Dive Safety
The most obvious and crucial step to broadening a diver’s capabilities is providing an air or a mixed-gas supply that will prolong his/her stay under the water. Diving operations can be conducted with the following diving systems:
- SCUBA (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving systems; The diver uses a portable self-contained gas supply
i) Open-circuit systems
ii) Closed-circuit systems
iii) Semi-closed circuit systems
- Surface Supplied diving systems; The gas is provided from the surface to the diver via a flexible hose
Diving history, a brief timeline
The transition from the ancient diving devices and methods to the modern and sophisticated diving systems took many centuries. New inventions accompanied by significant physiological discoveries made it possible for the man to explore the deep ocean.
The last greater frontier on earth is the deep oceans of the world. It is also our last archaeological frontier. As new technology unlocks the ocean's depths, long lost, and in some cases forgotten, shipwrecks, sunken cities, and other submerged antiquitties have been discovered - John's Maritime History, Chapter 11.
Diving safety
Dive planning and risk management
The diving operations are being carried out in an environment, which is not designed to support life, as we know it. All the diving operations have an inevitable potential risk depending on the nature of each operation. Prior to a project, a Diving Project Plan (DPP) and a Risk Assessment (RA) need to be established in order to define any details associated with the diving operations, and minimize the risk(s), associated with them in acceptable levels. Both documents are obliged to fulfill the demands of regulatory agencies that have local authority at the area of the operations. The diving contractor is responsible for preparing the DPP and assessing the risks. His/her actions are constrained by the codes of practice and regulations covering all the activities associated with the project.
The British Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides a wide range of activities from saturation diving in in the offshore oil and gas industry to recreational instruction by a professional instructor. There are five Approved Codes of Practice (ACoPs) that are published by the Health and Safety Commission:
1. Scientific and Archaeological diving projects. The Diving at Work Regulations 1997.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l107.htm
2. Commercial diving projects offshore. The Diving at Work Regulations 1997.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l103.htm
3. Commercial diving projects inland/inshore. The Divng at Work Regulations 1997.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l104.htm
4. Recreational diving projects. The Diving at Work Regulations 1997.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l105.htm
5. Media diving projects. The Diving at Work Regulations 1997.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l106.htm
The Diving Project Plan (DPP) describes the documentation, logistics (incl. the diving and nondiving personnel), nature of work and contractor’s operation rules, emergency arrangements, and techniques and equipment required. A vital part of the DPP is the Risk Assessment (RA) that is conducted to determine the hazards and risks related to the dive operations (scientific, commercial, and sport), and to address how these can be controlled.
A DPP should include information about the following:
- Definition of the mission objectives and the operational tasks
- Analysis of all data related to the dive site (environmental, emergency procedures, etc.)
- Dive teams and associated working practice
- Support personnel and associated working practice
- Equipment selection
- Risk assessment
- Procedures description for all phases
- Final preparations and safety checks
- Debriefing of the dive team, contractor, project manager, etc.
A key component of the DPP is the Risk Assessment (RA). It is an essential feature to be included in the DPP before any type of diving operation. Its main purpose is to address the potential hazards/dangers and safe ways of reducing accidents.
