Showerthought: I read a report that said most diving accidents happen under 30 feet, not deep dives

I was looking at some old safety data from a report by the Divers Alert Network, and it said something that really threw me. They found that a huge chunk of serious accidents, like over 60%, happen in water less than 30 feet deep. I always figured the big risks were on the deep jobs, you know, with deco and gas mixes. But it's the shallow stuff where people get complacent. I mean, I've caught myself rushing a simple hull clean in 20 feet of water in Seattle harbor, not double-checking my gear because 'it's just a quick one.' The report said it's often a combo of task loading and thinking the risk is low. It made me stop and think about every dive, not just the deep ones. Has anyone else had a close call on what seemed like a simple, shallow job?

2 comments

2 Comments

dakota_rivera3d ago

But is it really that big of a deal? It's shallow water, you can just swim to the top if something goes wrong. I feel like the report is making a problem out of nothing. People probably just get lazy because the risk feels so low, but that's on them, right? It's not like the water itself is more dangerous at 20 feet.

parker_bell3d ago

Shallow water" reminds me of that time I slipped on a pool step.