the craziest cave rescue missions ever if you're anything like me then you guys have spent a lot of time at 2: a.m. watching YouTube and for some reason we all end up in the same Rabbit Hole watching those insane caving videos you know the guys with loving families at home who just decide that they need to shove thems through 2in cracks 100 ft under the ground while half underwater and covered in spiders and at this point it's even a meme to make fun of these crazy cave people all over Tik Tok people are just putting shoes over cracks and being like oh look at me I'm a caver which is honestly hilarious but in this video we're going deep no pun intended today we are discussing rescue missions but I'm putting a Twist on this video These rescue missions could either be successful or unsuccessful and you won't know the outcome until the end of the story so buckle up and don't get too attached to the characters in these stories let's begin Thunder Canyon the story gets seriously intense and involves a software engineer who went on a cave Expedition with an experienced group and ended up fighting for his life Brent cvin is a 39-year-old software engineer from Valley Center California and due to the fact that he was an engineer he was a very meticulous planner especially when it came to planning unique adventures and his trip to Thunder Canyon was no different it's important to note that Brent is not an unexperienced caver and has been caving for years and is considered by many an intermediate to Advanced caver and the group of cavers he was about to embark on this Expedition on were even more experienced than him Thunder Canyon is a legendary cave for a few reasons for starters it's extremely elusive and is not marked anywhere and it's only known within the caving community and even learning the coordinates or general location of this cave system is more or less of a privilege that aura for a lot of cavers already is so enticing but it doesn't end there the cave itself is dynamic it's deep dark open in some places wet in some places tight in some places and it almost sounds like I'm not describing a cave but trust me I am personally it's hard to imagine a cave seeming enticing however if caving is your thing Thunder Canyon had everything you wanted it was rare unique and there was also many ways to approach it as there was multiple entrances and exits that have been mapped out by other cavers on Sunday May 3rd 2010 Brian and six other experienced cavers found themselves on route to Thunder Canyon which included a short drive down an abandoned dirt road and then from there a 2m hike to even get close to one of the elusive entrances to Thunder Canyon after doing some searching they find one of the entrances at 11:00 a.m. and the Excursion begins upon entering this cave they descend and short after without a hitch the entire team clears the first obstacle however after this first repel was a much larger task it was an 80t drop now it's important to not that this isn't just a Repel either this repel is a descent into darkness going through a literal underground waterfall that lands you into a underground puddle of almost freezing cold water but for cavers this is all part of the thrill the guide Luca is the first to repel and shortly after the other cavers repel as well until they are all safely at their first checkpoint at this point it was obvious that some of the cavers were already feeling the pressure of what this cave was about to bring and the guide even gave everybody an out saying it's only going to get worse from here and if you want to get out get out now there is about to be tight squeezes it's only going to get colder and the trip has just begun but even with some unsure faces everybody continued on the journey after completing a few rooms and repelling twice more the group meets their first Fisher AKA one of these claustrophobic holes which was literally named the terrible Traverse and it's called that because it takes a right angle into a 9 in wide crack a gap so tight that you can't even turn your head and not only is it tight the Gap is also deep 200 ft deep from top to bottom it's important to note that the group reached this Fisher at 3:00 p.m. 4 hours into their caving journey and this Fisher was one of the last things standing in their way before they were at the exit of the planned route and it was of course at this fure where everything was going to take a terrible turn the guide of this Expedition goes through this crack first without a hitch he's done it many times next up one of the least experienced cavers goes through this Gap and he unfortunately gets stuck and not only does he get stuck but he panics he had never been pinned like this before and was freaking out and none of the other cavers were going to be able to help him until he calmed down however within 5 minutes the guide was able to calm him down and within 10 minutes the guide and the other cavers were able to pull him through and assist him out of the cave after that slight hiccup three other cavers in your party make it through this Fisher and it's at that point when the guide takes all of the other cavers out of the group leaving Brent to cross this fer all by himself a reasonable decision because Brent was an experienced caver and had experience in this specific cave however Brent hadn't experienced the terrible Traverse and this experience would be one that he would never forget it's important to note that Brent was very nervous about trying this Gap and he didn't even know that the guide had left with the other cavers so it was simply just Brent and his final buddy behind him in the cave regardless Brent began moving through the terrible Traverse one of the biggest challenges associated with this fissure is the fact that you're not just walking through a gap or crawling through through a gap you have to move feet first down the length of the crack and then angle your body sideways To Shimmy along before dropping down a 5-ft gap where you could then get your footing and squeeze through to the exit just to be extra cautious Brent removed his wet suit to ensure he had as much space as possible however after inserting his body fully into this fer he was almost instantly stuck he could feel the tension of the rocks on his