Two divers who were assisting the military in their search for the crashed Y-8 plane were injured and are currently receiving treatment, the Office of the Chief of Defense Services confirmed yesterday.
According to the official statement, the two men, Saw Naung and Thant Zin Oo, were members of a local diving team from Dala township. Around 8am last Saturday, Saw Naung and Thant Zin Oo, along with a group of military divers, dove 125 feet underwater to retrieve a section of the plane that had been located. However, the two divers had to be flown back to Yangon after sustaining injuries as a result of the high water pressure during the dive. They were transported to the Mingaladon Military Hospital yesterday morning.
The statement also noted that Yangon Commander Brigadier General Thet Pone and several other military officials visited Saw Naung and Thant Zin Oo at the hospital yesterday afternoon.
The two men are now reportedly in stable condition.
While the specific nature of their injuries has not been revealed, it is likely the case that they suffered cases of barotrauma, which happens when your body can’t equalize the pressure between it and the surrounding environment in instances where there is an increase in air or water pressure, such as when flying or diving.
