Diving incident in France

damian

Active member
There are actually several more details on the US forum that don't appear on the Sp?l?o Secours site, so don't worry too much if you can't read the French.

Let's hope he is indeed sitting in an airbell.
 

damian

Active member
The FFS update at 4am sounds somewhat hopeful. The British team dived in to 780m from base and found a gravel blockage, which they couldn't pass. They also found the missing diver's scooter on the ground, facing outwards. The rescue team are taking this to mean that the diver couldn't dig his way out, so left his scooter to indicate this, and has returned to the safety of the airbell. Work will continue, including looking at the possibility of digging down from above.
 

Les W

Active member
Amazingly it looks as if Eric is alive! There are some more reports on the SSF website that tell of the cave divers finding stuff that wasn't there on their last visit.

http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fssf.ffspeleo.fr%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26view%3Dcategory%26layout%3Dblog%26id%3D39%26Itemid%3D83


There is a reasonably good translation on the NSS forum and further news of tapping communication.

http://forums.caves.org/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=10801&sid=ad99da1eb2f3edeeb7ad06a174e7009b&start=15#p92245

Good news.

What I don't understand is why none of the UK media has picked up this amazing human interest story.
There is even nothing on the BBC News Website.
 

Rich West

New member
I am sure that Suffolk Tony is correct - the UK (and world) press is understandably concentrating on the news from South America. In their eyes one Frenchman doing something incomprehensible to them merits no coverage. However, it HAS appeared in the UK press  -  The South Wales Evening Post carried a story on Friday 8th and a quote from Jopo re the involvement of John Volanthen & Rick Stanton. Evidently another, un-named,  British diver is en route.
Putting the SSF reports through the Google translator only serves to show up the limitations of the system. If you thought the UKCaving site was full of well meaning but utterly ignorant postings - try the Plongee Souterraine forum - and be prepared to pull your hair out!
 

Rob

Well-known member
I think partly the reason why it hasn't made the press as much as could be expected is that "surface folk" find it very hard to understand the situation that he is in. Reading through that Telegraph article even i found it hard to understand, no mention of a sump or siphon, only a "flooded gallery" which sounds like he's been trapped by high water...
 

Leclused

Active member
And some other good news. At the dig-site there was a breaktrhough at -21m. After that they were able to descend several pitches.

Currently they are at -90 where a small passage above a next pitch need to be enlarged.

Keep your fingers crossed. And hopefully they find Eric via this (or another) way.

 

Glenn

Member
From:
http://forums.caves.org/index.php?sid=4669bbe7e1fbaa36a924a71c2230f8da

Re: Cave diving rescue in France
by Yvonne Droms ? Oct 11, 2010 9:08 am

Update from Speleo Secours Monday Oct 11 2010 10:30 AM French time:

Digging efforts at the natural fissure on the plateau overnight finally yielded some tangible results. After a restriction was widened by microblasting, the top of a pit became accessible. Cave rescuers were then able to go down a 20-meter pitch, followed by a 40 m one, then another 20 m one, bringing them to -90 m depth. The rescue crew is now working on enlarging a new restriction at the top of another pit.

The drilling efforts that ended last night at -30 m started up again this morning and will continue all day.

Preparations are underway for the dive of the British team which is planned for early afternoon.

Speleo Secours also recognizes the important work of non only the French Cave Rescue (Sp?l?o Secours Fran?ais), but also of those who since the beginning of the rescue have tackled the difficult dives to the site of the 780 m collapse. They are two divers from the Swiss Speleo Rescue (Sp?l?o-Secours Suisse) as well as four rescuers (three divers) from the British Cave Rescue Council, all highly qualified and recognized as being elite members of an international plan on cave diving.

-YvonneYvonne Droms
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Posts: 28
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Sad news as yet to be confirmed.

Re: Cave diving rescue in France
by Yvonne Droms ? Oct 11, 2010 12:08 pm

Still unconfirmed by the Speleo Secours : an announcement was made by the French sous-prefet of Largentiere that the British team was not able to pass through the obstruction, but they were able to see through it and saw Eric?s body on the other side. Apparently Eric drowned. Terrible news, still unconfirmed, as I said, but I will post the announcement from Speleo Secours when it is official.

