Heart attack

All

Medium

Medical self-declaration / referral to Medical Referee.

BLS by appropriately trained divers.

Emergency services available by radio.

Ear damage

All

Medium

Trainees receive specific instruction in ‘ear clearing’.

Do not dive when suffering from a cold.

Assistance from Instructor or buddy.

Ascend or abort dive if not clearing.

Mask Squeeze

Trainees

Low

Trainees receive specific instruction in mask equalisation.

Assistance from Instructor or buddy.

Injury from falling cylinders

Trainees

Low

Trainees taught to lay heavy equipment down. Monitoring by Instructor.

Cylinders secured in boat with rope ties.

First Aid by Instructor or appropriately trained divers.

Running out of air

All divers

High

Monitoring by Instructor / Dive Leader.

Instructor / trainee ratios in accordance with BSAC recommendations.

All divers carry AAS (independent pony recommended).

Rapid ascent

All divers

High

Correct weighting of all divers.

Monitoring by Instructor.

Instructor / trainee ratios in accordance with BSAC recommendations.

Visual datum used for ascent exercises.

Diving monitored by shore / boat cover able to provide direct assistance.

Oxygen Administration equipment and trained administrators on site.

Extra care with DSMBs or lifting bags.

Entanglement in nets/lines/under-water obstructions

All divers

Medium

All divers carry appropriate cutting implement, such as filament line cutter, wire snips, diving knife, etc.

Assistance from buddy

Diver Separation

All Divers

High

Divers to dive in buddy pairs at all times.

If 3 divers, extra care taken to prevent separation. Contact to be maintained throughout the dive.

Torches and/or buddy lines to be carried.

Divers to surface immediately.  Re-establish contact.

Render assistance as required.

Trips/Slips & Tumbles

All

Low

Dive Manager to advise all divers of hazards, especially wet slipway.

Keep boat floor clear of hazards.

Remove casualty from danger and provide appropriate first aid.

Hospitalise if required.

Reduced underwater visibility

All Divers

High

Diver numbers in water to be controlled and monitored.

Don’t dive as 3 in low vis.

Divers to carry torches and/or buddy lines on all dives.

Strobes & buddy lines items to be used in the event of the onset of reduced visibility.

Dive to be abandoned in the event of adverse reduced visibility.

Decompression illness

All divers

Medium

Dives planned and conducted in accordance with BSAC ‘88 Decompression Tables or computer.

All divers equipped appropriately.

Oxygen Administration equipment and trained administrators on site.

Contact Coastguard for assistance if DCI suspected.

Nitrogen Narcosis

All divers

High

Progressive work-up dives for all divers going beyond their recent experience.

Experience gained in company of Instructor / diver of greater experience at that depth. Clear dive plans.

Assistance from Instructor / buddy.

Separation from boat while drift diving

All divers

High

Dive plan agreed with boat Coxswain and all dive pairs follow same plan.

All dive pairs to use an SMB.

Boat equipped with an AIS receiver.

Each diver carries aids to visual detection – e.g. flags, sausage buoys, strobes, flares, whistles etc. Each diver pair to be equipped with AIS transponder. Carrying PLBs is encouraged as a last resort.

Contact with dive boat / propeller

All divers

Medium

Approved coxs / handlers operate boats.

All exit from and entry to boats controlled by coxswain.

First Aid kit on boat.

Boat crew trained in First Aid.

Injury from other boats

All divers

Low

Flag ‘Alpha’ flown while divers are underwater and surface traffic monitored.

Divers marked by SMBs or ascending under DSMBs.

First Aid kit on boat.

Boat crew trained in First Aid.

Deteriorating weather

All divers

High

Diving planned using latest forecast.

Weather conditions constantly monitored by Dive Manager / coxswain during diving.

Diver recall mechanism available (e.g. signals via SMB line, banging ladder).

Diving cancelled by Dive Manager.

Diving in progress terminated using diver recall mechanism.

Coastguard notified of activities by Cox.