Upper Wharfedale rescue crew back from Wales after successful operation
The team assisted in rescuing a man who fell at Brecon Beacons
Last updated 9th Nov 2021
The Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association team (UWFRA) are back from South Wales after assisting in the rescue of a man injured in a cave.
A man fell and was injured while caving in the Brecon Beacons three days ago and had been unable to get out as a result of his injuries.
UWFRA deployed a small team of cavers to assist in a rescue in Ogof Ffynnon Ddu in South Wales after the British Cave Rescue Council (BCRC) requested further assistance from the Northern teams.
A small team consisting of surface and underground personnel travelled to South Wales where the underground team was briefed to be ready to deploy.
In a statement on Facebook the team**** said:
"The UWFRA contingent of cave rescuers has returned safely after the South Wales cave rescue incident concluded last night. Many are now back at work. With permission, we are reprinting a brief account of the rescue written by one of our members. Well done to every single one of you."
One of the rescuers said:
"It’s less than pleasant being upside down in a stream with the water flowing down your neck hole and out of your overall leg, with the weight of an injured man squashing your face into the floor, but that’s what we do. Cavers rescue cavers. 54 hours after the rescue began, the seriously injured man was extracted from Ogof Ffynnon Ddu alive.
"I’m very proud to be able to have played a small part in this rescue, alongside cavers, friends and rescue colleagues from around the country. Well done to you all, and my very best wishes to the casualty for a speedy recovery. Thanks must also go to the South Wales Caving Club for their hospitality, providing food and provisions for a small army."
Derek Hammond, controller for UWFRA, told us:
"The team were called on Sunday requesting assistance so we sent a team who arrived in the early hours of the morning. They were involved in the engineering, making the passageway wider so that the teams could get to the man.
"The cave has some huge passageways but some are very small. People go round corners very well but stretchers don't so trying to manoeuvre a person on the stretcher around those corners is very difficult. It's also extremely difficult when you've got pockets of water and one of the guys had to physically lay over the puddles and had the stretcher pulled across his body so it didn't get wet.
"The team have come back and said it was hard work but they were happy to be involved. The comradery was really good and South Wales caving club looked after them really well. They were really impressed to be part of that group of cavers helping cavers and saving someone's life."