According to authorities, after 55 hours trapped in an underground labyrinth with rising water, five individuals, including three members of the same family, were rescued from the cave in southern Slovenia on Monday.
Six expert divers freed the trapped group from the Krizna Jama cave at around 3:05 p.m. local time, according to Sandi Curk, commander of the Regional Civil Protection Headquarters for the Notranjska Region.
According to Curk, all five individuals—two parents and their adult child—came out of the cave unharmed and did not need medical attention.
The three Slovenian family members and their two guides went missing on Saturday morning while exploring the cave’s many lakes, prompting authorities to begin rescue operations. According to authorities, the group got stranded as the water levels in the cave rose due to the monsoon rains, closing off all possible evacuation routes.
According to Curk, the tour party was stranded around 1.5 kilometers from the cave entrance. The rescuers waited for the water level to drop before removing the group.
The group was reportedly spotted on Saturday night by rescue divers, who then relocated them to a secure location where they could construct warm tents.
Another group of divers visited on Sunday to see how the marooned cave explorers were doing and brought them food, water, and warm clothing. The five individuals were inspected by a doctor who is also a certified diver, and their conditions were deemed satisfactory, according to Curk.
Diving into the cave in near-freezing temperatures and with poor visibility was no picnic for the rescuers, according to Curk.
According to biodiversity, Earth’s fourth most extensive known cave ecosystem is Križna JAMA, a network of underground lakes with verdant green water.
According to Curk, rescuers traveled up to five hours to the group because they were up against near-freezing water temperatures and poor visibility inside the cave.