What is a speleologist? Mark Dickey GoFundMe raises more than $48,000 as cave rescue effort intensifies

A man named Mark Dickey has been trapped in Morca Sinkhole, one of the deepest caves in Turkey. He is a speleologist and member of a research team in Morca Valley.

Rescue efforts have been ongoing since Monday, as revealed by the Turkish Caving Federation. CBS News revealed that Dickey got trapped inside the cave after falling ill and failed to leave the cave after suffering from gastrointestinal bleeding.

Turkish disaster relief agency AFAD and rescue team UMKE have collaborated with various cavers to help in the rescue of Dickey. There are around 170 people in the rescue team, which includes doctors and paramedics.

While speaking to The Associated Press, Yusuf Ogrenecek of the Speleological Federation of Turkey said that the Dickey might be rescued in two or three weeks. Certain things are being taken care of during the rescue efforts, including the expansion of the narrow passages.

Hungarian Cave Rescue Service official Marton Kovacs stated that additional days might be needed for the lifting of Dickey from below the cave. The team has already offered blood transfusions to Mark Dickey and the team has been divided, with each of them checking particular sections of the cave.

A speleologist refers to a person who studies caves and climbs inside them as a sport.

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A GoFundMe page has been launched for Mark Dickey

Mark Dickey is currently trapped inside a cave and rescue teams are currently working to save him. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page has been launched on behalf of Berta Walker. The page aims to collect $100,000 and donations worth $49,214 have been made until now.

The description stated that Dickey became ill while exploring the Morca cave in the south of Turkey. It further stated:

"He has gastrointestinal bleeding and when the report was received, he was clearly unable to leave the approximately 1,000-meter deep cave on his own."

GoFundMe page launched for Mark Dickey (Image via GoFundMe)

According to the GoFundMe page, Mark is popularly known in the international speleological community. It states that he is a trained caver and cave rescuer, and has participated in various caving expeditions over the years. The description also mentions:

"In addition to his activities as a speleologist, he is also the secretary of the ECRA medical committee and an instructor for cave rescue organizations in the USA. An international rescue effort is on the way and this GoFundMe is to support the logistics of aiding in this rescue."

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What happened to Mark Dickey?

The New Jersey Initial Response Team shared a statement, saying that Mark Dickey suffered from intestinal issues which later progressed into "life-threatening bleeding and vomiting."

Expedition members approached the authorities to know the medication they must offer to Dickey. The New Jersey Initial Response Team revealed that Mark did not have a lot of energy to come out of the cave since it was deep, wet, and cold. The response team stated that it would take eight hours to reach Mark's location.

"The phone lines in the cave have become inoperable, so that communication between the surface and Mark's location is extremely slow."

Various rescue teams have arrived at the place and a tweet by the Speleological Federation of Turkey stated that the "phone line has been reached to the -1040 m camp where Mark is located." The tweet continued:

"Our medical officer, Tulga Sener, spoke directly with Mark's doctor, Zsofia. Mark's condition continues to improve. Doctors will decide if it's possible for him to get out without a stretcher."

Before the rescue operation, ECRA issued a warning, saying that such rescue missions are very difficult and the administrative process is not so easy since it needs to be approved by the authorities before starting the operation on an international level.