March 2024 is the month of caves. This afternoon, as part of the Month of Caves series of events in the Danube-Ipoly National Park, I (A. Hegedűs) planned to give a presentation about our rescue mission in Turkey last autumn.
Shortly before the programme, the BMSz (Hungarian Cave Rescue Service) Hotline received an alarm that a caver had taken a bad step and dislocated his ankle at "Globe Hall" in the Mátyás Cave. As there were still two hours before the lecture, I thought I could usefully help with the rescue during the first hour and a half, so after a few seconds of thought I headed for the cave.
With the cave rescuers nearby, we arrived on the scene shortly after the alarm was raised and the rescue began. The four of us were the first to descend into the cave with the medical team (2 doctors, a paramedic and an assistant), with the medical equipment needed to treat the injured. On arrival at the site, the injured was found to be in good condition and the cave tour guide had provided him with thermal protection against cold (the temperature in the cave is 12 degrees C / 55F).
Examination revealed that the casualty's vital parameters (blood pressure, blood oxygen level, body temperature, etc.) were within normal range. The injured ankle was fixed in a splint and we made him transportable. The patient's pain was also minimized by proper limb fixation.
I then resurfaced to give the planned lecture in the adjacent Szemlő-hegyi cave's auditorium. By this time, there were plenty of qualified cave rescue personnel on site.
Additional cave rescue teams arrived in the meantime and constructed ropeways and pulley systems where required for vertical manoeuvres in pits, and then began to transport the injured to the surface. At the so-called BETE Hall, the rescue team descended using ropes, then climbed up the other side of the gorge, through the Opera Hall, along the Wild Waters Route (Vadvizek-útja), and then along the Theatre (Színház) - Laci-stairs (Laci lépcső) - Ruler (Vonalzó) - Great Hall - Glory (Glória) - "Mohos-szorító" - Bastion (Bástya) - Entrance route, a section of about 400 metres underground, which took an hour and a half to complete. In the rescue operation also participated 3 members of the Bakony Cave Rescue Service.
The injured man reached the surface at 15:30, where he was picked up by the National Ambulance Service's "Csillaghegy" Unit, who transported the injured Singaporean hiker to the Defence Hospital for further examination and treatment.
The accident occurred while descending from the BETE Hall to the Globe Hall, presumably due to a misstep. This site is part of the 'Great Circle' hiking trail visited by foreign and domestic tourists. During the hikes, visitors can tour the undeveloped sections of the caves with the help of qualified cave guides, where they can learn about the caves and get a glimpse into the world of cave explorers.
Some 6,000 people chose this way of visiting the caves last year.
The Hungarian Cave Rescue Service has been in operation since 1961, helping more than 500 people during the decades. The members of the Service are all volunteers who take part in exercises and rescues in their free time and now at the expense of their working hours.
The Service is a non-governmental organisation, and most of its operations are covered by members' fees. If you would like to support our work, you can do so by donating 1% of your personal income tax to NGOs, or you can send us a donation online. To support our work directly, click here and to donate 1% of your tax here.
Photos: Márton Kovács
Below is a map of the Mátyás Cave. The red circle indicates the location of the accident. Click on the image and find the way out using the text.
