German scientist trapped in cave for 11 days in Bavarian Alps

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zwiebel

zwiebel

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A German potholer trapped for 11 days 3,300 ft underground, is expected to finally reach the surface today.

52-year old scientist Johann Westhauser was badly injured in a rockfall in the Bavarian Alps, but despite that has been cheerful and communicating with searchers who have been struggling to bring him to the surface for days now, in a huge, complicated operation costing millions and involving teams from across Europe. A doctor had to climb down 2.5 miles to treat him.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-27916455

The picture shows Johann on a stretcher, but the team were still deep underground and haven't quite managed to reach the surface yet.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/16/explorer-rescue-kilometre-cave-germany
 

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Searches actually reached Johann four days ago, but have been struggling to bring him to the surface since then. He has a bad head injury, but hopefully the doctor was able to stabilise him.

This is one time that the famous German love of equipment and technology really came in useful! The search conditions have just been unbelievable.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...lt-caves-1-000m-underground-freeing-days.html
 
Well, he was found days ago - it was just getting him outta there. But Johann has been taken off to hospital by helicopter now, and hopefully will make a full recovery. Congratulations to all those brave, brave search and rescue personnel from across Urope, whose hard efforts made this possible. Fantastic.
 
He had to be winched up thru shaft 900 feet high. Couldn't use a mechanical aid because of the risks and tiny spaces.

Condition not known at the moment but Johann has head and chest injuries.

Nobody's sure who is going to cover the huge costs of the recovery operation yet.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-27922781
 
This is an amazing story. Very lucky man. The first team with a doctor had to turn back and another doctor had to be found that could make the journey into the cave. I am so impressed with this rescue operation.
 
It was an amazing rescue and I pray that he will recover from his injuries. Thank god they had a doctor there who could stabilize his head and neck and was prepared to (and may have, they didn't say) to drill into his skull if needed
 
atthelake said:
O/T My sister and hubby took their bucket list trip for a month and were doing blog . Every.Day. Then seven days ago in Swiss Alps ...nothing ... I am starting to REALLY worry

Sent from my SCH-S720C using Tapatalk 2
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Gosh, I hate it when I lose touch with a traveler. However, they are traveling in a heavily traveled region with excellent services of all kinds, so perhaps they have just lost their technology. Here is a link to Swiss news:
https://news.google.com/?edchanged=1&ned=de_ch&authuser=0

Even if you don't speak German, you can use google translate with any story that concerns you, and you can use the search feature with their names. Good luck.

(I love Switzerland, and it is the place where you can always find someone to help you. My husband and I got lost in the woods on a mountainside there last summer, but eventually we found a road and followed it, and found a man who would give us a ride to the bus stop.)
 
This was an incredible rescue story, I am so glad they managed to rescue him. To get him out of there alive was amazing. Luckily these days someone had a camera, and we could all see how difficult it was. Those rescuers are very fit and strong people, they would have to be to do what they did.
An amazing story, thanks.....
 
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