Rescue Begins of Ailing US Researcher Stuck Deep Inside Turkish Cave, Turkish Officials Say

US caver Mark Dickey is seen in Morca Cave, days before he fell ill and became trapped some 1,000 meters (3,280 ft) underground, near Anamur in Mersin province, southern Türkiye, August 28, 2023. (Reuters)
US caver Mark Dickey is seen in Morca Cave, days before he fell ill and became trapped some 1,000 meters (3,280 ft) underground, near Anamur in Mersin province, southern Türkiye, August 28, 2023. (Reuters)
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Rescue Begins of Ailing US Researcher Stuck Deep Inside Turkish Cave, Turkish Officials Say

US caver Mark Dickey is seen in Morca Cave, days before he fell ill and became trapped some 1,000 meters (3,280 ft) underground, near Anamur in Mersin province, southern Türkiye, August 28, 2023. (Reuters)
US caver Mark Dickey is seen in Morca Cave, days before he fell ill and became trapped some 1,000 meters (3,280 ft) underground, near Anamur in Mersin province, southern Türkiye, August 28, 2023. (Reuters)

Rescue teams began the arduous process Saturday of extricating an American researcher who became seriously ill while he was 1,000 meters (3,000 feet) below the entrance of a cave in Türkiye, an official from Türkiye’s disaster management agency said.

It could take days to bring Mark Dickey to the surface since rescuers anticipate he will have to stop and rest frequently at camps set up along the way as they pull his stretcher through the narrow passages.

“This afternoon, the operation to move him from his camp at 1040 meters to the camp at 700 meters began,” the official from the Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate told The Associated Press.

The 40-year-old experienced caver began vomiting because of stomach bleeding while on an expedition with a handful of others in the Morca cave in southern Türkiye’s Taurus Mountains.

Teams of rescuers from across Europe have rushed to Dickey’s aid. A Hungarian doctor reached and treated him inside the cave on Sept. 3. Doctors and rescuers have since been taking turns caring for him.



Baby Mammoth Preserved for 50,000 Years Is Unveiled in Russia’s Siberia

 In this photo released by the Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, University's Scientists show the remains of a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth uncovered by melting permafrost in Russia's Siberia. (Michil Yakovlev, Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University telegram channel via AP)
In this photo released by the Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, University's Scientists show the remains of a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth uncovered by melting permafrost in Russia's Siberia. (Michil Yakovlev, Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University telegram channel via AP)
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Baby Mammoth Preserved for 50,000 Years Is Unveiled in Russia’s Siberia

 In this photo released by the Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, University's Scientists show the remains of a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth uncovered by melting permafrost in Russia's Siberia. (Michil Yakovlev, Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University telegram channel via AP)
In this photo released by the Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, University's Scientists show the remains of a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth uncovered by melting permafrost in Russia's Siberia. (Michil Yakovlev, Mammoth Museum at the Russian North-Eastern Federal University telegram channel via AP)

The 50,000-year-old remains of a baby mammoth uncovered by melting permafrost have been unveiled to the public by researchers in Russia's Siberia region who call it the best-preserved mammoth body ever found.

Nicknamed Yana, the female mammoth weighs more than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) and is 120 centimeters (47 inches) tall.

Scientists believe that Yana was 1 year old when she died. Her remains are one of seven mammoth carcasses recovered worldwide.

Yana was found among the melting permafrost at the Batagaika crater in the far-eastern Russian area of Yakutia. Known as the “gateway to the underworld,” the crater is 1 kilometer deep and has previously revealed the remains of other ancient animals including bison, horses and dogs.

As permafrost melts, affected by climate change, more and more parts of prehistoric animals are being discovered.

Yana will be studied by scientists at Russia's North-Eastern Federal University, which has a dedicated mammoth research center and museum.

The university described the find as “exceptional” and said it would give researchers new information about how mammoths lived and adapted to their surroundings.