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An experienced 47-year-old rescue diver was filming an underwater video of
a wreck 44 meters below sea level. He was in deep water, 9 meters deeper
than the recreational diving maximum, which warrants special training and
extra safety considerations. To keep the audio track clear, he turned
off the alarms on his dive computer. His buddy, working on the other
side of the wreck, did the same.
Defeating the safety... harbinger of so many Darwin Awards.
Sixteen minutes into the dive, he was alone and out of air--a situation
that should never sneak up on a diver. But he turned off the safety alarms
and swam out of sight of his buddy! The diver made an emergency ascent up
the anchor line. At 18 meters the divemaster tried to assist him, but the
panicked diver refused to take an alternate air source. He continued his
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Nitrogen bubbles (the bends)
are painful and occasionally fatal. But they can be avoided if a
diver follows the dive table limits, and makes at least one
decompression stop while ascending to allow blood gas levels to
normalize.
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rapid flight to the surface, where he lost consciousness and could not be
revived.
The cause of death: "Air embolism (nitrogen bubbles) due to rapid ascent."
Was it an accident? This experienced diver deliberately disregarded two
basic safety rules: pay attention to your gauges, and stay within reach of
your buddy. If he had attended to his gauges (and not turned off the
alarms) he could have made a controlled ascent, including a decompression
stop for safety. If he was near his buddy, they could have shared air as
they both made a controlled ascent. Either precaution would have saved his
life.
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Reference: Alert Diver Magazine, "Breathless on the Bottom," March/April 2007
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