How to Prevent Scuba Diving Accidents

Scuba diving accidents, although rare, can happen to anybody. It is important to remember that novices and over confident divers are usually the victims of scuba diving accidents. This is why you need to be aware of how to prevent scuba diving accidents.

First off, you have to know about the several scuba diving mishaps that may happen while you are underwater with your scuba diving buddy. Here are the different scuba diving accidents that you should be aware of and how to prevent it:

Nitrogen Narcosis

Nitrogen narcosis is a condition which most divers who go below 100 feet or 30 meters experience. As you go deeper, nitrogen inside your tank will have a narcotic quality. This means that the person affected will behave like a drunk by behaving irresponsibly, taking no consideration of safety, and sometimes, they just tend to fall asleep while underwater.

Prevention of nitrogen narcosis is fairly simple. The best way to prevent it from happening to you or your dive buddy is by not diving below 100 feet or 30 meters. However, if you or your dive buddy does experience this particular condition, the best way to treat it is by going up to shallower water levels. The effects of nitrogen narcosis will diminish by going up to shallow waters.

Decompression Sickness or Bends

Decompression sickness is where excess nitrogen is stored in your body. You have to consider the fact that as you go deeper, you will breathe in more nitrogen. The bends is a painful condition and can also be potentially fatal. This is why there are certain diving rules you have to follow. With your dive table, you will notice that there are certain depths and time limits for your dives. The longer you stay underwater and the deeper you go, the more nitrogen bubbles will accumulate inside your body. Usually these nitrogen bubbles will find its way into your veins and your joints. When you are deep, these bubbles are small, but when you surface, these bubbles will expand. This condition is informally called as "the bends" because people who are affected by this condition cannot straighten their joints because of the pain.