Safety

Caves can be dangerous places; hypothermia, falling, flooding, and physical exhaustion are the main risks. Rescue from underground is difficult and time-consuming. Full-scale cave rescues often involve the efforts of dozens of rescue workers, who may themselves be put in jeopardy in effecting the rescue.

Some common-sense rules apply:

• Always check to be sure there is no danger of flooding while you plan to be in the cave. Rainwater funnelled underground can flood a cave very quickly while the surface remains clear. Factors which can influence the risk of flood include the regional rain forecast, as well as how much rain has already recently fallen in the region: if the ground is already soaked, additional rainfall will be piped much more quickly into the cave.
• Use teams of at least three cavers - four or more are best. Caving alone is particularly risky.
• Always make sure someone on the surface knows where you are caving, when to expect you, and how to contact cave rescue services if you fail to return on time.
• Use a decent light that will last long enough for the trip and a backup that will be sufficient to get you out of the cave. American cavers always recommend a minimum of three sources of light per person, but two lights is common practice amongst European cavers.
• Sturdy clothing and footwear, as well as a hard hat, are necessary to reduce the impact of abrasions, caver falls, and falling objects. Synthetic fibres and woollens, which shed water, are vastly preferred to cotton materials, which retain water and increase the risk of hypothermia. It is also helpful to have several layers of clothing, which can be shed (and stored in the pack) or added as needed.
• For trips of more than a short duration, it is best to carry food. A combination of quickly metabolised foods (such as fruit or sweets) and slowly metabolised foods (such as vegetable soup) is best. Unconsumed foodstuffs and their containers should be packed out of the cave for ecological reasons.
• In watery cave passages, partial or full wetsuits reduce the risk of hypothermia.
• Beginners should be accompanied by experienced cavers with proper respect for these safety considerations. An established caving group is a welcoming environment to meet experienced cavers, and to find out about cave trips opportunities matching the skills of the newcomer.
• Cave passages look different from different directions. In long or complex caves, even experienced cavers become lost. To reduce the risk of becoming lost, it is necessary to memorise the appearance of key navigational points in the cave as they are passed by the exploring party. Each member of a cave party shares responsibility for being able to remember the route out of the cave. In some caves, it may be acceptable to mark a small number of key junctions with small stacks or "cairns" of rocks, or to leave a non-permanent mark such as high-visibility flagging tape tied to a projection.
• Remember that you normally have to get back out the way you came in, and going back up is harder work than coming down. Turn back before you get too tired to get out. When dealing with inexperienced cavers, the leader is responsible for deciding whether a trip is suitable and how far they should go before coming back out.
• Vertical caving involves ladders or SRT (Single Rope Technique). SRT is a complex skill and requires proper training before trying it underground.