The basic steps to produce a Risk Assessment are the following:
- Identify the hazards related to the specific diving task and site
- Decide who might be harmed, affected, and how
- Evaluate the risks and define the the ways to control them
- Create a data of the findings and provide a copy to all team members
- Monitor and review the Risk Assessment
- Update the Risk Assessment as needed
See more here http://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/fivesteps.htm
After the hazards are identified, a convenient method to evaluate their potential is the Risk Evaluation Matrix*. Once the hazards are written down, the risks can be assessed. A 5 x 5 matrix combines seriousness/severity of the hazard and the probability of it happening. Risk is defined as the impact of the severity and the impact of the probability of a hazard. The first horizontal line (rows) represents the severity of the hazard and the first vertical line (column) is its likelihood of it happening. To be more specific:
Severity | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
Probability | |||||
1 | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
2 | Low | Low | Medium | Medium | Medium |
3 | Low | Medium | Medium | Medium | High |
4 | Low | Medium | Medium | High | High |
5 | Low | Medium | High | High | High |
Horizontal line definition:
1 = Trivial injury: Can be treated on site and do not prevent casualty from working; 2 = Minor injury: Injury or disease that keeps the casualty off work; 3 = Serious Injury; 4 = Major Injury: Serious injuries to a number of people; 5 = Death to one or more people
Vertical line definition:
1 = Extremely improbable occurrence, an accident can only occur under freak conditions; 2 = Improbable: A remotely possible but known occurrence; 3 = Possible: An occasional occurrence if an additional event takes place (not random); 4 = Probable: A fairly frequent occurrence; 5 = Highly probable: If work continues in this way, an accident is highly probable
For example, if a situation presents a hazard that is possible to happen and the consequences is a serious injury, then the risk would be medium.
*The above method is an example risk evaluation matrix. There are several altermative methods of producing a risk evaluation matrix.
Diving links
Diver Training Agencies/Organizations
Recreational and Technical diving (listed alphabetically):
BSAC: British Sub Aqua Club - https://www.bsac.com/default.asp
CMAS: Confederation Mondiale des Activites Subaquatiques - http://www.cmas.org/
DDI: Disabled Divers International - http://www.ddivers.org/
GUE: Global Underwater Explorers - http://www.globalunderwaterexplorers.org/
IAHD: International Association for Handicapped Divers - http://www.iahd.org/en/
IANTD: The International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers - http://www.iantd.com/
NAUI: National Association of Underwater Instructors - http://www.naui.org/
PADI: Professional Association of Diving Instructors - http://www.padi.com/scuba/
SDI: Scuba Diving International - http://www.tdisdi.com/
SSI: Scuba Schools International - http://www.divessi.com
TDI: Technical Diving International - http://www.tdisdi.com/
UTD: Unified Team Diving - http://www.unifiedteamdiving.com/
Scientific diving (listed alphabetically):
AAUS: American Academy of Underwater Sciences - http://www.aaus.org/home
ESDP: European Scientific Diving Panel - http://www.scientific-diving.eu/
Commercial diving (listed alphabetically):
HSE: Health and Safety Executive - http://www.hse.gov.uk/diving/
IDSA: The International Diving Schools Association - http://www.idsaworldwide.org/
IMCA: International Marine Contractors Association - http://www.imca-int.com/
Medicine, Research, First Aid
Alert Diver -http://www.alertdiver.com/: Digital magazine on diving safety.
DAN: Divers Alert Network -http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/: The diving industry’s largest association dedicated to scuba diving safety.
DAN Europe: Divers Alert Network Europe -http://www.daneurope.org/web/guest/home: DAN Europe (Divers Alert Network Europe) is an international non-profit medical and research organization dedicated to the safety and health of scuba divers.
DAN Medical Research Publications Database -http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/research/pubs.asp
DiversAlertNetworkTV - http://www.youtube.com/user/DiversAlertNetworkTV?feature=watch: Educational videos related to diving safety and medicine.
Diver Medic and Aquatic Safety Magazine - http://www.thedivermedic.com/magazine/: Magazine is dedicated to the health, welfare and safety of divers
Roubicon Foundation -http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/xmlui/: Excellent digital repository of Diving and Environmental Physiology research.
The Diver Medic -http://www.thedivermedic.com/: Safety in diving and medical information to divers.
Konstantinos Alexiou (Greece) has earned graduate degrees in Marine Engineering and Maritime Archaeology. He is a Commercial Diving Instructor for the University of Southern Denmark (SDU), Denmark. His interests include diving medicine, the applications of diving science and technology, and the 3D reconstruction of naval vessels. Currently, he is undertaking training to become a Paramedic. Email: [email protected], [email protected]
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