This is the most dangerous underground cave rescue ever in The Uk, and even if you look at the whole world, there are few such dangerous dilemmas.
In the past few days, the hearts of all The British have been touched by a cave explorer named George Lynn.
16 rescue teams, 250 cave rescuers, came from all over the UK to rescue him...
This story should also start from the cave in England.
In Brecon National Park in southern Wales, there is a cave called Ogof Ffynnon Ddu.
This is the Welsh language, which translates to Chinese, meaning "Dark Spring".
In 1946, the South Wales Cave Exploration Club first discovered this pitch-black cave.
Cave explorers have found that the cave is 274 meters deep and at least 50 kilometers long, making it the deepest cave in Britain.
It can be challenging even for experienced cave explorers, and everyone who comes to explore needs to apply for a permit in advance before they can enter.
But even so, it still attracts a steady stream of challengers.
Humanity's exploration and conquest of the Dark Underground is endless, and the entire route of the Dark Spring is a "classic".
In the huge cave, you can see the beautiful formations.
Thunderous underground rivers flow through cracks, and a variety of special cave wildlife live in this unique dark world.
And George Lynn, 40, is one of its challengers.
He was not a reckless novice, on the contrary, he was an experienced, healthy cave explorer, reliable and well-known in the world of caving.
This time, he also entered the cave after formally applying for filing.
But...... An accident happened.
A boulder may have stayed somewhere in the cave for ten thousand years, but perhaps the moment you step on it, it moves.
"It's like the Himalayas in the world of caves, and even the most capable cave explorers can have accidents because that's exploration."
At 1 p.m. local time on Saturday, when Lynn and his partner went down in an orderly manner, the stone he stepped on fell, and he also fell more than 15 meters along the tumble...
In the dark underground cavern, he lay quietly in the depths.
Lynn was in a terrible state, the collision between the caves caused him to fracture multiple bones, and the boulders he touched also hit him, injuring his tibia, fibula, chin and chest, and even unconscious for a while.
The exploration partner called out his name worriedly, but fortunately, after a few minutes, he woke up and began to moan in pain.
The emergency consultant in the exploration team immediately gave him a powerful pain agent through a nasal intubation, and gave him a blanket and a hot bag to keep him warm.
However, the experienced partners also immediately assessed that this was not an accident that they could rescue on their own.
They sounded the alarm, informed the cave rescue team of the accident, and requested the support of the cave expedition from all over the United Kingdom.
Then, almost all of the cave exploration rescue teams in the United Kingdom that had access permits for the Dark Spring caves rushed over.
The leader of the joint rescue team is the rescuer who rescued 12 boys trapped in a cave in northern Thailand in 2018.
There are not many cave rescue teams, so almost every difficult cave rescue is the entire industry doing its best to save.
Sixteen independent caving teams from across the UK were combined into a single team, with people with different accents, but the cooperation between the teams was beyond imagination.
They drove to the scene in a rescue equipment truck, working 12-hour shifts, probing day and night, encouraging each other to continue in the dark.
"It's a completely voluntary, gratuitous operation."
"All cave explorers can run into this kind of problem. Together, we can solve common problems. ”
Rescue is difficult, the Dark Spring is an underground labyrinth with multiple entrances and forks, and the slightest inattention can lead to getting lost.
Of course, experienced rescue teams don't make such low-level mistakes, but there are a lot of problems that remain.
The place where Lynnen fell was not far from the entrance to his descent, but the rescue could not follow the route he had taken.
"This journey requires you to climb a dangerous terrain, wade through the water, and force through a narrow hole.
It's a challenge for a healthy cave explorer, but it can be done.
However, when people could not move, he had to be put on a stretcher and carried out by a team of about ten people. ”
Therefore, the rescue team must find another path.
Caves are creatures of nature, they are not pavements, but geological wonders.
According to the rescuers: "There are boulders, potholes and waterfalls everywhere, and when you sneak, you are negotiating with nature in your own way." ”
After trying to follow the original route, they had to change courses and find a longer, but more spacious, route.
By this time, it had been more than 27 hours since Lynn had fallen.
Because of the terrain in the cave, the rescue was extremely difficult.
"You can imagine crawling under a chair in a restaurant."
"Sometimes you have to tie Lynnn to a stretcher with a rope and then lift it vertically to it."
"Sometimes you have to lie down in the cave and let the stretcher slide slowly over your cheek and body."
"And sometimes you have to lift your legs and let the stretcher pass under you."
The straight-line distance is not long, but maneuvering a stretcher through a cave that only allows one person to pass through is a very slow process, 10 to 20 times longer than normal.
"It's purely manual labor, and the rescue team has to work regular shifts to make sure no one else falls."
In the darkness, time seems to have lost its reference significance, and only the gradually disappearing physical strength reminds everyone.
The water in the cave wet the rescuers' clothes, and the wind that passed through the hall made everyone shiver.
Rescuers carry candy and chocolate in their helmets, joking and cheering each other up, moving slowly through the brutal conditions.
There was even a time in between that they had to take off the self-heating jackets they had prepared for Lynna and give them to rescue volunteers who had been in the water for too long and were close to losing temperature.
The rescue itself is proceeding methodically.
Although Linna's injuries were serious, the fracture did not pose a life-threatening risk, and he would take the initiative to cheer up and joke with rescuers in the case of a jaw injury.
It seems that it is only a matter of time before he is rescued, but the rescue team still has a dark cloud hanging in their hearts...
That's the weather.
Wales has been shrouded in heavy fog for the past few days, the air humidity is so high that it may seem like it could rain at any moment.
Once it rains, the difficulty of the cave rescue increases exponentially.
The rock walls will become slippery, and roads that would otherwise pass will be difficult to sneak.
To make matters worse, some cave roads will become stagnant because of the curve, directly blocked by the current, unable to move forward, and may even make the entire rescue team unable to leave.
In the 56 hours and 45 minutes of the rescue, the rescue team was racing against time and rain.
And at 7:45 p.m. on Monday, Lynn finally... See the light of day again.
He was in good spirits, and even when he was in the ambulance, he said, "I'm glad I got out of here." ”
All the rescue team members at the scene cheered.
Even British Prime Minister Boris tweeted to celebrate: "Thank you so much to the 250 rescuers from all over the UK.
Over the past three days, your extraordinary efforts, courage and perseverance are commendable. ”
British media commented that this was the most daring cave rescue.
Lynn's mother is fully grateful for the "heroic" behavior of these professional rescuers who have arrived without compensation.
One rescue team member said: "It's a very hard job. But in the moment of knowing that he finally came out alive and received assistance, I felt that everything was worth it. ”
"Because of this, it could happen to any of us cave explorers." It's a beautiful thing to know that in times of trouble, there will be companions to save your life. ”
Perhaps, this is the most touching thing about this rescue operation...
Humanity's never-ending quest for the unknown is bound to be at great risk, but when difficulties come, there are always like-minded people who gather with a cry for help.
An arrow through the clouds, thousands of troops and horses to meet each other.
Is it worth it for 250 people, risking their lives, to save one person?
For these cave rescuers, the answer must be worth it.
Because they are not only rescuing Lynn, but also their future selves...