DIVING

1. Dive Fatalities
Plotting the leading causes of death and disabling injuries, where known, we are able to identify clear targets for injury
prevention initiatives (Figure 1.7.2-1). Drowning remains the most common cause of death but falls to second place
behind cardiovascular disease as the leading disabling injury. The diving community is aging steadily as those of us who
learned to dive some decades ago continue to dive, and as the average age of newly certified divers has also increased
since the early days of recreational scuba. With these changes comes an increased prevalence of health problems,
with cardiovascular problems leading. Attaining and maintaining adequate fitness for diving should be the goal of every
diver. Survival from acute cardiac events will always be lower among divers in the water compared with people on land,
simply because the circumstances are less forgiving. That is why divers should pay extra attention to health and fitness,
to counterbalance the added hazards associated with the environment we dive in.
120
Number of Fatalities
100
80
60
40
20
Cause of Death
Disabling Injury
0
Drowning
Cardiovascular
disease
Arterial gas
embolism
Immersion pulmonary
edema
Decompression
sickness
Cause of Death / Disabling Injury
Figure 1.7.2-1. Distribution of disabling injuries (n=200)
1.8 Fatalities involving harvesting and spearfishing
Hunter/Harvesters
Recreational harvesting may be defined as catching marine animals such as lobster, abalone or fish for personal use
while diving within recreational diving limits. Harvesting marine animals for personal use is popular in Canada and the
USA among mainly male recreational divers. Legal harvesting occurs within designated locations and at specified times
of the year. In Florida there is a ‘sport season’ which lasts just two days, ahead of the regular season, which lasts eight
months.
There were 28 male recreational diver hunting fatalities in Canada and the US during 2010-2013. To identify characteristics
specific to hunting we compared these hunters with a control sample of 105 non-hunter male recreational diving
fatalities from the same period. Non-recreational divers and trainees were excluded from this sample, as were divers in
freshwater lakes, quarries and dive parks.
Divers engaged in harvesting (hunters, n=28, 21%) were compared with non-hunters (n=105, 79%). Of the 133 fatalities,
15 (11%) were in Canada and 118 (89%) the US. Florida (n=39, 33%) and California (n=31, 26%) accounted for the
majority of fatalities (n=70, 59%). There was a mean of seven hunting fatalities per year (Table 1.8-1).
Annual Diving Report – 2012-2015 Edition
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