---
kind: "section"
citation: "46 C.F.R. § 197.320"
title: "46"
number: "197.320"
heading: "Diving ladder and stage."
url: "https://uscodex.org/cfr/46/197.320"
---

# §197.320. Diving ladder and stage.

- (a) **Each diving ladder must—**
  - (1) Be capable of supporting the weight of at least two divers;
  - (2) Extend 3 feet below the water surface;
  - (3) Be firmly in place;
  - (4) Be available at the dive location for a diver to enter or exit the water unless a diving stage or bell is provided; and
  - (5) **Be—**
    - (i) Made of corrosion-resistant material; or
    - (ii) **Protected against and maintained free from injurious corrosion.**
- (b) **Each diving stage must—**
  - (1) Be capable of supporting the weight of at least two divers;
  - (2) Have an open-grating platform;
  - (3) Be available for a diver to enter or exit the water from the dive location and for in-water decompression if the diver is—
    - (i) Wearing a heavy-weight diving outfit; or
    - (ii) Diving outside the no-decompression limits, except when a bell is provided; and
  - (4) **Be—**
    - (i) Made of corrosion-resistant material; or
    - (ii) **Protected against and maintained free from injurious corrosion.**

## Notes

### Authority

Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1509; 43 U.S.C. 1333; 46 U.S.C. 3306, 3703, 6101; Department of Homeland Security Delegation No. 0170.1.

### Source

Source: CGD 76-009, 43 FR 53683, Nov. 16, 1978, unless otherwise noted.