-YvonneYvonne Droms
Occasional Poster
 
Posts: 30
Joined: Sep 6, 2005 9:19 am
Location: Virginia
 

Rich West

New member
Very Sad News -

[from]  LE PARISIEN [website]

Missing for eight days, the caver Eric Establie found drowned

MS | 11.10.2010, 18h29 | Mise ? jour : 19h18 MS | 11/10/2010, 6:29 p.m. | Updated: 7:18 p.m.

The sub-prefecture Largenti?re announced Monday afternoon the death of missing caver in the gorges of Ardeche for eight days.  Eric Establie was found drowned by the two British divers left on Monday to find her. This is the sub-prefect of Largenti?re, Rampon Jean, who announced the sad news, while divers were still in the cave.

Parties in the early morning for a dive in the extreme, two Britons were first made by a technical problem.  The objective of this dive was the last chance to "make contact", bypassing the landslide which trapped Establie Eric had said Eric Zipper, adviser National Cave Rescue French.  Both divers had so long prepared for the entrance of the hose, before embarking on a journey of over a kilometer in this gallery of underwater Dragonni?re Gaud.

Around 18:45, Eric Zipper, joined by parisien.fr said: "Our information is that the divers were able to write on the tablet (which allows communication with the team remained on the surface, ed.) They are still serving their decompression in the cauldron of entry. They were asked two questions: "Have you passed the restriction?" They answered "yes."  "Have you found Establie Eric?" They replied: "Yes, listed under 70 (at 70m the scree )?... The adviser then understand the gravity of the situation. Deeply moved, he says: "Here we are stunned. ... It's hard ... Yet we must manage our divers are underwater. ?. .


Rescuers had not received any sign of life since Saturday caver.  They then perceived sounds, some 200 meters from the place of his disappearance.  It is also not come for the watertight filed Sunday by the two divers to the Swiss scree, because they contain the radio was not activated.

Diver by profession, he ran a construction company maritime and underwater at Cannes.  Identified in the French Caving Relief (SSF) for four years as a volunteer diver, Eric Establie, 45, took part in March 2009 to the rise of the lifeless body of a diver experienced in the Lot.

In June 2001, the caver Patrick Mugnier was out of the abyss of Fontanilles (H?rault), five days after having disappeared.  He had to cross 1.5 km dive into deep water 15 meters. Before him, in November 1999, seven cavers trapped in the abyss of Vitarelle (Lot) had been released after ten days. Their rescue was then considered "the most complex ever undertaken in France."
 

SamT

Moderator
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The caver Eric Establie was found drowned this afternoon by two British divers went to search .

This is the sub-prefect of Largenti?re, Rampon Jean, who announced the news this Monday evening, after talking with both British divers Eric Establie was found drowned by two British parties looking for him.

The caver's body was discovered "70 meters after the landslide," which is located 780 meters from the entrance of the cavity.

In the afternoon, we had learned the failure of the new exploration conducted by two divers. According to preliminary reports reaching the media, it is a "technical problem" that prompted the two explorers to turn back.

But it was unclear when the two Britons had seen the body of Eric Establie. Asked by France Info , Eric Zipper, Cave Rescue Chief, said that it was during a decompression that divers were placed on a slate that they had discovered the lifeless body of the caver.

"It was the worst news we can learn about cete operation. All the rescuers tended toward the same goal. It ends a drama where we thought to find a friend living," said Eric Zipper.

Saturday, signs of life caver had been collected under the earth, some 200 m from the location of his disappearance, giving hope to rescuers who are trying to achieve.

Eric Establie had started the expedition eight days ago to conduct topographic surveys in the cave.  Diver by profession, this 45 year old man was the head of a construction company maritime and underwater at Cannes.

Identified in the French Caving Relief (SSF) for four years as a volunteer diver, Eric Establie was considered one of the best specialists in the world in his discipline, as pointed out by the AFP .
In March 2009, he participated in the raising of the dead body of a diver experienced in an underground river in the Lot, while the latter was located at 1,100 meters and the output by 50 meters.
 
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