Be very careful using a knife on rope. Some of you will remember the
demonstration on stage at a UTG meeting around 1977, when Steven Bittinger,
I think it was, gave a demonstration on rope hanging only a foot or two
above the stage floor, where he took a knife and barely touched the rope
above him, with the rope fully loaded with his weight. The rope was cut
instantly and he hit the floor. Whether you are flicking a pebble out of
your cam-actually never had that happen, or cutting your pony tail out of
your rack, please be careful. I suggest letting all of your hair pull out of
your scalp without using a knife is safer but painful, because I have had
that happen, but not as painful as what could happen if the rope was cut.
Preston in KY
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----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark Minton" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, July 10, 2013 3:35 PM
Subject: Re: [Texascavers] cave rescue in Arkansas
This guy was described as an experienced caver, but he must not
have been very experienced with vertical work. I'm sure most of us have
been in very muddy vertical caves, and it's amazing to me that vertical
gear functions pretty well even when it is essentially unrecognizably
dirty. The trick is that you sometimes have to thumb the cams, (push them
closed) in order for them to bite on ascent when mud overwhelms the
spring. I have seen cams temporarily fail when a chip of rock gets caught
between the cam and the frame of the ascender. Depending upon where it is
lodged, the rock can either prevent the cam from closing all the way, in
which case the ascender will slip, or it can prevent the cam from opening
so that it might not slid up properly. Both of these are fairly easily
diagnosed and corrected, especially if you have a knife or other small
tool to remove the rock chip.
I, too, was amused by the assertion that they had to use headlamps
because it was night...
Mark
At 10:58 AM 7/10/2013, Karen Perry wrote:
What cracked me up laughing when I first got a copy of the report (via
CCNP) was that they had to use headlights because it was at night & dark.
Guess the cave wasn't in the dark otherwise??? LOL!!!!
Karen
From: Logan McNatt <[email protected]>
To: Geary Schindel <[email protected]>
Cc: Texas Cavers <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, July 9, 2013 11:09 PM
Subject: Re: [Texascavers] cave rescue in Arkansas
"a fused wad of metal, nylon, and mud that had at one point been the
victim's original ascending system."
Hope they took some photos, and preserved it for a museum piece.
On 7/9/2013 11:01 PM, Geary Schindel wrote:
National Park Morning Report
June 27.
Buffalo National Scenic River (AR)
Rangers Conduct Technical Rescue Of Trapped Caver
Late on the night of June 22nd, the Searcy County Sheriff's Office called
the park and asked for assistance with the rescue of a man trapped at the
bottom of a 30-foot pit a quarter-mile inside of Kristin's Cave, not far
from the park boundary near Cozahome.
Rangers/technical rescue technicians Dale Johannsen, Mark Miller, Melissa
Moses and Kevin Moses joined a Marshall Police Department officer and a
Searcy County deputy and worked their way to the man's location to assess
the situation, an effort that required negotiating several vertical
obstacles along the way and conducting a severity probability exposure
(SPE) risk analysis to help mitigate hazards.
After locating and making voice contact with the man, who was an
experienced caver and a member of a caving club out of Little Rock, they
determined that he was thirsty, hungry and cold but otherwise okay and
capable of ascending under his own power. The cause of his becoming
stranded was that his equipment, including his rope, had been rendered
useless by a heavy accumulation of thick, sticky, stubborn cave mud.
Miller rappelled into the pit and provided the caver with water, food, a
thermal layer and clean ascending equipment. Belayed from above, the
caver was then able to ascend most of the pit on a new rope under his own
power, though rescuers used a raising system to assist him with the last
ten feet or so. Miller then followed, bringing with him a fused wad of
metal, nylon, and mud that had at one point been the victim's original
ascending system.
The rescue party emerged from the cave four-and-a-half hours after they
entered; because this particular mission occurred during nighttime hours,
the rescuers were forced to conduct the entire operation by headlamp. By
the time they emerged, the victim had been underground for 17 hours.
Kevin Moses served as incident commander.
[Submitted by Jason Flood, Lower Buffalo District Ranger]
Please reply to [email protected]
Permanent email address is [email protected]
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