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Occupational safety instructions for the safety diver. Full document

Occupational Safety and Health / Standard instructions for labor protection

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Safe Operation

Introduction

This Instruction establishes the basic safety requirements for the safety diver when performing diving work.

Each safety diver must know and comply with the requirements set out in this Instruction, and the enterprise administration is obliged to create conditions for his safe work and monitor the safety diver’s compliance with these Instructions.

1. General requirements for labor protection

1.1. The safety diver is the performer who provides direct and prompt assistance to the emergency diver.

1.2. For diving descents and work, including their support, divers are allowed, determined by the annual order of the administration of the enterprise, in the manner established by RD 31.84.01-90.

1.3. The appointment of a safety diver is made by the head of the diving descent when distributing responsibilities among the divers of the station before the start of diving descents and remains until the end of this descent.

1.4. When two divers are descending simultaneously under water (paired descent), carried out from one diving station under the guidance of one diving director, one safety diver is appointed.

1.5. During the diving descent, the safety diver reports to the head of the diving descent.

1.6. The safety diver, while under water, has the right to make a decision on the method of providing assistance to the emergency diver, informing the head of the diving descent about this.

1.7. An insurance diver who violates the requirements of these Instructions will be held accountable in accordance with the internal regulations of the enterprise.

2. Labor protection requirements before starting work

2.1. During the preparation of the diving descent, the safety diver must:

• receive from the head of the diving descent a task and instructions on safety at the workplace;
• before the first descent at the beginning of the work shift, carry out a working check of the pressure chamber;
• together with the supporting diver, prepare and test in action the means of supporting diving descents and work;
• prepare and conduct a working check of safety diving equipment;
• if any malfunctions of the safety diving equipment are detected during the working check, eliminate them and make appropriate entries in the diving log;
• report the results of the working check of the diving equipment and the pressure chamber to the head of the diving descent and confirm with a signature in the diving work log the carrying out of the working check of the safety equipment and receiving instructions at the workplace, as well as the carrying out of the working check of the pressure chamber;
• receive an indication of your location and degree of readiness from the head of the diving descent (usually 2 minutes, but, depending on the specific conditions of the descent, from immediate readiness to 5 minutes);
• take part in dressing the descending diver;
• depending on the degree of your readiness for the descent, determined by the head of the descent, put on the equipment in whole or in part with the help of station personnel, place the unworn parts of the equipment near your location so that it is convenient, if necessary, to quickly put on the missing parts of the equipment.

3. Labor protection requirements during work

3.1. Depending on the specific conditions of the descent and the degree of readiness of the safety diver, the descent director determines the nature of the duties of the safety diver during the period of immersion and work under water of the working diver.

If the conditions of descent and the established degree of readiness of the safety diver allow him to perform maintenance work on a working diver, then the safety diver must perform the following duties:

• provide conversational communication with a working diver and monitor the air supply (regulate the air supply at the diving air distribution board);
• carefully monitor compliance with the period of stay of the working diver under water, depending on the depth of descent, the operating time of the diving breathing apparatus and every 5 minutes. report this to the descent leader.

If the conditions of descent and the established readiness do not allow the safety diver to perform maintenance work on the working diver, then he must be in the established readiness for descent without performing any work.

3.2. The safety diver must be attentive when performing maintenance work on a working diver, not be distracted by extraneous matters and conversations, and not distract others.

3.3. When performing maintenance work on a working diver, the safety diver must comply with the following requirements:

• maintain conversational communication with the working diver from the moment the descent begins and until he enters the descent site (deck of a ship or watercraft);
• control the air reserves in the air storage vessels according to the readings of the pressure gauge on the air distribution board or diving pump and notify the diving director about this;
• When performing diving work in conditions of negative outside temperatures, monitor the formation of ice plugs in the diving hose and their connections according to the readings of the pressure gauge on the air distribution panel or on the diving pump (the formation of ice plugs is indicated by an increase in pressure in the hose).

4. Labor protection requirements in emergency situations

4.1. Upon receiving an emergency signal from the emergency diver, the safety diver, on the orders of the descent supervisor, must go under the water to assist the emergency diver.

During the descent and while under water, the safety diver performs all the duties established for a working diver and acts in accordance with the recommendations of RD 31.84.01-90 (Appendix 10) and the instructions of the head of the diving descent.

4.2. When providing assistance to an emergency diver, the safety diver must comply with the following rules:

• require the head of the diving descent to use additional technical means to ensure the provision of effective assistance to the emergency diver;
• stop rescue operations in the event of a situation that poses a threat to one’s life, until measures are taken to eliminate the danger and notify the head of the diving descent about this.

5. Labor protection requirements at the end of work

5.1. When lifting and reaching the surface of a working diver, the safety diver (if he did not go under water) must: