Hyperbaric chamber unveiled for offshore divers

Newfoundland's offshore industry has unveiled a $5-million piece of equipment it hopes will never have to be used.

The state-of-the-art hyperbaric decompression chamber is capable of holding 18 divers and four medical personnel.

Decompression from a dive on the Grand Banks can take up to six days.

'It's like a fire station. You hope that the firemen never ever get called. We hope that that will never ever be used, but in case we get the call, then it's ready to go.' Barry Hynes of Sea-Force Hyperbaric

"It's like a fire station," said Barry Hynes of Sea-Force Hyperbaric, the local company that owns the chamber.

"You hope that the firemen never ever get called. We hope that that will never ever be used, but in case we get the call, then it's ready to go."

The extra-large chamber is the first of its kind in North America, and one of less than a dozenanywhere.

Hynes says Sea-Force will be renting out the chamber to companies that have divers working offshore.

Demand for deep-sea divers is expected to grow as new offshore structures come on stream and existing ones age.