chest his hips were wedged between the walls and the only thing supporting his body was his hand he couldn't move in any direction and it was at that point when he realized he was stuck after being stuck for what felt like an eternity the guide returned only to notice Brent was stuck and after 2 hours of their best efforts Brent was no closer to being free and was actually beginning to slip deeper and deeper down this fer due to the stress of believing that he would not make it out alive Brent became rather Lucid in the final Cav behind him James was simply telling him stories to try to keep him awake and conscious and it wasn't until 6:40 p.m. almost 4 hours later that the San Bernardino Mountain rescued team was actually notified and mobilized to the position after 7 hours of Brent being stuck the guide was signaling to a rescue helicopter that was sent as the initial rescue team that showed up was simply not equipped to help Brent and although the helicopter spotted them and help was on the way it took an additional 4 hours for the helicopter to find a safe place to land and the specialized team to get on site at this point there was a very real risk of hypothermia for Brent and compartment syndrome which is essentially when your chest is compressed for a long period of time exposing you to the risk of cardiac arrest Brent dying in his stuck position was a very real situation and was only becoming more and more likely as more time passed once the rescue team finally was able to reach Brent within the cave they explained exactly how severe the situation was and their first order of business was keeping him as warm as possible as he had no wet suit on and his body was trapped between two rocks that were much colder than his body temperature essentially drawing heat out of his body The Rescuers put heat packs around Brent and even gave him an electrolyte beverage but with Brent and the final caver at this point hypothermic The Rescuers had to move quick to to save these individuals as the rescue team began to attempt to move Brent it was obvious that this was going to be a painful experience as his ribs were tightly wedged between two rocks as they began pulling At His Feet Brent was screaming in pain and the rescue team even asked Brent if they should stop pulling him and it's reported that Brent literally replied I don't care if you break my ribs just get me out of here The Rescuers used as much leverage as possible to lift the wooden board that bridged the Gap in this Fisher that was supporting Brent and they used anchors to try to lift his body to pull him out and with many failed attempts they were able to move him 1 2 3 in until they had him in a spot where their only option was to begin pulling his feet and essentially yanking him out of this cave Brent's condition deteriorated deeper and deeper and at 3:40 a.m. nearly 15 hours after entering the cave Brent was pulled free out of the cave and rescued after Brent was led out of the Cave the final caver quickly squeezed through the Fisher without an issue and the entire team survived this Expedition and after everything was said and done it took over 13 people to help rescue Brent I thought I'd start this video on a happy note yeah Brent survived fortunately but I could not imagine what that experience would be like and truthfully I don't even want to paint a picture cuz I don't even want to imagine it being stuck sideways dark hypothermic and Lucid has to be just awful and believe it or not Brent promised himself that he would continue caving after this although he did say he would avoid tight squeezes so at least there's that at least he made it but that might not be the case for this next Story the Peruvian intimate cave Cecilio Lopez ero is a lifelong caver and Adventure lover and whether it be a natural Talent or simply because of his lifelong experience in Fascination Cecilio had a very particular skill for navigating caves and squeezing through extremely tight gaps seemingly with ease and almost no fear he is a respected cave Explorer and at the time of the story he is considered a veteran caver Cecilio was even a member of the Madrid rescue group meaning that he was more qualified than anybody not only to save people but also to explore caves safely he was one of Spain's most renowned Rescuers and cavers Cecilio was Spanish but due to his unique skills he was taking on Expeditions around the world to navigate caves that no one else would dare and to map out caves that no one else could I think you guys get the idea this guy was a pro Cecilio had heard of this obscure and rare cave system in the mountains of Peru through some of his colleagues and when he learned that there was a potential for there to be never beeen artifacts or structures he was instantly on board and the expedition was set and Cecilio and nine of his colleagues began their expedition into the intach cave in the Peruvian Andes the intach cave was reported to be at least a mile long and at least 12200 ft deep and Cecilia was curious how much deeper and longer it was and what secrets were hidden down in the bottom of this cave like any professional Cecilio studied meticulously learning of all of the risks associated with this cave with the Expedition underway Cecilio LED his group of colleagues into this cave on a multi-day expedition in the first few days went on without any issues notes were taken beautiful sights were seen and everything was going to plant but as they got deeper and deeper into the cave squeezes only got Tighter and the map only got more vague after multiple days in this cave the challenging physical aspect was obvious and accounted for but the mental aspect was starting to take a toll as well as these people at this point had been in complete darkness for days only seeing the light of their headlamp in the cave that they are hundreds of feet into is completely silent only broken by the sounds of water dripping it wasn't until what would have been one of the last days of the expedition that tragedy struck and it was during a Repel portion of the cave Cecilia was about to descend a modest 15 M into the Next Room known as the 13 Days room and it was at this point after the anchor was set and he began repelling that he heard a cracking noise his anchor