American explorer stuck 3,700 feet deep in Morca Cave rescued after 9 days
Mark Dickey
Nine days after being trapped in narrow tunnels of a Turkish cave, an international team of rescuers finally managed to pull out Mark Dickey, a US-based explorer to safety on Tuesday (September 12).
Described as one of the largest and most complicated underground rescue operations ever mounted, an international team of 200 rescuers was pressed into service to pull off the miracle.
"Mark Dickey was removed from the last exit of the cave," the Turkish Caving Federation said, adding that the "cave rescue part of the operation has ended successfully."
The 40-year-old explorer was examining the depths of the Morca Cave, a remote complex of twisting underground passageways in southern Turkey's Taurus Mountains, when he fell ill. Stuck at a depth of 1,120 metres (3,695 feet), Dickney developed stomach problems, leading to internal bleeding.
Notably, the Morca Cave is Turkey's third-deepest, its lowest point reaching nearly 1.3 kilometres (0.8 miles) below ground.
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The rescue operation
Upon understanding his condition, the rescuers started giving him infusions of blood, before undertaking any retrieval work. Afterwards, he was strapped to a stretcher, which was often lifted vertically by rope, through the narrow passageways of the cave.
"He is in good health in general. He continues to be fed with liquids. We have resolved his stomach bleeding issues with plasma and serum support," Cenk Yildiz, the head of the local branch of Turkey's emergency response service,said earlier.
In a video message, recorded last week, Dickey thanked the Turkish government for its help.
"The quick response of the Turkish government to get the medical supplies that I needed, in my opinion, saved my life," Dickey said.
Dickey, who hails from New York, is regarded as a"well-known figure in the international speleological community, a highly trained caver, and a cave rescuer himself", according to the European Cave Rescue Association (ECRA).
"In addition to his activities as a speleologist, he is also the secretary of the ECRA medical committee and an instructor for cave rescue organisations in the USA," ECRA said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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