A dramatic cave rescue operation in the Paperino Cave in Piedmont came to a successful end today at 12:45 pm. A speleologist injured by a rockfall on Sunday afternoon was rescued after more than 24 hours by the emergency services of the Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico (CNSAS).
The accident occurred on Sunday, July 20, at around 12:00 noon, only about half an hour after the group had entered the cave on Colla Termini in the municipality of Ormea. The injured man was at the bottom of a shaft at a depth of around 40 meters when he was hit by falling rocks. The alarm was raised immediately and the CNSAS cave rescuers reached the cave entrance at an altitude of 1,870 meters in the afternoon and descended into the cave at 16:00.
The challenging salvage operation required blasting
A heated and air-conditioned tent was immediately set up at the scene of the accident. There, the casualty, who was suspected of having suffered a traumatic brain injury, was treated and monitored by two medically trained CNSAS cave rescuers. Communication with the base camp took place via a reliable cable telephone line.
The rescue of the injured man presented the emergency services with particular challenges, as several narrow sections in the cave system made it impossible to get through with the stretcher. This is where the expertise of Terlano cave rescuer and blasting master Roland Wenter came into play. "Three particularly narrow passages had to be widened with micro-explosive charges, as otherwise it would not have been possible to get through with the stretcher," explained Wenter.
A special KED system designed for confined rescue situations was used to stabilize the casualty during transport. On the way to the exit, the rescuers and the casualty had to negotiate two vertical shafts, each 15 meters high, as well as narrow corridors and a particularly difficult narrow section.
Coordination and cooperation lead to success
The success of this complex rescue operation is thanks to the coordinated work of over 50 specialists from various CNSAS cave rescue delegations. Rescue teams from Piedmont, Lombardy, Trentino, South Tyrol, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Umbria and Liguria worked hand in hand to ensure the safe rescue.
After the injured speleologist was freed from the cave, he was immediately subjected to a further medical examination and then flown to hospital by a rescue helicopter for further treatment.
