Emergency Action Plans, Accident Management, and Reporting
The plan must work on the worst day
The exam tests whether the emergency action plan is site-specific and practiced. An emergency action plan identifies roles, communication methods, evacuation routes, nearest hyperbaric chamber, medical contacts, and notification obligations. It must address diver emergency, surface injury, equipment failure, and loss of communications.
Core elements
- Written emergency action plan with a site-specific risk assessment and map.
- Named emergency coordinator and alternates.
- Oxygen, first aid, AED, and stretcher accessibility.
- Chamber location, transport time, and acceptance criteria.
- Notification list: emergency services, medical advisor, management, regulator, insurer.
- Preservation of equipment, logs, and evidence after an accident.
- Documented drills and critiques.
Reporting duties vary by jurisdiction and employer. Record the time of injury, treatment, and notifications; do not alter original records. A post-incident critique should produce corrective actions, not blame.
Worked example
A diver surfaces unconscious. The crew recovers the diver, starts oxygen, and calls emergency services, but no one knows the nearest chamber. Reasoning: the emergency action plan failed at the most important point. Oxygen and rescue were correct, but chamber identification and transport coordination were missing. The investigation should examine plan design, briefing, and drill frequency, not just individual performance.
Traps that cost marks
- An emergency action plan copied from another site without chamber and route verification.
- No alternates for key roles.
- Failing to preserve evidence.
- Delayed notification to management or regulator.
- Treating a drill as a paper exercise.