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1623/264/l/264_approach.html
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@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" />
<title>
Balkonhoehle&ouml;hle: 2014 Fluer and Pete
Balkonhoehle&ouml;hle: 2014 Fleur and Pete
</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="../../../css/main2.css" />
</head>

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documents/therionprotractors/Makefile
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all: therionpage.pdf therionpage500.pdf
all: therionpage250.pdf therionpage400.pdf therionpage500.pdf
#If using windows uncomment this
#LATEXTOOL=pdflatex.exe
#If using linux or macos(?) uncomment this
LATEXTOOL=pdflatex
therionpage.pdf: therionpage.tex therionprotractor.tex
$(LATEXTOOL) therionpage.tex
therionpage250.pdf: therionpage250.tex therionprotractor250.tex
$(LATEXTOOL) therionpage250.tex
therionpage400.pdf: therionpage400.tex therionprotractor400.tex
$(LATEXTOOL) therionpage400.tex
therionpage500.pdf: therionpage500.tex therionprotractor500.tex
$(LATEXTOOL) therionpage500.tex
cleanpage:
rm -f therionpage.aux
rm -f therionpage.log
rm -f therionpage.pdf
cleanpage250:
rm -f therionpage250.aux
rm -f therionpage250.log
rm -f therionpage250.pdf
cleanpage400:
rm -f therionpage400.aux
rm -f therionpage400.log
rm -f therionpage400.pdf
cleanpage500:
rm -f therionpage500.aux
rm -f therionpage500.log
rm -f therionpage500.pdf
clean: cleanpage cleanpage500
clean: cleanpage250 cleanpage400 cleanpage500

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documents/therionprotractors/therionpage.tex → documents/therionprotractors/therionpage250.tex
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{
\foreach \yval in {1,2,...,6}
{
\node at (\xval*\xdist,\yval*\ydist) {\input{therionprotractor.tex}};
\node at (\xval*\xdist,\yval*\ydist) {\input{therionprotractor250.tex}};
}
}
\end{tikzpicture}
\end{figure}
\end{document}
\end{document}

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documents/therionprotractors/therionpage400.tex Normal file
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\documentclass[12pt,a4paper]{article}
% packages
\usepackage{tikz}
\usepackage[outline]{contour}
\usepackage{standalone}
\usepackage[margin=10mm]{geometry}
\begin{document}
\begin{figure}
\centering
\begin{tikzpicture}
\pgfmathsetmacro{\xdist}{8.5}
\pgfmathsetmacro{\ydist}{4.5}
\foreach \xval in {1,2}
{
\foreach \yval in {1,2,...,6}
{
\node at (\xval*\xdist,\yval*\ydist) {\input{therionprotractor400.tex}};
}
}
\end{tikzpicture}
\end{figure}
\end{document}

