The first speaker of the afternoon session was Dr. George Harpur, introduced by the afternoon chair, Dr. Rhonda Wilansky.

Jim Murphy and Dr. Harpur speaking to Dave Eaton.

Dr. Harpur set out to present what changes had occurred at the Tobermory Fathom Five Underwater Park over the years and what we have learned. He also used a Power Point presentation to show his excellent slides. In the early days, there were an average ot 2 deaths per year. the average experience of these divers was less than 50 hours. The male to female ratio was 36/1. Depth of the dive was invariably over 33 feet. The stricken diver was either a member of an odd numbered group or was a solo diver. Equipment failure was common. There was a poor response to emergencies, poor training of responders and poor and unreliable communications. Divers arrived in "club" groups, training was often informal, dive masters were rare, the diving was "on the finge" and there was a lot of myth. There was little or no information about the wrecks, the hazards or resources. There was no source of medical care or medical equipment and dive charters were "exclusive". The earliest efforts at an organizational approach to improving matters adopted a military (rigid, tough, hazing) style. However, equipment for first aid and rescue was very basic and there was little regulation in the Park. Divers were "party animals" and certification of them as divers was not verified. Overall, there was no medical authority, few chambers available, few knowledgeable doctors, very little sport oriented research, not standard training. The emphasis was on the diver. Tade shows were just beginning but the media said diving was "dangerous".

The response to all the above was at first a weeding out of bad apples and bad players. Lawsuits began to happen and defensive practices ensued. At one point insurance was denied to divers because of perceived risks. Still the numbers grew and by 73-74 there were 7000 diver visits per year. Ten years later this had grown to 10,000. With fatalities, inquests were held and this resulted in better awareness of problems. Recommendations from coroner's juries resulted in charter boats being better organized, standards were for practice, operations and communications. The chamber facility opened in 1976 and with it came medical support. In addition, we got feedback from divers and initiated research. Dive shows such as the IQ's, Underwater Canada and Our World Underwater grew and expanded. The Undersea Medical Society was founded and held workshops, public forums, Myth panels and initiated research, networking and standards. DAN evolved oxygen administration training and provided kits. First aid became focused on the diver. Dive masters became commonplace and made sure diving followed a plan. The various training agencies began to co-operate in setting standards. Equipment became much improved and more affordable. Freeze ups were eliminated. Dry suits, octopus regulators, reserve air supplies became commonplace. We established direct link communications with charter boats. Student diver began to be initiated in the chamber unit. The Park made changes effecting standard patrols and more enforcement. They provided information about wrecks. Theycollected data on the divers. The ambulance service was moved to the Tobermory harbour and they had dedicated boats. Everything was better but there were impending threats from extreme sports, baby boomers getting older, enriched air diving and technical doving.

The last fatality in the past 9 years was reviewed. The diver was in a group of three. The depth was greater than 33 feet. The diver had less than 50 hours experience. He was divng on Nitrox. He failed to surface. There was no safety diver. Oxygen, transport and communications were all good. But this sure parallels the fatalities of the early days. Just lately we had two cases of air embolism in which excellent support staff, use of oxygen, rapid transfer resulted in excellent outcomes.

Have they learned? Yes they have but there are still some on the fringe who dive in odd numbered groups, who dive too deep too soon and dive with no planning.