Jerry Seinfeld is wrong. Scuba diving is safe.
This morning, seeking inspiration to write, I listened to Seinfeld joking about scuba diving. He observes that scuba diving is the only activity where your main goal is simply not die. You spend the whole time thinking, “Don’t die… swim and breathe because living is good.” Comedy aside, let’s look at the numbers. While Jerry is a master of comedy, his take on diving falls short. Scuba diving is, in fact, exceptionally safe—even when sharks are involved. The reality is that diving ranks among the safest activities you can choose.
Scuba diving versus other human activities
By the numbers
Scuba diving death rate: 1 out of every 211,864 dives ends in death, according to DAN (2010 workshop report). For example, with about 2,000 dives in my scuba career, my statistical risk is roughly 1 in 106,000. Margo, with 7,500 dives so far, would have a statistical risk of approximately 1 in 28,000. However, these numbers show that scuba diving remains statistically safe. In fact, a DAN study on DCS (Decompression sickness) states that from 1998 to 2004, across 105,135 dives, 95% were “uneventful.”
To clarify, this means that the vast majority of dives encountered no significant issues. Of the 5% who experienced problems, the most common, affecting 2.7% of dives, was equalization, which simply involves adjusting ear pressure to accommodate underwater changes. Buoyancy control, which is adjusting your body’s position in the water, was a problem in 0.9% of dives. The face mask was the next issue at 0.69%, with dive computer issues trailing at 0.4%. Overall, diving seems pretty darn safe.
Shark accidents: Just because it’s fun to talk about sharks and diving, and at one time, one of my biggest fears, sharks will kill me. It is simply not true. While the number of attacks fluctuates slightly year-to-year based on beach attendance and environmental factors, the overall danger remains minuscule: Average Attacks: Recent years (2020–2025) have averaged roughly 63–80 unprovoked bites per year. Fatalities: The global average for deaths remains around 5 to 6 people annually, which is incredibly low considering the millions of people who enter the water. Odds: The statistical likelihood of being killed by a shark is approximately 1 in 4.3 million.
- Human accidents: As far as the sharks that are reading this blog, well, our ” finned friends” need to stay away from us. Sharks vs. humans — humans win, we kill about 100 million sharks a year. Most of it is due to “finning”.
- Car accidents: I would advise not getting in your car today. To make this comparison fair, let’s look at it this way: for every 10 million car trips taken in the U.S., approximately 180 end in fatalities. This method makes it clear that, relative to scuba diving, the dangers of everyday car travel are notably greater.
- Birth: This is not the stat of the week at all, but giving birth can be risky. 1 out of every 7,692 women dies due to complications in childbirth (NCHS).
- Jumping out of an airplane: First, if you’re doing it, God bless you. Margo has done it, and she says she still misses skydiving. But ain’t no way I’m jumping out of a perfectly good airplane. Anyway, the rate is not as bad as I thought. 1 out of every 116,666 skydives ends in death. So I guess, keep “free falling”, without me. (United States Parachuting Association)
- Running: Being healthy can be dangerous. For comparison, 1 out of every 126,626 marathon runners died of sudden cardiac arrest during a run (1975-2003, NSC), highlighting how rare this event is.
- Falling out of bed: To put all this in a better light, falling out of bed is a real killer. In any single year, 1600 or so people will die by falling out of their beds.
The data is clear—Let’s go diving
So it seems that, based on available data, the risks associated with being underwater may be lower than those we encounter in our daily lives. All the more reason to jump on a plane and head to a Kids Sea Camp week and go diving. If you’re hesitant, why not start with a discovery dive class at a nearby dive shop? This low-commitment step provides a safe environment to experience the thrill of scuba diving without a major time or financial investment. Testing the waters can transform reassurance into enthusiastic exploration.
Being with Margo has shown me that “fear” is the real killer in life. And more than anything, it is fear that keeps us from doing what we love.
So, what do all these numbers and odds mean to me? Well, we really live in a fairly safe world. And even as we do all these fun and adventurous activities, we are more than likely going to live long and healthy lives.
If we keep living the “Kids Sea Camp” life, we’ll create stories that outlast us, and after years, you’ll see scuba diving is safe.