had failed and Cecilio was in freef fall falling 15 M onto Hard Rock Cecilio somehow avoided all of the razor sharp rocks covering the floor of this room however he lied there Motionless in extreme pain and with a suspected broken back after regaining Consciousness Cecilio came to the harsh reality of his situation he lied helpless deep in a cave that was already in an extremely remote and treacherous location 400 Mi away from Lima Peru he knew he needed to be rescued but he also knew it was not going to be easy one of Cecilia's colleagues carefully climbed down to where cecilo was to assess the situation and realized how Grim it was one of the cavers in this party left to get help and the others stayed with Cecilio to help monitor his health fortunately Cecilio survived a fall that could have easily been fatal for some however now he has to survive what would likely be the most grueling days of his life as after he fell and sustained these injuries it would take almost a week for rescue Personnel to make it to where Cecilio was keep in mind Cecilio was in a deep remote cave located on the top of a mountain where the entrance of the cave was at over 10,000 ft in altitude when this medical team finally was able to find the location of the cave hike over 10,000 ft to the cave entrance and then begin the wild journey to where Cecilia was in the bottom of this extremely Advanced cave they weren't even there to help him Escape they were simply there to provide Comfort measures and assess his health they built a makeshift base camp and began administering morphine to provide Comfort to the injured man that the medical team didn't know if they'd be bringing out Dead or Alive because Cecilia was still alive removing him was going to be an extremely complicated feat and it couldn't simply drag him by his feet and he unable to feel his legs was unable to help himself as well the medical team brought a rigid stretcher that was specifically designed to help carefully drag Cecilio out without jolting or repositioning his body risking injuring him even worse with medical measures in place it was up to the other cavers to request specialized help and initially the Spanish government was unwilling to send a rescue team and then they turned to the proving government both of which who denied to send help to save Cecil's life Cecilia's colleagues did the only thing they could do they reached out to the Madrid caving Society and also turned to social media begging for support to help save their dear friend's life they did everything they could to pressure the Spanish government into saving one of their most valuable cavers now this is where things get interesting once some of cfo's friends from back home caught news of this they immediately flew to Peru to help save them themselves that is real friendship and by the time these amazing friends were on the scene there was already a small village at this cave entrance consisting of medical staff Rescuers and volunteers don't forget this cave entrance is extremely remote and over 10,000 ft in altitude it's not an easy place to be and once again keep in mind that this cave is is extremely Advanced and many of the volunteers and rescue Personnel that were dispatched are simply not equipped for this level of cave and it would be only more of a liability for them to even attempt to save Cecilio by the time that this rescue mission was fully underway there was volunteer cave experts from Spain France Mexico Peru and over 40 Peruvian fighter fighters and military personnel actively involved in the rescue of Cecilio and yet there was still major challenges that took place these 40 people need to eat drink they need to communicate with others meaning that all of the progress that they're able to make is delayed significantly due to their lack of supplies only adding more and more complexity to the seemingly impossible Rescue Mission with this Global team of experts on site ready to help Cecilio they began the exploration into the cave and once they reached Cecilio they even explained their plan to him and got his professional Insight on the Escape that they had planned and then they built a base camp 900 ft into the cave and began to set a complex series of anchor points across the entire cave so that they could essentially was the stretcher with Cecilio on it without him taking much more damage on the 12th day when they began drawing the stretcher out of the deep cave things took a turn for the worse as on this day winds were higher than normal the weather was unfavorable and rain was adding an entirely new level of complexity into this Rescue Mission despite the heavy winds a rescue helicopter was able to take the freshly rescued Cecilio to the nearest hospital where he was treated and after many months of treatment he amazingly made a full recovery the case of Cecilia Lopez is literally insane and honestly a bit heartwarming to see how passionate people were about saving this man's life likely because of all of the lives that cilio impacted during his time as a rescuer himself if it wasn't for nearly 50 people from across the globe not to mention local volunteers and villagers in the area Cecilio would have never made it out of this cave and simply would have died call it luck or call it karma Cecilio had something or somebody watching over him Cecilio is a gangster and the story is a clear example of how resilient the human body and mind can be but we still have one more to discuss the Chilean minor rescue this rescue mission is by far the most intense we've talked about on this list and is likely one of the most intense cave rescue missions ever conducted as the title suggests this Rescue Mission isn't of cavers who went down a deep crazy Uncharted cave this rescue mission is rescuing miners working any gold in copper mine and unfortunately what started as a regular day in the job ended up becoming a multi month Global Affair let me explain on August 5th 2010 33 miners entered the San Jose cave in Chile but that night none of these miners leave that cave the San Jose cave is over a 100 years old and it stretches over 10 mil of confusing corridors some of these M shafts go almost a mile deep into the ground but for these miners this was a normal day of work and shortly after 2: