MILAN (AP) — An injured cave explorer in northern Italy was brought to safety Wednesday, 75 hours after she fell while trying to map an unexplored branch of the Bueno Fonteno cave, alpine rescuers said.
The final part of the rescue operation went smoother than expected, and workers carrying 32-year-old Ottavia Piana on a stretcher reached the cave entrance in the early morning hours. It was the second time in 17 months that she had been rescued from the cave at Lago d’Iseo, northeast of Bergamo.
Piana suffered multiple fractures, including to her face, ribs and knee, when she fell five meters while exploring an unknown part of the cave on Saturday, doctors said. The Bueno Fonteno Cave is located some 500 meters underground, with the mapped area extending some 19 kilometers (almost 12 miles).
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The removal through the narrow, unknown part of the cave was particularly harrowing. Video showed her wrapped in blankets and strapped to a stretcher as she was led through narrow passageways by a team of helmeted rescuers, including doctors and nurses alternating between them. They stopped every 90 minutes to assess her condition.
They reached the main tunnel late Tuesday afternoon and the final passage was much quicker than expected, arriving at least twelve hours earlier than expected.
Nearly 160 technicians from 13 Italian regions helped in the 24-hour rescue operation launched at midnight on Saturday after being alerted by members of her team that she had been injured and trapped deep in the tunnel.
