underwater welding

Understanding the Mortality Rate in Underwater Welding: Risks and Legal Support

Welding involves joining two materials by melting their edges together through heat and pressure. It is commonly used in industries such as construction and manufacturing to create solid and permanent bonds. Underwater welding involves similar processes that are complicated by being performed underwater.

Traditional welding is a high-risk occupation that may expose welders to burns, electric shock, harmful fumes, eye damage, explosions, and general physical injuries. Underwater welding carries similar risks, plus those associated with working in a hazardous, high-pressure, underwater environment. The risk of serious injury or fatality is notable, and the mortality rate for underwater welding is considered extremely high, even among high-risk occupations.

Types of Underwater Welding Techniques

While most welding occurs above sea level, underwater welding, or hyperbaric welding, is a specialist maritime job performed by skilled maritime workers. There are two main types of underwater welding techniques: wet welding and dry welding. 

Wet Welding

Wet welding uses equipment specially designed for underwater work. It’s typically used to repair things such as ships, pipelines, and offshore platforms. The underwater welder is certified in welding and commercial SCUBA diving. 

Key benefits of wet welding include allowing repairs in hard-to-reach locations and being faster and more cost-effective than dry welding. Challenges include safety risks and welding defects. Working in an underwater environment can increase the welder’s risk of electric shock, explosions, drowning, and decompression sickness. Welding defects can result when the surrounding water causes rapid cooling, embrittlement, and cracking.

Dry Welding

In dry welding, a sealed, dry environment is created around the target area where the welder will operate. This involves lowering a hyperbaric chamber at the underwater site and filling it with gas to displace the water. Like wet welding, dry welding requires special certifications and should not be attempted by a traditional welder.

Key benefits of dry welding include better weld quality and controlled conditions. Since the welding occurs in a dry environment, electric shock, drowning, and welding defects are less likely. Dry welders typically have better visibility and welding equipment control than those in the water. While dry welding is safer and affords a higher-quality product, it comes at a price. The main challenges with dry welding include costs and time.      

Key Dangers in Underwater Welding

While accidents can occur in any welding scenario, wet welding is one of the riskier welding occupations. Industry estimates put the underwater welder mortality rate as high as 15%, although the Bureau of Labor Statistics does not track the death rate of underwater welders. While the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recognizes the underwater welding mortality rate as concerning, it does not quantify the risks. Other estimates based on studies carried out in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s claim that welder divers are 40 times more at risk of dying than an average American. National Geographic recognizes underwater welding as one of the most dangerous jobs. Unfortunately, an underwater welding accident often qualifies as a catastrophic injury

Explosion Risks

Welding occurs at incredibly high temperatures. When these exceed 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit, the heat can cause hydrogen and oxygen in water molecules to separate into gas molecules. This can create gas pockets of hydrogen and oxygen molecules around the welding site or under nearby crevasses or overhangs. 

Hydrogen is a highly flammable gas, but there is little risk of explosion by itself. Three elements are necessary for any fire-based explosion: heat, fuel, and oxygen, or the fire triangle. The welding instrument creates intense heat, the hydrogen gas pockets act as fuel, and the oxygen gas pockets provide the last necessary ingredient for a catastrophic underwater accident.

Underwater welding sometimes occurs in confined spaces where escaping gases can become trapped. When gases accumulate, the explosion risk increases significantly. The risk of explosion is high if proper gas venting or gas pocket removal doesn’t occur during the underwater welding process.

Electrocution Hazards

Electrocution is another primary threat underwater welders face. Underwater welding provides an environment that is a rich conductor of electricity — impure water. Saltwater environments are particularly conducive as sodium ions and impurities can increase conductivity.

Underwater welders use electrical equipment that can create a risk of an electrical current traveling through water when a failure occurs. Even without equipment failure, stray electrical currents can harm the welder, especially underwater. If the welder contacts a live circuit, electricity can pass through their body, leading to serious injury or death. These risks are amplified further by the underwater environment and complications preventing immediate rescue.

Decompression Sickness (The Bends)

Decompression sickness (DCS), nicknamed “the bends,” is a serious diving malady and contributes significantly to the underwater welder death rate. It is particularly problematic for commercial divers, such as underwater welders, who are typically exposed to deeper depths and longer dive times. DCS is linked to the building pressure divers face as they descend. The greater pressure causes the diver to take on more nitrogen than normal. This excess nitrogen dissolves into the diver’s bloodstream until they are saturated. 

