Incident Report released for 2023

The Annual Diving Incident Report for 2023, which recorded a total of 242 incidents and sadly nine fatalities throughout the UK, has now been released.

As part of its role as National Governing Body, BSAC reports annually on diving incidents in the UK from all diver training agencies. The report is compiled by BSAC Incident Advisor, Jim Watson and data analyst, Ben Peddie.

The Incident Report and its data analysis aims to promote diver safety as well as understanding any trends that can support all the diving agencies in their diver training programmes and safety advice.

The 2023 report covers incidents from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023. During this period, a total of 355 incidents were recorded in the UK and overseas, which sadly included nine incidents resulting in nine fatalities. It is notable that the report shows a higher number of incidents in September than in recent years. During September 2023, the UK experienced the warmest weather on record since 1984 and exceptionally light winds for the first half of the month. The report comments that this likely corresponds to more diving activity taking place with a consequent increase in reported incidents.  

The report also revisits previous analysis on incidences of Immersion pulmonary oedema (IPO) in the reports over the years and on efficacy of rescue techniques. Improvements in training programmes mean that divers are becoming more aware of IPO leading to earlier identification and resolution of the problem, thereby reducing the seriousness of an incident. The efficacy of rescue techniques reflects the benefits of the excellent training divers receive and consequently are able to effectively deploy to save lives.

Other key features of the 2023 report include:

• Number of incidents continues to be closely linked to the amount of diving, with activity returning to pre-pandemic levels in 2023.
• Experience and qualifications do not necessarily protect from the possibility of becoming a diving casualty.

The full BSAC Incident Report 2023 is now available for members and clubs to download. You can access the report at bsac.com/incidentreport

Help us to keep diving safe

If you have been involved in or witnessed an incident, please report it – in confidence – and help BSAC to continue to shape a safe future for diving. 

Whether you are a BSAC diver or dive with another agency, a recreational or technical diver or if the incident happened in the UK or overseas, BSAC wants to hear about it.