Doctors have warned scuba divers against using heat packs to keep warm at great depths, after treating a man whose suit caught fire while he was exploring the wreck of the Lusitania.
The diver sustained deep burns to 35% of his body after the packs ignited just as he reached the shipwreck, 300ft down. The ocean liner, which was torpedoed by a German U-boat in 1915 with the loss of almost 1,200 lives, lies off the south coast near the Old Head of Kinsale. Its sinking prompted America's entry into the first world war. The 31-year-old was part of an official team visiting the ship last September.
He had four air-activated heat packs inside his undersuit, at each shoulder and each hip. Doctors believe that due to high pressure and the high concentrations of oxygen in his suit, the reaction happened at a faster rate than normal, generating higher temperatures.
The diver was evacuated by helicopter to Cork University Hospital. He had seven operations but has since been discharged and is recovering well.
"Air-activated heat packs should never be used at high pressures," said John Curran, one of the Cork doctors who described the case in the Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery. "Because of the high pressure and high oxygen, auto-ignition started. The suit was dry on the inside and completely sealed.
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"He was lucky that the fire burst his suit open and the inflowing of sea water put the fire out and relieved his excruciating pain. That allowed him to make a controlled ascent in two hours."