dpa
(TNS)
Istanbul — Rescue workers pulled a seriously ill US researcher out of Turkey's third-deepest cave on Tuesday after being trapped for over a week, the Speleological Federation of Turkey (SFT) said.
Mark Dickey was part of an international research team exploring the Morca caves in southern Turkey when, while at a depth of 1,250 metres, he suffered a stomach hemorrhage on September 2.
The SFT said Dickey was removed from the cave at 00:37 am ( 2137 GMT) on Tuesday.
"Thus, the cave rescue part of the operation has ended successfully. We congratulate all those who have contributed," it said.
The European Cave Rescue Association (ECRA) said the man had been stretchered from the caves and would be transferred to hospital after a medical assessment.
It said many rescuers remained within the cave to remove "substantial amounts" of rope and equipment used during the operation.
"ECRA express huge gratitude to the many cave rescuers from seven different countries who contributed to the success of this cave rescue operation."
Italy's Alpine rescue body CNSAS, which was involved in the operation, said that Dickey "helped facilitate the recovery operations." The group said that as of Sunday afternoon more than 80 rescuers from different country were inside the cave.
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