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Dive Safety
Safety
With more than a 1000
dives being made each day in the Maldives, dive
accidents have fortunately been rare and far between.
Increased safety measures has further reduced the risk
of accidents. However utmost care should be taken when
diving, especially in difficult conditions.
Drift diving is the most common type of diving in the
Maldives. It gives divers the opportunity of seeing more
fish life and more coral and rock formations than they
would otherwise. Drift diving is easy and safe when
conducted with proper care.
These exciting dives are staged on the outside reefs and
channels – usually with an ingoing current as they are
safer. However if you are diving in a channel with
strong outgoing currents stay close to the reefs and
shallows on the outside corners. Only a knowledgeable
divemaster would be able to plan and instruct you on
these dives and competent boatmen are essential
Top
Tips for Safety
Important tips for safety in
diving.
Ensure you check your
equipment and your buddy’s.
Never dive alone, follow
the buddy system procedures.
Listen carefully to the
pre-dive briefing and follow the instructions carefully.
Start your descent
without spending much time on the surface, to avoid
being swept off the dive point. It may help to empty
your BCD before you jump in.
Stay as low as possible
on the reef without touching it or your equipment
dragging on it. The lower you get the easier it is to
avoid being swept by the current.
Never swim against a
strong current. The protection of coral outcrops provide
a place for a rest or a good viewing point – hold-on
only to dead corals if necessary.
Make sure you do not
exceed a depth of 30 metres. In fact local dive
regulations prohibit deeper diving.
Avoid decompression stops
in open water. You could get swept for kilometres in a
single stop.
For additional safety,
make sure all your dives are no-decompression dives.
Visibility is usually
good- do not underestimate distance based on visibility.
Remember that these tips
are particularly important during night dives.
Always carry a flag or a
surface balloon to signal in case of distress. Use this
if the dive boat cannot be seen when you surface.
Top
Dangerous fish & corals
Although some of the species
of fish and coral are extremely attractive, a small
percentage of them are sometimes extremely dangerous.
However the danger is not from the large predatory fish that
are often portrayed as villains in fiction or folklore.
Sharks for instance, although
implicated for attacking humans, are totally harmless unless
they are provoked by chasing or cornering them, often
failing to recognise their territorial posturing. Sharks are
gracefully powerful and beautifully awesome. In the
Maldives, hundreds of sharks are encountered daily while
diving. These creatures are to be respected and observed.
Playing around with them could only pose any threat.
The real danger in the reef
lies in the small creatures, too small to see or well
camouflaged that they are able to blend in with the corals.
These creatures rely on powerful venom and lie quietly for
its prey. One of the most common species is that of the
Scorpionfish which includes the highly venomous Stonefish
among them. They possess sharp spines which are associated
with venom glands. If these spines come into human contact
the fish inject a powerful neurotoxin, causing immediate
nausea followed by cardiorespiratory insufficiency, sweating
and fever. Soaking the part of the body stung in hot water
can reduce the effect of the sting.
Similarly the yellow fire coral launches thousands of tiny
venomous darts upon contact.
While wetsuits offer some
protection the best criteria for protection is to avoid
touching or playing with any creatures big or small, leaning
against corals and walking on reef tops. |
