In the rescue operation for the sick US caver Mark Dickey, there is a first success after a week. In Turkey, he was taken to a camp at a depth of only 700 meters.
Rescue teams have brought researcher Mark Dickey, who was in distress in a cave in southern Turkey, from a depth of 1,040 meters to a camp at a depth of 700 meters.
The 40-year-old American will receive further treatment there and rest before the lengthy rescue continues. The Turkish Caving Society announced this on the online service X, formerly Twitter. The transport by stretcher took ten hours.
Ten hours for 300 meters
During an expedition to map the 1,276-meter-deep Morca Cave system in the Taurus Mountains, Dickey suffered a stomach hemorrhage. Dickey had already fallen ill on September 2nd but was not able to contact helpers until the following day.
In a desperate appeal, the cave explorer spoke out in a video. “Hello, I’m Mark Dickey from around 1,000 meters deep,” says Dickey. Although he is “conscious” and speaking, he needs “a lot of help to get out of here.”
Helpers from several countries have arrived at the entrance to the cave to support the rescue of researcher Mark Dickey.
Helpers from numerous countries
Helpers from numerous European countries have now arrived at the entrance to the cave to support the rescue. First, the route through the cave system was prepared by, among other things, widening corridors, preparing for possible rock falls and setting up intermediate stations for Dickey’s medical care.
The most difficult work would be widening the narrow cave passages, explained Yusuf Ogrenecek from the Turkish Speleologists Association. This is necessary so that the stretcher can pass through it.
Rescue operation lasts up to ten days
According to the authorities, the rescue operation itself only began on Saturday afternoon, with 190 emergency services from eight countries taking part. Dickey was subsequently taken to a base camp at a depth of 1,040 meters where he received blood transfusions. The entire rescue could take up to 10 days, Ogrenecek said.
This depends on Dickey’s health. Even a healthy person needs 16 hours to climb from this depth, said Cenk Yildiz from the Turkish Civil Protection Authority.