Teams Try to Rescue Sick American 3,000 Feet Down in Turkish Cave

Emergency groups try to rescue a 40-year-old American man who fell sick whereas greater than 3,000 ft beneath floor throughout a cave expedition in southern Turkey, restoration crews mentioned on Thursday.

The European Cave Rescue Association mentioned in a press release that it obtained an preliminary report of the sickness on Saturday, and it quickly grew to become clear that the person, Mark Dickey, himself a cave professional and rescuer, had gastrointestinal bleeding and was unable to go away the cave on his personal.

The affiliation mentioned the rescue from the Morca Cave in southern Turkey could be difficult given how deep Mr. Dickey was.

“Rescue missions from such deepness are very rare, extremely difficult and need many very experienced cave rescuers,” it mentioned.

The Speleological Federation of Turkey, which helps with the rescue, mentioned Thursday that Mr. Dickey’s situation had improved and that he would possibly have the ability to depart the cave with assist.

“Mark is getting better,” the federation wrote on X, previously often known as Twitter. “Doctors will decide whether it is possible for him to come out without a stretcher.”

Yaman Ozakin, a spokesman for a rescue crew affiliated with the Speleological Federation of Turkey, mentioned a plan was underway to ship a particular harness to the cave that included a seat to elevate Mr. Dickey, out of the cave. But extracting him that means may take a very long time, he mentioned.

“It would take 15 hours for a perfectly healthy, experienced caver to come out from that depth,” Mr. Ozakin mentioned, including that the cave was stuffed with slender, meandering passageways.

Mr. Dickey had been a part of an expedition of 14 folks, Mr. Ozakin mentioned. Rescue employees mentioned that he had been with two folks on the time he fell sick, with different members of the expedition elsewhere within the cave system, or ready exterior to enter.

Medical groups from Hungary and Bulgaria managed to achieve Mr. Dickey and different members of his expedition within the cave earlier this week, arrange a tent and provides him medical care, in line with the European Cave Rescue Association. Rescuers from Italy, Croatia and Poland have been additionally working within the cave, cave consultants mentioned.

The Morca Cave, which is principally fabricated from limestone, is the third-deepest in Turkey, with a depth of 4,186 ft, or 1,276 meters, in line with the Turkish federation. It is greater than 13,000 ft lengthy.

The European Cave Rescue Association mentioned Mr. Dickey was a extremely educated caver and a widely known determine within the worldwide group of speleologists, or cave consultants, who had participated in lots of expeditions world wide.

He can also be a senior member of the European Cave Rescue Association’s medical committee, and an teacher for cave rescue organizations within the United States, in line with the assertion.