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Northern Westchester resident Mark Dickey, age 40, of the village of Croton-on-Hudson, was pulled out of the Morca cave located in Turkey on Tuesday, Sept. 12 around 12:40 a.m. local time, the Speleological Federation of Turkey announced.
The rescue was the culmination of a 10-day-long effort to free Dickey, who became trapped on Saturday, Sept. 2 when he started suffering from gastrointestinal bleeding and was unable to move as a result.
The rescue effort was joined by over 150 volunteers from Turkey, Italy, Croatia, and other European countries, in addition to the Turkish military.
After he was taken out of the cave, which is 1,276 meters deep, Dickey was then taken to a hospital by helicopter, federation officials said.
Dickey, who is experienced at exploring caves and serves as an instructor for the National Cave Rescue Commission, had been assisting with an exploration of the Morca cave when he became trapped.
He is a former Croton-on-Hudson firefighter, according to the village's fire department.
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