Underwater welder

               

                             ELECTRICITY AND WATER ARE A DEADLY COMBINATION

Underwater welder

Underwater welders are specialised engineers who perform repairs on submerged structures like bridge supports and offshore oil rigs. Their work involves a unique and deadly cocktail of hazards, including electric shocks, drowning, hypothermia, explosions, marine life attacks and the bends.
 

During wet welding, technologies like protective rubberised dry suits and insulated electrodes reduce the risk of electrocution. A second option – dry welding – involves building a sealed enclosure around the work site, pumping it full of pressurised air, and working within it as if on dry land. However, this is not without its own risks; if concentrated pockets of oxygen and hydrogen develop around the electrical arc created during welding, the results can be explosive.
 

Despite the work itself being fraught with danger, underwater welders are statistically most likely to die from common diving-related incidents like drowning, nitrogen narcosis or decompression sickness. These threats are managed to some extent using remote surveillance cameras that monitor workers from the surface, and by watching out for malfunctioning gear and signs of distress.

An underwater welder’s equipment must all be properly insulated.