More than a week after becoming ill, an American researcher was rescued from a deep Turkish cave

More than a week after becoming critically ill 1,000 meters (more than 3,000 feet) below the cave’s mouth, rescuers were able to pull an American researcher out, according to the Speleological Federation of Turkey.

Teams from all over Europe flocked to the Morca cave in the Taurus Mountains of southern Turkey to save Mark Dickey, a 40-year-old seasoned cave diver who fell gravely ill with stomach bleeding on September 2.

He was on a mission to chart the cave, which is the third-deepest in the nation. Rescuers took Dickey with the aid of a stretcher since he was too weak to climb out on his own, stopping frequently at makeshift camps that had been set up along the way.

The speleological federation issued a statement that read, “Mark Dickey is out of the Morca cave.” It stated that Dickey was taken out of the cave’s final exit at 12:37 in the morning. 9:37 p.m. on Tuesday, local time.

Monday, GMT. The statement read, “He is fine and is being attended to by emergency medical personnel in the campsite above. parents of Mark.

Debbie and Andy Dickey expressed their gratitude to the Turkish government, the international caving community, medical professionals, and rescuers for helping to save their son.

They released a statement in which they expressed their immense relief and excitement at Mark Dickey’s being taken out of Morca Cave in a stable condition.

A Hungarian doctor descended into the cave on September 3 and began treating the American inside.

Then, medical professionals and rescuers alternated tending to him. Dickey’s disease lacked a known cause.

The horizontal parts’ low temperatures and mud and water navigation presented the rescuers with their greatest difficulties.

There was also the psychological cost of spending so much time in a dank, gloomy cave.

A total of 190 experts, including doctors, paramedics, and skilled cavers, participated in the rescue operation from Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Poland, and Turkey.

Teams of three to four rescuers, including a doctor, took turns rotating at his side at all times.

After receiving IV fluids and blood, physicians decided that Dickey could make the challenging ascent on Saturday.

Rescuers had to rig ropes to pull him up vertical shafts on a stretcher, expand some of the cave’s tiny passageways, and establish makeshift camps along the way before the evacuation could start.

Dickey, a native of Croton-on-Hudson, New York, is an accomplished cave rescuer and researcher who has taken part in numerous international trips. He and other members of the expedition were responsible for surveying the Anatolian Speleology Group Association’s Morca cave system, which is 1,276 meters (4,186 feet) deep.

Dickey was unwell on September 2, but nobody above ground was made aware of his condition until the next morning.

On Thursday, the Turkish government released a video message that showed Dickey rising and moving. He stated that he was not “healed on the inside” and required a lot of assistance to exit the cave while conscious and speaking.

The European Cave Rescue Association announced that Dickey would be taken to a hospital after his rescue and a medical evaluation. According to the report, numerous cave rescuers stayed inside the cave to take down the rope and other rescue tools that had been used.

The group expressed its “huge gratitude to the many cave rescuers from seven different countries who contributed to the success of this cave rescue operation.”