A cave rescue in the news today

[Ernie Coffman]

Here's a cave rescue that made the news; and, fortunately the gal survived.
http://www.reporter-times.com:80/?module=displaystory&story_id=88158&format=html

[wendy]

so was she not wearing a helmet? and sounds like she was not rigged property for vertical, the rope around the biceps isn't what i usually do

[Ernie Coffman]

Hi there Wendy! Don't have a clue on whether she was wearing a helmet or not. The whole scenario didn't look right, from the article. Why she had the rope around her arm is beyond me, unless she was attempting a body rappel...or one of the other hand jobbies. It didn't look like she knew too much of what she should have known about, before attempting this pit; and, having a medical problem like she has, puts her in another field, completely...as you know.

[Ralph E. Powers]

so was she not wearing a helmet? and sounds like she was not rigged property for vertical, the rope around the biceps isn't what i usually do

Well I've "angel-ed" it a few times (well ok, more than a few) but only on slopes and wearing heavy coveralls and as always, gloves. As long as you apply the basic principals of using the "downhill-side" hand as the brake and the up-hill side for balance and the slope isn't too steep it's a good way to go down a hand line and not worry too much about slipping and losing one's grip.

[tallgirl]

still would be nice to know if she had a helmet on... i doubt she did tho

[wendy]

I had another issue with the article and so I wrote to the author, waiting to hear back.

[Ralph E. Powers]

(from the article) Jarrett said she passed out as she was hanging there, and woke up at the bottom of the cave. She had hit a rock and the left side of her head was bleeding. Her husband had sent his sons for help, Jarrett said.

This tells me that she wasn't wearing a helmet or if she was, it was without a chin-strap and it fell off when she fell.

(also from the article) "My husband was right there with me. He knew I was pretty bad, he saw the blood on my head," she said.

Most EMS will tell you that head wounds tend to bleed more than others. I'd be guessing that she lacerated the scalp and suffered a concussion (serious enough as it is). I'd be curious as to what the x-rays revealed if there wasn't a fracture in her skull.

She's damn lucky either way to be alive and talking. Hopefully the family will contact real cavers and find out the right way to do things.