The excess nitrogen normally off-gases slowly from the diver’s body during decompression stops and after the dive. However, if the diver stays too long at depth, misses vital decompression stops, or ascends too quickly, they can increase the risk of DCS substantially. DCS symptoms can appear as joint pain, skin rashes, numbness, tingling, neurological symptoms, paralysis, and death. After developing DCS following an underwater welding accident, the diver has a limited timeframe to receive effective treatment. Post-DCS, some commercial divers may never dive again.

Common Causes of Accidents in Underwater Welding

Any mistake that would be trivial in traditional welding could prove disastrous for an underwater welder. Common causes of accidents in underwater welding jobs include:

  • Equipment malfunctions: These can result in explosions, electric shock, DCS, or drowning.
  • Inadequate training: Poorly trained underwater welders may be more likely to make critical errors.
  • Environmental hazards: Low- or zero-visibility water, strong currents, cold temperatures, confined spaces, overhead environments, deeper depths, and longer submersion times can complicate safety measures. Often, multiple environmental hazards are present on a single dive.
  • Non-compliance with safety standards: When companies ignore safety standards, underwater welders can face substantially increased risks.

Understanding Mortality Rates in Underwater Welding

The fatality rate among all divers is relatively low. The most recent Diver’s Alert Network (DAN) annual report recorded 189 deaths, including 100 recreational divers and 13 commercial divers. Recreational diving is fairly low risk, even among uncertified divers, with an estimated mortality rate of 0.87 per 100,000 among discovery divers in recent years

The leading causes of death for underwater welders are decompression sickness and drowning. However, drowning can be a catch-all cause of death, encompassing other accidents, including electrocutions, explosions, and general health issues. If industry estimates are correct regarding the 15% mortality rate, then underwater welding carries the highest fatality rate of any profession in the U.S. You can compare this to death rates of 0.2% among workers in the logging and fishing industries — which are traditionally labeled extremely dangerous.

Legal Rights and Support for Injured Welders

When injured on the job, underwater welders are entitled to certain legal protections. These rights originate in state workers’ compensation laws and specialized maritime regulations. Workers’ compensation laws can provide medical benefits and wage recovery for work-related injuries. Compensation may also be available under federal maritime laws, such as the United States Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (USL&H) for divers injured in or near U.S. waters. The Jones Act is a federal statute that allows commercial divers to sue their employers for negligence.

In the case of a fatal accident, the family may be eligible to file a wrongful death lawsuit to claim compensation for the loss of the loved one. The legal framework surrounding underwater welding accidents is complicated and requires the experience of lawyers who understand maritime and workplace injury law. Your attorney should be well versed in the Jones Act, USL&H, local workers’ compensation laws, and OSHA regulations. A skilled legal representative can help you seek fair compensation for injuries and wrongful deaths.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Mortality Rate in Underwater Welding

The following are answers to frequently asked questions about the risks of underwater welding.

Why is underwater welding so dangerous?

Underwater welding is dangerous because of the risks of electric shock, drowning, decompression sickness, explosions, and exposure to extreme environmental conditions while working in a hazardous environment.

What is the life expectancy for underwater welders?

Underwater welding can place considerable strain on the body over time. This comes from prolonged submersions at increased pressure, environmental conditions, and its physically demanding nature. While no professional life expectancy data exists, some organizations estimate the life expectancy to be 50 to 60 years or even 35 to 40 years.

How can underwater welders stay safe on the job?

Underwater welders can take precautions before starting a job, including adequate training, sleep, and environmental awareness. It can also include using personal protective equipment, such as a rubberized dry suit, or incorporating extra protection, such as specialized waterproof equipment, breathing gas blends with reduced nitrogen, and following conservative dive plans.

What legal protections are available for injured underwater welders?

Injured underwater welders may be covered by workers’ compensation laws. Federal regulations such as OSHA’s commercial diving standards may provide additional protection.

Can families of deceased workers file a wrongful death lawsuit?

Yes, you may be eligible to file a wrongful death lawsuit, especially if safety violations or negligence contributed to your loved one’s fatality.

Prioritizing Safety and Legal Knowledge

In all high-risk work, it is imperative to prioritize safety and legal knowledge. Knowing your options when the worst occurs can protect your family’s rights in the face of disaster. If your loved one has suffered a wrongful death while working as an underwater welder, the attorneys at Morris & Dewett Injury Lawyers are here to help. Contact us today to arrange your free consultation.

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