Most of the fatalities were rec diving. (Now that I think about it, it might have been a report on rec diving only. I don't remember any cave deaths.) Most deaths were from air embolisms or drowning. By far, the most common threads running through the case studies (for both causes of death) were ...

1) Getting separated from your buddy, and
2) Having fewer than 10 dives

It was really tragic reading:

people drowning in 20 feet of water;

one fellow panicked (after his buddy abandoned him) and shrugged off his BC but left his weight belt on and drowned;

two inexperienced divers ran low on air in 130 fsw, one had bouyancy problems, buddy didn't know how to bring him up and let him go to the bottom, when the buddy got a new tank and came back down he found a dead diver;

divers getting separated in the surf and drowning within a few yard of shore while their buddies are thinking they made it back ok;

As far as I recall, there were NO DEATHS FROM EQUIPMENT FAILURES.

I'm not GUE trained, but I have the fundamentals book, and it seems to me that three (sometimes overlooked) aspects of DIR diving that could benefit everyone are good buddy awareness, air supply management and awareness, and basic self control and rescue skills. Equipment configuration may well be the most discussed but least important aspect of DIR.

That DAN book should be mandatory reading for OW certs.

.02
David

 

[Welshman]

I'm not surprised at your findings. The quality of scuba equipment these days is such that I'd would be surprised if faulty equipment was the main cause. Inexperience is always likely to be a big issue. So much depends on being mentally being prepared for a problem. If you have thought through the scenario before you dive the chances of you dealing with it effectively are far enhanced. I found there was a material similarity between preparing for my Private Pilots Licence and Diving. Both teach you, or should teach you, the benefit of drills. In flying there are drills for various potential problems. These deal with potential emergencies e.g. the engine fails. Rather than sit there and panic a drill comes into place which gives you the best chance of finding a solution. Experience counts for a lot as does recognising that one might have little experience and planning accordingly.

Anyone who just does OW and thinks they know enough to dive safely needs indeed to be certified!

Regards

 

[Northeastwrecks]

Diving Dave once bubbled...

I'm not GUE trained, but I have the fundamentals book, and it seems to me that three (sometimes overlooked) aspects of DIR diving that could benefit everyone are good buddy awareness, air supply management and awareness, and basic self control and rescue skills. Equipment configuration may well be the most discussed but least important aspect of DIR.

David

I took DIR-F over the summer. Buddy philosophy and buoyancy are a huge part of the course. I'm even considering retaking the course because I'm not yet ready for Tech 1.

Personally, one of the most interesting aspects of the course was the fact that I thought that I had decent buddy skills, as did my buddies. The instructor proved us wrong, then showed us a different way of approaching buddy diving. I believe that we are better divers because of it.

 

[Big-t-2538]

The more I want to look into the possibility of taking a DIR-F course. Not to change and be a DIR promoter, but to learn more about the sport. I'm a big guy, I admit I don't know it all, yeah, I run my mouth from time to time, but when push comes to shove I want to be able to handle any situation I am in. There seems to be some good sound logic if you can look past the front running ammunition from some of the DIR guys...Logic is one of my favorite things...it is easy to understand...thus easy to use / teach.

Sorry, I strayed from the thread (I blame O-ring) To get back to diving accidents, I have heard of cave divers not making it back out of a cave, but more often than not it is because something went wrong and they couldn't control it. That is something that every cave/wreck diver knows can happen and they accept that risk. I have to agree that most diving accidents are probably highly inexperienced divers who are diving on an irregular basis.

 

[Wendy]

Most cave incidents happen for of these following reasons:

Didn't have a continuous guideline to the surface

Running out of air/gas management

exceeding depth limits

not having correct/working lights and back up lights

Exceeding training level

If you are interested in reading some cave diving incident analysis you can see them at www.iucrr.org.