0
documents/therionprotractors/therionprotractor.tex → documents/therionprotractors/therionprotractor250.tex
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189
documents/therionprotractors/therionprotractor400.tex Normal file
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% ********************************************************************************
% Creates a therion protractor of set size and scale
% ********************************************************************************
\documentclass[12pt,border=0pt]{standalone}
% packages
\usepackage{tikz}
\usepackage[outline]{contour}
\begin{document}
\begin{tikzpicture}[scale=1]
\contourlength{1.2pt}
% ********************************************************************************
% Set the coordinates and dimensions to draw from
% ********************************************************************************
% Origin
\coordinate (O) at (0,0);
% Size and scale of the protractor
\pgfmathsetmacro{\scaleto}{400} % 1:scaleto
\pgfmathsetmacro{\radius}{16} % size in meters
\pgfmathsetmacro{\majordivision}{2} % size in meters
\pgfmathsetmacro{\minordivision}{1} % size in meters
% Size of the text numbers
\newcommand{\textsize}{\tiny}
% Intrinisc dimensions and conversion factors
\pgfmathsetmacro{\convert}{100} % conversion from meters to centimeters
\pgfmathsetmacro{\mintick}{0.1} % size in centimeters
\pgfmathsetmacro{\majtick}{0.2} % size in centimeters
\pgfmathsetmacro{\minradii}{0.5} % fractional radius where dotted radial lines start
\pgfmathsetmacro{\minradiiend}{1-\minradii} % remainder
% Size and scale of the drawing
\pgfmathsetmacro{\rad}{\radius*\convert/\scaleto}
\pgfmathsetmacro{\majdiv}{\majordivision*\convert/\scaleto}
\pgfmathsetmacro{\mindiv}{\minordivision*\convert/\scaleto}
% Slightly reduced radii for the scale bar
\pgfmathsetmacro{\radscale}{\rad-\mindiv}
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the foreshortening lines
% ********************************************************************************
% Vertical lines
\foreach \var in {0,\mindiv,...,\radscale}
{
\draw[gray] (O) ++ (\var,0) -- ++ (0,\rad);
\draw[gray] (O) ++ (-\var,0) -- ++ (0,\rad);
}
% White out the excess length
\draw[thick,white,fill=white] (O) ++ (\rad,0) arc(0:180:\rad) -- ++ (0,\rad) -- ++ (2*\rad,0) -- cycle;
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the circumcircles
% ********************************************************************************
\foreach \var in {0,\mindiv,...,\rad}
{
\draw[gray] (O) ++ (\var,0) arc (0:180:\var);
}
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the radii
% ********************************************************************************
\foreach \theta in {10,40,...,160}
{
\draw[green] (O) ++ (\theta:\mindiv) -- ++ (\theta:\radscale);
}
\foreach \theta in {20,50,...,170}
{
\draw[purple] (O) ++ (\theta:\mindiv) -- ++ (\theta:\radscale);
}
\foreach \theta in {30,60,...,150}
{
\draw[black] (O) ++ (\theta:\mindiv) -- ++ (\theta:\radscale);
}
\foreach \theta in {5,15,...,175}
{
\draw[black,dotted] (O) ++ (\theta:\minradii*\rad) -- ++ (\theta:\minradiiend*\rad);
}
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the angular scale
% ********************************************************************************
\foreach \theta in {1,2,...,179}
{
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (\theta:\rad) -- ++ (\theta:-\mintick);
}
\foreach \theta in {5,10,...,175}
{
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (\theta:\rad) -- ++ (\theta:-\majtick);
}
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the linear scale
% ********************************************************************************
\foreach \var in {0,\mindiv,...,\radscale}
{
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (\var,0) -- ++ (0,\mintick);
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (-\var,0) -- ++ (0,\mintick);
}
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the outline
% ********************************************************************************
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (\rad,0) arc (0:180:\rad) -- cycle;
\draw[black,thick] (O) -- ++ (0,\majtick);
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the angle numbers
% ********************************************************************************
\foreach \theta in {10,20,...,80}
{
\pgfmathsetmacro{\thetaopposite}{\theta+180}
\draw[black] (O) ++ (\theta:\rad) -- ++ (\theta:-\majtick) node[anchor=south,near start,sloped,rotate=90,text=black] {
\textsize
\begin{tabular}{c}
\contour{white}{\pgfmathprintnumber{\theta}}\\
\contour{white}{\pgfmathprintnumber{\thetaopposite}}
\end{tabular}
};
}
\foreach \theta in {90,100,...,170}
{
\pgfmathsetmacro{\thetaopposite}{\theta+180}
\draw[black] (O) ++ (\theta:\rad) -- ++ (\theta:-\majtick) node[anchor=south,near start,sloped,rotate=-90,text=black] {
\textsize
\begin{tabular}{c}
\contour{white}{\pgfmathprintnumber{\theta}}\\
\contour{white}{\pgfmathprintnumber{\thetaopposite}}
\end{tabular}
};
};
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the linear numbers
% ********************************************************************************
\pgfmathsetmacro{\labmax}{\radius-\majordivision}
\pgfmathsetmacro{\labsecond}{\majordivision+\majordivision}
\foreach \var in {\majordivision,\labsecond,...,\labmax}
{
\pgfmathsetmacro{\varpos}{\var*\convert/\scaleto}
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (\varpos,0) -- ++ (0,\mintick) node [above=-2pt] {\contour{white}{\textsize\pgfmathprintnumber{\var}}};
\draw[black,thick] (O) ++ (-\varpos,0) -- ++ (0,\mintick) node [above=-2pt] {\contour{white}{\textsize\pgfmathprintnumber{\var}}};
}
% ********************************************************************************
% Draw the scale number
% ********************************************************************************
\draw[black] (O) ++ (0,\rad/3) -- ++ (0,\rad/3) node [midway,anchor=center,sloped,text=black] {\contour{white}{\textsize $1$:\pgfmathprintnumber{\scaleto}}};
\end{tikzpicture}
\end{document}

