Mark Dickey rescued after ‘one of the most complicated underground rescues ever’

Mark Dickey said that it was “Amazing to be above ground again,” as he was taken to a medical tent for examination before he could be transferred to hospital after his ordeal, reported CNN.

And he thanked the rescue teams and Turkish government for bringing him to safety and said they had “saved my life literally no questions asked.

And he added: “I was underground for far longer than ever expected with an unexpected medical issue.”

Expert caver Mark Dickey was unable to climb out of the Morca cave in Turkey after falling seriously ill.

The fiancé of a caver who fell ill on an expedition in Turkey is assisting with a massive rescue effort to save him.

Mark Dickey’s partner and fellow caver Jessica Van Ord was with him when he began suffering gastrointestinal bleeding more than 1,000m below ground in the Morca cave complex on 2 September, according to Reuters.

Ms Van Ord remained by Mr Dickey’s side as an Italian rescue team with medical personnel reached the 40-year-old New Yorker and gave him IV fluids and blood inside the cave.

Mark Dickey will be taken by helicopter to a hospital in Mersin, say officials.

“He seems fine at first look,” Recep Salci of Turkey’s disaster and emergency management authority (AFAD) said on Tuesday.

The 40-year-old American embarked on an expedition mission to map out one of the deepest cave systems in the world – in the Morca cave in Mersin province’s Taurus mountains on 2 September.

As cave rescuers work to bring Mark Dickey to the surface, others are cleaning up after themselves and dismantling the rope installations they created in order to bring Mr Dickey up on a stretcher.

The European Cave Rescue Association (ECRA) said that Mr Dickey’s medical condition remained unchanged – stable but still delicate due to the gastrointestinal bleeding.

Mr Dickey is being lifted out of the depths of the cave via a stretcher which required much preparation by the teams to ensure no rocks fell and it remained sturdy.

“Rescuers below the stretcher party continue their work to dismantle the rope installations,” the ECRA wrote on Monday afternoon.

“All cave rescuers remain fit and well. The whole caving community anxiously awaits the appearance of the casualty at the surface!”

Six rescue teams from different countries apart of the European Cave Rescue Association (ECRA) are working together to try to rescue American Mark Dickey from the Morca cave in Turkey.

At 3,400 feet, it will be incredibly difficult to get Mr Dickey, safely, out of the cave.

To make it easier, the ECRA is going to split seven parts of the cave up among the six teams. Each time will find solutions to conduct the rescue operation at a set number of feet.

The Bulgarian cave rescue team will first find a way to get Mr Dickey from 3,412 feet (where he is now) to 2,953 feet.

From there, the Croatian rescue team will get Mr Dickey to 2,345 feet.

Then the Italian rescue team will get Mr Dickey to 1,640 feet.

After that the Polish rescue team will take over to help Mr Dickey reach 1,181 feet.

Then the Hungarian team will assist in reaching 590 feet.

Finally, the Turkish team will help get Mr Dickey out of the cave and to the surface so he can reach proper medical care.