Scientist Rescued From 'Crazy, Crazy Adventure' In Deep Turkish Cave

CROTON-ON-HUDSON, NY — Scientist and cave explorer Mark Dickey, who fell ill while exploring one of Turkey's deepest caves more than a week ago, was successfully rescued from Morca Cave in Turkey at 12:50 EDT (see photos below).

Lying on the stretcher surrounded by reporters shortly after his rescue, he described his nine-day ordeal as a "crazy, crazy adventure," the Associated Press reported.

"It is amazing to be above ground again," he said. A well-known cave researcher and a cave rescuer who had participated in many international expeditions, Dickey thanked the international caving community, Turkish cavers and Hungarian Cave Rescue, among others.

Dickey said after his rescue that he had started to throw up large quantities of blood inside the cave.

“My consciousness started to get harder to hold on to, and I reached the point where I thought ‘I’m not going to live,’” he told reporters.

He was "doing well" at a Turkish hospital, officials said Tuesday.

His parents, Debbie and Andy Dickey, released a statement:

The fact that our son, Mark Dickey, has been moved out of Morca Cave in stable condition is indescribably relieving and fills us with incredible joy. It is, we know, an event that all involved in the extensive rescue effort worked so significantly hard for. Mark is strong and we believe in his strength, but fully knew that he was in dire need of tremendous and immediate support. We are so very thankful and grateful that the support he needed was given to him and that the first medical rescue team to arrive reached him when they did. It has been a tremendous out-pouring of help from the international caving community, including cave rescuers and doctors working on-site and those significantly contributing to the rescue effort off-site. We are also appreciative of the support from the Turkish government and for knowing that Jessica, Mark’s fiancé and fellow caver, has been there with him. The international caving community has made it possible for Mark to leave Morca cave and receive further medical treatment at a hospital facility. Our prayers have been, and are, being answered and it is hard to express the magnitude of thanks we have for the international caving community. All that has been done for our son means, and will always mean, so very much to us.

Dickey, an accomplished cave explorer, was 1,040 meters (3,412 feet) from the entrance of the Morca Cave on an expedition, when he became stricken with severe stomach bleeding on Sept. 2. There were several other people with him, including three other Americans, on the mission to map the 1,276-meter (4,186-foot) deep cave system for the Anatolian Speleology Group Association.

His conditions rapidly worsened to life-threatening gastrointestinal intestinal bleeding and vomiting, according to the New Jersey Initial Response Team, a volunteer search and rescue organization of which Dickey is the chief.

While someone remained with the 40-year-old speleologist more than 1,000 meters (3,000 feet) underground, another team member began the arduous and technical climb back out of the cave to sound the alarm.

Doctors, paramedics, and experienced cavers from Turkey and across Europe rushed to his rescue.

Among them was Dr. Zsofia Zador, a caving enthusiast and medical rescuer from the Hungarian rescue team, who was among the first to treat Dickey inside the cave, the Associated Press reported.

"He was relieved, and he was hopeful," she said when asked to describe Dickey’s reaction when he saw her in the cave. "He was quite happy. We are good friends."

The anesthesiologist and intensive care specialist from Budapest, Zador was on her way to the hospital to start her early morning shift on Sept. 2, when she got news of Dickey’s condition.

The 34-year-old quickly arranged for a colleague to take her shift and rushed to gather her caving gear and medical equipment, before taking a plane to Turkey to join the rescue mission, she told The Associated Press by telephone from the camp near the entrance of the cave.

Zador said Dickey was hypovolemic — or was suffering from loss of fluid and blood — but said he was in a “stable condition” by the time she reached him because paramedics had “treated him quite well.”

“It was a tricky situation because sometimes he was quite stable and it felt like he could get out on his own, but he could (deteriorate) once again,” she said. “Luckily he didn’t lose any consciousness and he saw the situation through.”

Teams comprised of a doctor and three to four other rescuers took turns staying by his side at all times.

The Morca Cave in southern Turkey’s Taurus Mountains is the country’s third deepest, a very complex system with many vertical shafts and a few horizontal sections.

The biggest challenges the rescuers faced were the steep vertical sections and navigating through mud and water at low temperatures in the horizontal sections.

Temporary medical camps were set up along the tunnel to provide assistance and resting spots as Dickey was gradually extracted. The tunnel also needed to be re-equipped with new ropes and a communication line had to be drawn. Some narrow cave passages needed to be widened as Dickey was being moved up on a stretcher.

The New Jersey Initial Response Team issued a statement of thanks:

The Turkish Ministry of National Defence (Millî Savunma Bakanlığı) for their efforts with surface Incident command, logistics, and more. The Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (Afet ve Acil Durum Yönetimi Başkanlığı) (AFAD). The European Cave Rescue Association (ERCA), for their coordination of the response of cave rescuers, and in cave operations management. The cave rescuers themselves for their hard core caving ability and rescue proficiency who included cavers from: Hungary, Italy, Croatia, Bulgaria Turkey, and Poland. Mark's friends from the US who responded, Kevin Mulligan, Kelly McDermott, and Emily Hollingsworth, who immediately responded to assist their friend Mark. Petzl for their rapid response to send caving equipment. Gretchen Baker of the US National Cave Rescue commission (NCRC) for information coordination, and Stephanie Suen for setting up the Go Fund Me site to help fund equipment and the travel cost of the rescuers.

A GoFundMe page set up in Croton, Dickey's hometown, to help with the international costs of the rescue has raised $62,303 of its $100,000 goal. According to its organizers, "We are excited about the news that Mark is at the surface! https://caverescue.eu/news/tuesday-12th-september-2023-0030h-cest/The rescue teams are still in cave doing de-commissioning activities for all of the haul systems and rigging that they put into place. Please keep them in your thoughts as they fight through exhaustion and do this important work. We all hope for their safe return. Your continued contributions and support will go to helping these groups."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.