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fixaid.htm
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@ -6,20 +6,6 @@
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="css/main2.css" />
</head>
<body>
<div class="centre">
<a href="1623/161/pix.htm"><img alt="Photos "
src="../icons/vtour.png" width="40" height="40" /></a>
<img alt="Rigging" src="../icons/rigbut.png" width="40" height="40" />
<a href="1623/161/names.htm"><img alt=" Glossary "
src="../icons/idx161.png" width="40" height="40" /></a>
<a href="index.htm"><img alt=" Expo "
src="../icons/ausbut.png" width="40" height="40" /></a>
<a href="infodx.htm"><img alt=" Topics "
src="../icons/index.png" width="40" height="40" /></a>
<a href="indxal.htm"><img alt=" Index "
src="../icons/indxal.png" width="40" height="40" /></a>
<a href="../index.htm"><img alt=" CUCC"
src="../icons/cucc.png" width="40" height="40" /></a></div>
<h1>Fixed aids in CUCC caves</h1>
@ -33,14 +19,16 @@ rigged verticals are mentioned in the descriptions, but are also gathered
together here to help those needing to keep track of and maintain these
ropes.</p>
<p>As an area may not be visited for some years, it is important to keep a
record of when a rope was last changed or inspected, so that some idea may be
formed of its likely state. There are currently around 700m of ropes in
various places, as much as ten years old, and in place for up to seven years.
Current thinking is that if <b>static</b> ropes are not subject to
disturbance causing abrasion (eg. by flowing water) or rockfall, they
probably deteriorate a <b>lot</b> more slowly in the cave than in the tackle
store. (This may not be true of dynamic ropes).</p>
<p>As an area may not be visited for some years, it is important to
keep a record of when a rope was last changed or inspected, so that
some idea may be formed of its likely state. There are currently
around 700m of ropes in various places, as much as twenty-five years
old, and in place for up to 25 years. Current thinking is that
if <b>static</b> ropes are not subject to disturbance causing abrasion
(eg. by flowing water) or rockfall, they probably deteriorate
a <b>lot</b> more slowly in the cave than in the tackle store. We have
successfully use ropes left in the cave for 15 years without mishap
(3-wise men traverse, left 1994, returned 2009).</p>
<p>In all these cases, it is the users' responsibility to convince himself of
the safety of the rope before using it. If in any doubt, take climbing and
@ -55,12 +43,26 @@ responsible for any mishap arising from its use!</p>
<hr />
<h3><a id="sbh">Fixed aids in Gemseh&ouml;hle</a></h3>
<h3><a id="ts">Fixed aids in Tunnockschacht</a></h3>
<table class="trad">
<tr><th>location</th><th>length</th><th>diameter</th><th>rope vintage</th>
<th>year left rigged</th><th>hangers</th><th>other info</th></tr>
<tr><td>kraken pitch</td>
<td>?100m</td><td>?10mm</td><td>?</td><td>2014</td><td>10+</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>inferno pitches</td>
<td>?120m</td><td>?9mm</td><td>?</td><td>2014</td><td>11</td><td>3 slings, 2 crabs</td></tr>
<h3><a id="gh">Fixed aids in Gemseh&ouml;hle</a></h3>
<table class="trad">
<tr><th>location</th><th>length</th><th>diameter</th><th>rope vintage</th>
<th>year left rigged</th><th>hangers</th><th>other info</th></tr>
<tr><td>Climb at the NE end of China</td>
<td>?20m</td><td>?10mm</td><td>?</td><td>2013</td><td>2</td><td></td></tr>
<h3><a id="sbh">Fixed aids in Steinbr&uuml;ckenh&ouml;hle</a></h3>

8
infodx.htm
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@ -25,19 +25,17 @@
<li>Recent years:
<table>
<tr>
<td><a href="years/2011/">2011</a></td>
<td>|</td>
<td><a href="years/2012/">2012</a></td>
<td>|</td>
<td><a href="years/2013/">2013</a></td>
<td>|</td>
<td><a href="years/2014/">2014</a></td>
<td>|</td>
<td><a href="years/2015/">2015</a></td>
<td>|</td>
<td><a href="years/2016/">2016</a></td>
</tr>
</table>
</li>
<li>Coming year: <a href="years/2016/">2016</a></li>
<li>Coming year: <a href="years/2017/">2017</a></li>
</ul>
<h2>Area Description</h2>

