Cave diving pioneer the late Sheck Exley from Florida, USA, introduced the concept of Accident Analysis in order to develop cave diver rules of survival and training standards, and to curb the flood of deaths in the sport - 26 divers died in caves in Florida in 1974! In his seminal work, Basic Cave Diving - a blueprint for survival, Exley came up with the five minimal rules for safe cave and cavern diving from closely examining the mistakes of those divers who did not survive:

1. Be trained in cavern or cave diving and dive within the limits of your training.
2. Always run a single continuous guideline from the open water.
3. Always reserve at least two-thirds of your beginning gas supply for the exit.
4. Do not dive too deep. Stay within your training, experience level and ability.
5. Always use a minimum three lights per diver.

There have been 17 deaths of divers while cave diving in Australia between 1969 and 2025. The majority of these occurred between 1969 and 1974 - 11 fatalities in total. This was before cave diver training and standards had developed and become recognised by the diving community to safely participate in the sport. The 10 incidents that led to the passing of the 17 divers will be examined in this series of articles. From the analysis of each, others may learn and not make the same mistakes of the past.

Case 1: Kilsbys Sinkhole 1969

Case 2: Piccaninnie Ponds 1972

Case 3: The Death Cave 1972

Case 4: The Shaft 1973

Case 5: Piccaninnie Ponds 1974