The entrance to Goatchurch Cavern. Photo: Goatchurch
A woman was rescued from a cave after injuring herself while taking part in an organised trip underground.
The 18-year-old slipped and dislocated her knee cap about 100m from the entrance to Goatchurch Cavern in the Mendips.
Members of Mendip Cave Rescue joined fire and rescue teams and paramedics in the operation. The woman spent three hours underground on Thursday before her knee was reset and she was carried to the surface.
A spokesperson for Avon Fire and Rescue said: “Because of the gradient of the cave and the outside terrain, paramedics treated the teenager inside the cave and then firefighters, paramedics and members of the cave rescue team assisted her out on a stretcher.
Great Western Ambulance Service’s hazardous area response team (Hart) – clinicians with additional, specialist skills and training to access and treat patients in difficult or dangerous locations – joined the operation.
A GWAS spokesperson said: “Two Hart paramedics went into the cave and administered pain relief to the patient as well as relocating her dislocated knee. They stayed with her while the local cave rescue service and a specialist team from Avon Fire and Rescue arranged to lift her out.
“Her journey to the surface on a stretcher took around 15 minutes and she emerged shortly after 5pm. She was then carried by stretcher to an ambulance, which has taken her to Weston General Hospital for further assessment and treatment.”
GWAS officer Alasdair MacDonald said: “Fortunately, the patient was not badly injured, but it was clearly a challenging job due to the location and the surrounding terrain.
Communicating with our HART paramedic who was with the patient was very difficult, so his colleague in effect acted as a runner between him and the surface relaying messages.
“However, the teamwork between the HART clinicians and the cave rescue team was absolutely superb, resulting in the patient being brought safely to the surface.
“The fact that the paramedic had manage to relocate her knee considerably reduced the pain she was in, so making it a more comfortable trip out.”
The teenager was part of a group from Dorset and was on her first caving trip.
Goatchurch Cavern lies 3km (2 miles) north of the Cheddar Gorge and is popular as a novice’s cave.
Matt
19 March 2011Did HART team go into Goatchurch before Mendip Cave Rescue arrived? - i sincerely hope not!
Even though the upper levels of Goat Church are fairly innocuous, rescue from the lower levels would be complex and strictly the domain of cavers working within Mendip Cave Rescue's management.
Good effort on the team work, and the Paramedics involved - sounds the like job was resolved very efficiently with a positive outcome (most importantly) - but we do not want a precedent of HART effecting rescues in an environment that they are not familiar with; and thus building an artificial picture (to the public, and emergency services planners) of the capabilities of the Statutory Emergency Services (as fantastic as they are).
My comments may seem like an over reaction to those Cave Rescuers involved, and without speaking to them; rather than relying on a news report I wouldn't want to be judgemental. However, as has been witnessed in other geographical areas we need to avoid that slippery slope.
A Northern Cave Rescue Controller.
Ashleigh Pidgley
27 June 2012Want to say thankyou to all the team that rescued me that day was a horrible ordeal but everyone done a superb job the cave rescue firefighters paramedics and police very. since then I haven't been caving again I think maybe once was enough :)