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noinfo/cave_data/1623-1996WK11.html
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@ -31,11 +31,11 @@
<p><img src="plan.jpeg" alt="Plan on centreline of 96Wk11"</p>
</underground_description>
<equipment>25-30m handline, Long sling</equipment>
<references><a href="t2015-08-09b">Logbook 2015</a></references>
<references><a href="/years/2015/logbook.html#t2015-08-09b">Logbook 2015</a></references>
<survey>1996 Sketch plan and elv in NotKH book 1999- p16<br />Proper survey 2015</survey>
<kataster_status></kataster_status>
<underground_centre_line></underground_centre_line>
<notes><a href="/expofiles/surveyscans/2015/2015%2369-Wk11/index.html">2015#69</a></notes>
<notes><a href="/expofiles/surveyscans/2015/2015%2369/index.html">2015#69</a></notes>
<length>34m</length>
<depth>25m</depth>
<extent>20m</extent>

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years/2015/index.html
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@ -18,7 +18,8 @@
<ul>
<li><a href="required_first_aid.html">First aid items needed</a>
<li><a href="/expofiles/surveyscans/2015/">Survey scans</a></li>
<li><a href="stuffleftattopcamp.html">stuff left at top camp</a></li>
<li><a href="stuffleftattopcamp.html">Stuff left at top camp</a></li>
<li><a href="stuffleftatbasecamp.html">Stuff left at base camp</a></li>
<li><a href="biertent.html">Bier tent survey</a></li>
<li><a href="logbook.html">Logbook</a> (incomplete)</li>
<li><a href="stuffbought.html">Things bought 2015</a></li>

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years/2015/stuffleftatbasecamp.html Normal file
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@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
<html><head><title>Stuff left at base camp</title></head><body>
<h1>Stuff left at base camp</h1>
<h2>Food</h2>
<ul>
<li>337 noodles</li>
<li>13kg couscous</li>
<li>40 pesto</li>
<li>114 curries</li>
<li>89 cup-a-soups</li>
<li>4kg hot chocolate</li>
<li>10.5kg the right custard</li>
<li>aprox 5kg the wrong custard</li>
</ul>
</body></html>

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years/2016/index.html
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@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
<li><a href="stuffleftatbasecamp.html">Stuff left at base camp</a></li>
<li><a href="thingsfor2017.html">Things needed for 2017</a></li>
<li><a href="logbook.html">Logbook</a> (incomplete)</li>
<li><a href="rescue_debrief.html">Rescue Debrief 2016</a></li>
</ul>
<hr />
<!-- LINKS -->

