Stalled Moroccan Rescue Ends With 2 Dead Cavers
Two Spanish potholers died this weekend and a third is in hospital following an accident on a mountainside near the town of Ouarzazate (Morocco) in which one of the three initially suffered a fall at an altitude of around 2,800 metres. (thespainreport.com, April 6)
What is most troubling about this incident is that while one of the men died shortly thereafter the fall, the second was left to linger for six and a half days until eventually succumbing to his injuries.
It appears rescue workers were aware of the injured man’s location and condition, but were hamstrung by local inexperience and a refusal to accept outside assistance. The Andalusian Cavers Association (FAE) volunteered 16 rescue workers and material, but their offer was refused. Similarly, a Spanish Civil Guard rescue helicopter was denied overflight permission until it was too late.
While the third caver was admitted to a hospital, the bodies of the other two were recovered on Monday, April 6th.
Here’s hoping that the tough lessons from this tragic event are learned by all parties. Humanitarian rescue should transcend national boundaries and the bureaucratic delays.
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taylor@expeditionwriter.com
Author, historian & shipwreck expert
Is there any information about what sort of reasons they had to refuse additional help?
This is tragic and I am sure there must have been a legitimate justification, but it just sounds terrible on the face of it.
We’ll have to see… I’m monitoring the story for additional developments. It’s a tough, tragic situation. It looks like the Moroccan government may have overestimated their ability to perform a technically challenging rescue in such a remote area and didn’t get the help they needed until it was too late. I hope that someday there will be a similar group to those who investigate airplane crashes… a humanitarian remote-rescue organization capable of leapfrogging red tape and national boundaries. The cavers deserved a fair shot at getting rescued, six and a half days is totally unacceptable in all but the most extreme cases (i.e. polar or deep cave environments.)