Introduction
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A researcher was rescued from the Wizard’s Cave on Sunday morning after suffering serious head and back injuries when a rock fell 470 feet underground.
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More than 60 personnel carried out the grueling 17-hour operation, leading victims through tight “squeeze” areas and vertical drops as deep as 90 feet.
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The researcher was flown from remote West Texas and is now in the intensive care unit of an Odessa hospital.
Terrell County, Texas – A dedicated rescue team of more than 60 people successfully rescued a researcher from Texas’ deepest cave system Sunday morning after a rockfall nearly 500 feet underground caused severe head and back injuries.
Wizard Cave Rescue
what we know
The injured caver, who was part of a statewide research team, was struck by a dislodged rock from Wizard Cave as he began climbing from the “River Hole,” the cave’s deepest point about 470 feet underground, around 7 p.m. Saturday. The accident triggered a grueling 17-hour ordeal that included a nine-hour technical rescue operation over some of the state’s most challenging vertical terrain.
(Source: Texas Parks and Wildlife)
Rescuers had to guide the injured woman through narrow “crush” areas, which included crush areas measuring just 12 inches by 36 inches and vertical pits 30 to 90 feet deep. The route involves a series of steep drops known as the “Mischief Pit” and “Devil’s Drop,” according to a statement from official overseeing members.
The U.S. Border Patrol’s Search, Trauma and Rescue (BORSTAR) team made contact with cave researchers at 3 a.m. Sunday. BORSTAR crews provided new manpower and additional ropes, allowing the team to move the patient through the final vertical pit and narrow squeeze area without the time-consuming removal and resetting of rescue ropes.
The researchers finally exited the cave at 4:45 a.m. and were led through rough terrain to a waiting AeroCare helicopter. She was airlifted to a hospital in Odessa and remains in intensive care. Officials did not disclose her condition but said she was in stable condition.
The massive effort involved the Terrell County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Game Wardens and Texas DPS, the Sanderson and Fort Stockton Fire Departments, Sanderson EMS, the National Cave Rescue Council and the San Antonio Technical Rescue Department.
Dig deeper
Located on private land in remote Terrell County, within the wider Big Bend region, Magician’s Cave is known for its record-breaking depth of 567 feet and the “West Lyon River,” an underground waterway that flows along the bottom. Experts point out that although the cave has important scientific value, its vertical layout is extremely dangerous for the inexperienced or injured.
source
The information in this article comes from statements from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Terrell County Sheriff’s Office, and those directly involved in overseeing caving operations.