a.m. a collapse had happened leaving these miners trapped the San Jose mine which was owned by the San estaban mining company was known for its notoriously unsafe work conditions and the company had reportedly even ignored warnings from the Chilean safety administration and unfortunately today was the day that what the Chilean government had warned about would happen after hearing a huge rumbling noise and literally feeling the Earth shake below them these miners unaware that they have just been trapped decide that they should likely exit the cave to evaluate what just happened and it's on their way out of the cave that these miners realized that there was collapse and not only a small collapse but a large collapse caused by a 45 story tall piece of diorite Rock blocking the only way in and out of the cave this piece of diorite was almost a million tons and fell directly onto the M shaft fortunately leaving the mine wasn't the only option for these miners as near the very bottom of the mine was a man-made room known as The Refuge and after realizing that they weren't leaving this mine all of the miners gathered up and made their way to The Refuge The Refuge is exactly how it sounds it's an emergency shelter area fresh air is strategically pumped into this room from the surface and is also stocked with emergency food and medicine this room was meant for this exact situation and in this case is going to be the difference between life and death because the mine is so massive men working near the very bottom of the cave still at this point were completely unaware what happened and one of the miners had to go down to inform them what had happened and bring them back up to the Refuge these 33 miners weren't just all mining together they were all in different parts of the cave when this happened however they all survived the collapse and it didn't take long for them to all be gathered up in the safest place in the cave some of the miners remember that the ventilation system that pumps fresh air into different parts of the cave is by regulation supposed to be large enough to carry a person it also should have a ladder inside for situations like this unfortunately after further inspection it was discovered that these ladders were never installed and that these air pipes were simply useless for escape and in their opinion they have no way of contacting the surface and at that point things look Grim during this collapse there was actually one Miner who was in a part of the cave that was above where the collapse was meaning that he was able to escape making his way through Ash and Rubble he was able to tell the site supervisors exactly what happened and begin what would end up being a multi-m month-long Rescue Mission due to the remote nature of this cave and the lack of any cell service it took over 5 hours from the collapse happening for any authorities to even be notified of the situation unlike the last one the government was willing to help these people and they sent A specialized team down the M shaft to see exactly what was going on the specialized team decideed to take the ventilation shafts down into the mine because they were able to repel down and do not require a ladder although roughly halfway down this ventilation shaft it is made very obvious that these ventilation shafts were unstable due to the collapse and that they would not be a method of rescue and on their way back up some Rescuers were almost lost any another smaller collapse that took place within one of the ventilation shafts and those in the surface still don't even know if the people in the cave are alive or not after the miners return to the Refuge with grim news about the ventilation shaft the group of miners begin to plan for the worst and it's at that point when they begin rationing the very small amount of supplies they have and also begin to set out a routine as these experienced miners understand that this rescue if at all possible will not take days but likely weeks or longer while it may seem like these miners are creating their own little Community underground kind of like a fallout shelter an entirely new city is popping up on the surface of this mine consisting of concerned citizens volunteers and most importantly family members of those stuck in the mine after days being stuck in this mine the miners are unsure if anybody is ever going to come save them until a noise is heard a faint drilling noise from above and they realize that help is on the way and that somebody is drilling into the mountain the team drilling above correctly assumed that the surviving miners are going to be residing in The Refuge and it's for that reason that they aim a drill from the surface directly to the Refuge and a new challenge appears accurately setting up the drill to ensure that it reaches the Refuge because even being a percentage of a percent off on their Surface by the time they reach the depth of the Refuge could be multiple feet off meaning that they need to completely reset and redrill once again to ensure that this Rescue Mission goes as smoothly as possible the Chilean government not only acquires the support of other larger mine rescue teams but also contacts NASA for consultation to ensure that they're taking the best possible course of action while a team of experts is ensuring that the drill is put in the perfect position another group of Rescuers try accessing the ventilation shafts once again to ensure that they are completely impossible to save the miners and unfortunately it's confirmed and not only did they confirm that the ventilation shafts are useless they also confirmed that the diorite rock is still moving meaning that Not only was there a large Cavern that the diorite rock fell from creating a ton of unstable ground in the cavity that it left but it also means that this large rock that is now blocking the path is also still unstable and moving while only slightly unfortunately the drilling isn't going much better and at this point the drill has bent and broken multiple times and the rescue holes that they've started have been abandoned twice and due to the discovery of the diate rock moving the primary entrance of the cave has been closed and sealed forever now meaning that the only way of saving these miners is by