Diving is a wonderful sport – just take the risks out

The adventure channels and the tourism channels show glorious breathtaking images of blue skies and crystal clear waters and people diving among the fish. The question that arises is if we are safe, among a wide variety of underwater life, some of which can be extremely dangerous and in a territory that is foreign to humans, we were not born to swim and cannot breathe underwater,? or if?

The simple answer is yes and no. It is similar to mountain climbing. When Edmund Hillary was asked if mountaineering was dangerous, he said no if you respect the mountain. Diving is also not dangerous if you respect it. It’s not dangerous as long as you follow safety guidelines, have the proper equipment, know your limitations, and stay within those restrictions.

This is a small risk, the keyword being ‘small’. According to the DAN Diving Fatality Workshop Report, fatalities are extremely rare and in their 2010 survey they found that fatalities occurred once every 211,864 dives. How risky is that? More drivers are killed in traffic accidents and the chances of you dying in a long distance race are higher than in a diving race, so the probability of you dying in diving is quite remote.

As with any extreme sport, there is always an element of risk. Divers totally depend on their equipment to breathe. Your journey back to the surface depends on your skills, the correct use of equipment, and emergency training. Approach the sport with the right spirit and character. Grow into it with practice and training. Don’t take undue risks. Larger fish may seem tame, but they are not pet and hug dogs, so keep a reverent distance.

Surveys have revealed that the majority of deaths that have occurred in sport were caused by human error and were completely preventable. The top three causes were pre-existing disease in the diver, drifting beyond one’s ability, and descending rapidly.

People who died from a pre-existing condition did not declare their medical conditions on the diving medical questionnaire. If they had, they would not have been allowed to enter the waters. Descending rapidly causes poor buoyancy control and causes the diver to panic and make mistakes. Finally, you are so enthusiastic and overconfident that you drift beyond your limits and are unable to alert your peers when an emergency strikes – false bravado often ends in disaster, not just in diving, but across the board. of the life.

To make sure your dive is a great, fun-filled experience, just be sure to plan your dive before you get in the water. Never dive deeper than your first dive. Check your dive gauges continually and stay within prescribed ascent and descent rates.

Take a 3-minute safety stop mid-dive to see if everything is under control and you’re not continually ascending and descending when underwater. And never exceed the limits of your training and abilities.

What would happen if you suddenly met a shark? Don’t panic, stay calm and stay close to your dive buddy. Seeing one is rare and an impressive sight, so enjoy it. However, keep a respectful distance and don’t swim away quickly. You can’t outrun him, but once his curiosity is satisfied, he’ll swim away. This is what happens almost every time: think of the great time you will spend gifting your friends and family about your great shark encounter.