Make it your standard practice to gently and completely turn on your air. If you’re an instructor, consider not teaching students the quarter-turn back. Dive operations should instruct their staff not to perform the quarter-turn-back practice on customers’ cylinders. Confusing the direction of a handwheel does not happen only to new or inexperienced divers. There have been anecdotal reports of divemasters on busy boats accidentally turning off customers’ cylinders and then performing only a quarter-turn on.
Emergencies can happen anywhere — even at a tradeshow. A DAN member recounts their memories of helping a badly wounded person and how their DAN first-responder skills helped.
Fresh-water diving comes with increased risks. Why is that? Learn more about the risks and how to dive in fresh-water environments safely.
Drysuits offer a range of thermal protections that go far beyond wetsuits. They are an indispensable tool for divers, but do require additional trainings. Read more about drysuits.
Freediving is growing in popularity but the sport does come with risks because of how divers hold their breaths for long durations. Learn more about the safety of freediving.
Situational awareness — the understanding of what is happening around you — can help prevent many dive injuries and accidents. When you mind your surroundings, you increase safety. Get in the zone, and learn more about how to achieve situational awareness.
Certain medications can impact your health and/or ability to dive. There are important considerations that need to be made before heading into the water.
Emergency plans are vital and as you prepare, you need to ensure your plan encompasses a variety of scenarios. Good emergency plans reduce feat and anxiety. How good is your plan?
Diving experience is incredibly helpful to ward off certain risks. We experience risk in different ways and some ways provide helpful lessons. Read more.
Hand signals are critical communication tools for divers. It’s imperative before any dive that buddies understand their preferred signals to avoid any miscommunications or mishaps.
