Preventing injuries on the water

06.07.2023

When relaxing by a pond in the warm season, we sometimes forget about our own safety. As a result, the risk of injury increases, including during diving.

What is a "diver's injury"?

A diver's injury is a severe injury to the neck caused by diving headfirst into a body of water. If the diver incorrectly calculated the depth of the reservoir (too shallow) and the height of his jump (too large) or suddenly stones, snags, etc. came across his way, then the head hits the bottom (obstacle) with hyperextension or flexion in the cervical spine . There are cases where experienced swimmers dived headfirst into a familiar body of water and still received injuries due to changes in the bottom topography (for example, after a storm). If the victim is lucky (and this happens extremely rarely), then only the muscles and ligaments of the cervical spine and the head are injured. But in most cases, additional fractures of the 4th, 5th or 6th cervical vertebrae occur, which leads to spinal cord injury at the cervical level.

If you see that a person is injured, you must provide first aid and immediately call an ambulance. The faster the victim gets to the doctor, the greater the chance of saving his life.

If the victim is unconscious, then it is necessary to carefully, without injuring the neck, pull him out of the water. Do not turn the victim’s head or drag him out of the water by his hair. The victim should be picked up under the arms, turned with his back to him and, leaning him against his hip, swim to the shore. It is necessary to clear your mouth and nose of sand and algae. It is extremely important to monitor your breathing and heartbeat. Be prepared to do chest compressions and artificial respiration if you know how. The neck must be kept straight; you can fix the head with the help of improvised rollers (for example, twist a towel, bedding, clothing).

Prevention:

  • Be careful, especially when recreational in open water.
  • Choose your swimming pond carefully.
  • Never swim or dive while intoxicated.
  • If you really want to dive headfirst, then do it in a specially equipped area, and not in natural (even familiar!) bodies of water.

Vacations near a pond, unfortunately, do not always end well, so you need to be prepared for any surprises, both physically and psychologically. And here it is important to learn to control yourself in unforeseen circumstances, and not allow fear to take control of you. Remember, as soon as you calm down and collect yourself, it will be much faster and easier to find a way out of a situation, even an emergency!