successfully digging a 2,000t hole that spans from the surface perfectly into the Refuge without collapsing at this point in the story we are 14 days into these 33 men being trapped underground and we are still only just getting started the head of this Rescue Mission made an executive decision they are not going to drill faster but they're going to drill slower they begin redr drilling but turn the drill to half speed to ensure that the drill does not malfunction or break course as accuracy in this situation is Paramount it's already been proven that trying to rush this drilling would only take longer due to all the possible and likely failures and it's at this point when things get crazy 17 days since the collapse the slow drilling procedure has been semis successful and while the drill breaks through into something they don't know what they had broken through to and as they remov the drill to insert a camera to inspect where the drill ended up they noticed that the drill had something attached to it there was a note attached to it a note from the miners below they had contacted them and to those Above This was the first confirmation that there was any living miners stuck in this cave the letter described exactly where the drill had broken through in the mine and also was a personal letter to members of the family from the miners as they were still completely unsure if their fate was sealed or not the last thing written on the note is the most important of all it is a simple confirmation that all 33 miners are alive and well and this brings the morale of all Rescuers to an all-time high but the job is still not over yet like just think about it imagine 17 days ago over 2 weeks ago you are told that your family is dead in a mine and that your father brother Uncle cousin was in a gold mine that collapsed and that they are dead and if the collapse didn't kill them then being underground for 17 days definitely did but then all of a sudden getting confirmation that not only your loved one but everybody's loved one is alive in this mine that has got to be the most intense roller coaster for emotions now that they have a hole that goes directly to the Refuge they drill two more one for supplies and one that is intended to be used for rescue the miners underground now have communication to the service through a phone that was dropped down one of the supply holes they have food medicine and water provided to them through one of these holes and while things look amazing they they're still trapped underground from day 17 till day 65 drilling continues to make a large enough hole to take people out of the Refuge and development continues on a pod that will be sent down this hole and retrieve these people essentially an elevator like tube that can take one person at a time in and out of the cave and on day 65 both of these new tools are put into place there is a hole that is wide enough to take people in and out of the Refuge and an experimental device created by the Chilean Navy with support from NASA is ready to be tested it's a metal tube that can be dropped and retrieved out of the cave and it's now officially going to begin its first test run a rescuer bravely enters this pod and descends down into the mine unsure if this pod will even make it down to the bottom of the mine safely or even if it does make it safely if it's able to go back up however a rescuer is required to descend with the Pod to give proper instructions on how to safely use it and to give some support to those who have been underground at this point for 65 days the first minor who is already pre selected by the group enters the Pod and makes his 15-minute Journey up through the Pod and without a hitch makes it to the surface successfully and safely the first of these 33 miners to see the surface for over 2 months throughout the night all 33 of these men were taken to the surface safely were thousands of people stood by for the rescue and millions of people were watching worldwide on TV as this rescue was broadcasted globally all of these men were deemed in good physical condition and they were all instructed to wear sunglasses because they had been in essentially Darkness for 2 months and the sunlight could be harsh on their eyes all of the men visited the hospital to ensure their vitals and only two of them weren't instantly released the two that weren't instantly released required either Dental or some psychological help both of which had those addressed successfully as well this entire rescue mission was insane and the fact that these men were able to survive for so long proves their mental and physical resilience and I cannot imagine the feeling of finally reaching the surface after over 2 months underground to see so many people screaming and cheering and celebrating the success of your rescue this this entire Rescue Mission cost over $20 million with the majority of that money coming from private donations the story once again is such a heartwarming example of communities and people coming together to save those in need and I really wanted to highlight that element specifically in this video because a lot of videos on these topics don't do that they focus on the negative which I get and I guess if you want your little bit of negativity here's something that'll piss you off investigations that took place after The Rescuers were saved determined that there was no criminal charges responsible to the mining company for this collapse that happened even though it was known for its unsafe conditions and while that's an entirely different story for a different video it's something to ponder on many of these men were giving donations and gifts from wealthy people who sympathized with their situation but these gifts did not allow them to retire and these men had to make a living most of them were turning to mining believe it or not and I knew I had to add it on this list of crazy and insane rescue missions and I think it goes to show with enough media attention to get enough people and the right people involved almost anything is possible thank you guys so much for watching this video and if you want to watch another really cool video check out this video on screen it's crazy but it might just be the crazy you love and as always trust me bro [Music]