SakshiMore Than Expected
Nitsch experienced a life-changing experience on June 6th when he descended to 831 feet way far from his decided goal. It wasn’t only incredible but admirable too. The man had clearly overachieved his target but as they say, everything good comes with its cost.
Lurking Danger
The moment of victory was followed by something unexpected. After reaching the marked goal, Nitsch began to rise above towards the surface. However, the situation got serious when he reached 350 feet mark. It was then he fell unconscious. Fortunately, the man kept on ascending, all credit goes to his sled but that does not mean he was out of danger.
Decompression Sickness
The level of Nitsch’s nitrogen pressure had increased up to a terrifying degree causing him decompression sickness (DCS). In most cases, the illness strikes hours after the dive. But here, Nitsch got inflicted by it only after ten minutes of his descent.
Initial Consequences
Nitsch clearly remembers the time when this all happened. He says that his DCS was “equivalent in my case to several brain strokes with severe initial consequences.” So, now you must have understood that freediving is way more difficult than you can expect.
Safety Divers
Luck was though still in his side. After some moments, safety divers took hold of her. They immediately disassociated him from the sled and helped him to gain consciousness. A minute before they reached the surface, Nitsch woke up and requested for oxygen.
Lost Consciousness
The swimmer reminisced, “I did reach the record depth of 818.6 feet (249.5 meters), however, on the way back to the surface I lost consciousness due to narcosis (a first in free diving). The sled and safety devices were designed in such a way, that it would stop at 10 meters depth, which it did, within reach of the safety divers.”