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years/2016/rescue_debrief.html Normal file
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<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>2016_Rescue_Debrief</title>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"/>
<meta name="generator" content="pdftohtml 0.36"/>
<meta name="author" content="Fleur Loveridge"/>
<meta name="date" content="2016-07-14T18:09:26+00:00"/>
</head>
<body>
<h1>CUCC Expo Rescue Debrief – 2016</h1>
<hr/>
<h3>High Level Summary:</h3>
<ol>
<li>There needs to be better transfer of knowledge of known hazards, such as
pitches susceptible to flooding. Installation of safety dumps (bothy, stove
etc) should be part of the rigging process. However, information needs to be
readily available in addition to on rigging guides, ideally in cave
descriptions at base camp and at top camp.</li>
<li>All caving parties also to carry their own emergency equipment, to include a
group bothy bag, personal survival bags and personal spare clothes as a
minimum.</li>
<li>Need to get smarter about obtaining and using weather forecast information
prior to planning trips.</li>
<li>Setting callouts: better to not get out too late in the day (night) if possible;
avoid extreme slack in callout.</li>
<li>If do have a long callout, e.g. due to a deep trip, then self-sufficiency is
important. Three people on deep caving trips means that someone can come out if there is an accident.</li>
<li>Responding to missed callouts: factor in the depth of the missing party, the
weather, the resources required and those available.</li>
<li>In the event of a rescue appoint an experienced leader and follow their
instructions (unless those instructions break down). Write everything down, including timings.</li>
</ol>
<hr/>
<h3>Action Summary:</h3>
<ol>
<li>Julian to research best sources of weather forecast information. </li>
<li>Chris to investigate the purchase of a cave radio system</li>
<li>Expo to purchase a pool of bothy bags.</li>
<li>Review contents and labelling of first response bag</li>
<li>Invest in second phone at top camp which can be used at cave entrances
in the case of a rescue.</li>
<li>Documentation pack needs preparing about how to contact Austrian
rescue, and also cave information required in event of a rescue.</li>
</ol>
<hr/>
<h3>Those Present:</h3>
<p>Mark, Anthony, Andrew, Fleur, Pete, Frank, Ian, Katey, Jenny, Olly, George, Luke, Ash, Michael, Roshni, Hayden, Julian, Becka, Aiden, Elaine, Sionad, Martin, Chris, Rob, Nathan.</p>
<h3>Preamble:</h3>
<p>There have been a few callouts of varying severity on the expedition this year. The purpose of the meeting is to review these incidents and discern what can be done better in the future. Each incident is summarised, followed by a discussion of the responses and what can be done better in the future. The focus is on learning, not blame. It is a collective issue, involving many of those present, bothunderground and on the surface. Generally the response was good, but there arealways lessons that can be learnt.</p>
<h4>Incident 1:</h4>
<p>Roshni and David were flooded in Balcony. The weather was generally good that day; the forecast was not inclement. However, a storm broke suddenly and earlier than expected. The cavers were caught underground. Roshni tried to ascend the entrance pitch, but couldn’t get up and came back down. At this pointin the expedition there was no emergency equipment in the cave so the pair survived on their own personal equipment. There was a quick response to the callout. One person descended with the grab bag and found that Roshni was developing hypothermia. However, the situation was quickly sorted out and all cavers were able to exit the cave, with assistance as required.
</p>
<h4>Incident 2:</h4>
<p>Mark, Anthony and Luke were marooned at camp in Tunnocks due to the rope outof Kraken getting pulled up by the previous exiting party. They spent an extra night underground, while a rescue was instigated. The rescue was also escalated to include the Austrian Rescue, which involved a helicopter and eight rescuers at the car park. The CUCC response was to send in two runner teams. The second team started to take in extra rigging gear. The third response team were just preparing to go in when the message was received that the party were found and all was ok. Everyone was out by the end of the afternoon. During the afternoon there had been some difficulty finding relevant documentation about the cave (description etc) to provide to the Austrians.
</p>
<h4>Incident 3:</h4>
<p>Merely a minor administrative problem when the callout for Olly &amp; Jenny was not cancelled properly in the base camp callout book. This lead to a preliminary investigation of the situation being instigated by the top camp team, however it soon became clear that the cavers were out. This was a communications failure rather than a serious incident.
</p>
<h4>Incident 4:</h4>
<p>Incidents 4, 5 &amp; 6 all related to the same storm causing cavers to be trapped underground by flooding on pitches. This was caused by very heavy rain at 7pm followed by continued rain over night. In incident 4, Elliot, Alice, Nathan &amp; Luke got flooded into Balcony and had to sit out the elevated water conditions for 2.5 hours until water levels dropped and they exited around 11pm, one hour after their callout. They were able to make use of the bothy bag and stove left underground after the previous incident. Despite the callout being missed a rescue was not initiated due to the surface conditions and the cavers exited under their own steam.
</p>
<h4>Incident 5:</h4>
<p>The camping party in Tunnocks (Chris, Rob, Ian &amp; Katey) were also flooded in the same night due to a flood pulse on Procrastination pitch. Rob was prussicking up to the first rebelay on the pitch when the flood pulse came through and thereforehe came back down. This swift action, facilitated by having his descender on in case, would have prevented the situation from being much worse. The team spent an enforced night underground sharing a bothy bag near to the base of Procrastination. Their callout the next morning was missed and runners were sent down to the top of Procrastination to check. The runners found the missing cavers exiting near the base of the entrance series.
</p>
<h4>Incident 6: </h4>
<p>The final incident was also in Tunnocks, where the Champagne on Ice party (Becka, George, Nat) were trapped by floodwater for five hours. They did not miss their callout, which was the next morning, but were delayed and spent theirtime sharing a bothy bag. Previously, it was thought this route did not flood so badly, but clearly conditions were sufficiently extreme.</p>
</body>
<h3>Discussion:</h3>
<p>While these are not the first incidents CUCC have experienced in Austria it does
represent the greatest density of incidents in one year. There were no serious
injuries and all the incidents were dealt with satisfactorily, but lessons can be
learnt.</p>
<ul>
<li>Leaving callouts at base camp can be problematic if phone not picked up and
need to send a text or leave an answer phone message. Need to be mindful of
proper two way communications in setting up a callout.</li>
<li>Nicola Radios were tried this year to aid surface to camp communications
(which would have helped in the two camp callout cases). While they worked on
the surface they did not work for top camp to camp Kraken. More testing could
have been done before going underground. However, these are the old Nicola I
system and it may have been at the limit of their capability, especially if
geological transmission conditions were not ideal.</li>
<li>Important to consider if rigging could be improved, or new routes developed,
to avoid known flood flashpoints (e.g. as was done with the Usual Suspects
route). It was concluded that the Procrastination route could not be
substantially improved.</li>
<li>Issue with the transfer of knowledge about known flood flash points. E.g. the
bothy at the base of Balcony entrance was not installed straight away when
the cave was first rigged. A better system is needed for the transfer of
such information. It was agreed that the rigging guides should contain the
hazard information so that when caves are rigging emergency equipment can
also beinstalled. It would be good to also put this information in cave
descriptions and to make sure laminated descriptions are at top camp as well
as readily accessible on the computing system at base camp.</li>
<li>In addition to emergency equipment in situ at known flashpoints each party
should be carrying a bothy bag as a minimum for their own
self-sufficiency. Individuals should also be carrying a personal survival bag
and spare warm layers. This will provide resources in case of issues with
unknown hazards during exploration.</li>
<li>Expo should purchase a stock of bothy bags rather than relying on individuals
to purchase this equipment. They will either need to be stored in Austria,
or made sure to come out at the start of expedition.</li>
<li>Remember that parties can get separated by flood pulses.</li>
<li>Need to make better use of weather forecast information. Possible to have a
top camp smart phone to gather information and/or to phone up bulletins from
base camp. Julian to research best source of information for weather forecast
data.</li>
<li>Consideration of likely time for thunderstorms (late afternoon, early
evening) suggests that timing of trips can be improved. The “British model”
of going caving later in the afternoon brings further risks due to missing
dinner and coming out more fatigued in the small hours. The “Swiss model” or
alpine start may be better to encourage trips to exit caves before the
thunderstorm window.</li>
<li>For day trips it is also possible to minimise the thunderstorm risk by using
the weather forecasting. For underground camping the risks could be reduced
with functioning radios. Chris to research costs and options for expo
obtaininga cave radio system that would work in Austria, possibly Cave Link
which is most likely in use by the Austrian rescue already.</li>
<li>Setting callouts: leaving too much contingency time leads to extra risks if
an injury occurs earlier in a trip; leaving too little contingency can cause
unnecessary callouts if cavers are “just” slow. Need to plan trips carefully
and use judgement.</li>
<li>Responding to callouts: be careful not to assume that cavers are flooded in
and therefore no action is required in case this masks other problems.
Judgements on actions when a callout is missed need to factor in: depth of
team (deeper trips take longer to reach by runners, more actions may be
needed sooner in case of worst case), weather condition, safety of rescue
teams.</li>
<li>Escalation to Austrian rescue: more likely to be required in cases of deeper
incidents due to time lag of obtaining information from underground. This
year “standby” included a helicopter and some cavers as the decision was
taken to put resources in place in case of need deep underground with
extended period of bad weather on the way. In the past “standby” has meant no
action.</li>
<li>Communications with Austrian rescue: contact was made directly via Robert
Seebacher. Other numbers that expo holds are out of date and need
updating. Robert is happy to make sure we have the correct numbers every
year. At the start of each expo need to prepare a pack of emergency numbers,
plus descriptions, rigging and hazard information to be available in case of
need.</li>
<li>Consider having minimum of three people on caving trips, especially as if the
trip is deep. This means that someone can come out if there is an
accident.</li>
<li>When should you prussick up a wet pitch? More hazardous than UK because water
temperature lower and potential for loose rocks being washed in by
floodwater. Generally better to wait for conditions to improve, but must
also use judgement – is forecast due to be worse later? Can you monitor the
situation to detect rising or falling water levels? Don’t take up tackle bags
that can fill with water (or if you take them, carry them upside
down). Ideally send an experienced caver first and leave another experienced
person til last. Leave the party’s bothy bag at the back in case people are
separated.</li>
<li>Need to review the contents of the first response kit and also its labelling,
e.g. food in mouse proof tubs.</li>
<li>If a rescue happens then there needs to be a defined leader put in charge
straight away. Follow the instructions of the leader (recommend and discuss,
but don’t argue) unless you reach a point when those instructions break down.
Always write down everything that happens and when it happens.</li>
<li>Should someone experienced always stay on the surface?</li>
<li>Need to investigate top camp to cave communications in the event of a rescue
and make sure there are always two way comms. Second expo phone at top camp
could be used for this purpose.</li>
</ul>
<p>F. Loveridge, 14th July 2016</p>
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