Topographing and mapping a new branch of tunnels: this is what she went down to do in the Bueno Fonteno Abyss Ottavia Pianathe speleologist was rescued last night after 80 hours of rescue operations. On Saturday 14 December the thirty-two year old, member of the Lovere Alpine Club and speleology instructor, entered the cavity together with her companions from the Sebino Project, created to study the karst area of Fontena, in the Bergamo area, investigating its scientific aspects. We are in the karst area of Western Sebino, between Val Cavallina and the Bergamo coast of Lake Iseo, and there is an underground system to be studied that is among the largest and most promising in Italy. So much so that, over the years, the research has already led to discoveries that the Sebino Project does not hesitate to define as «sensational»: «The tracing activity is the second in order of importance for the speleological discipline, in fact, discovering and then knowing the springs connected to every karst system is an extremely important activity, especially in karst territories, where almost all springs of this type are used for drinking water purposes”, explain the speleologists. In practice, the objective of the explorations is to define the water potential of the karst system to arrive at the definition of a hydrogeological balance of the area. Then there are the biospeleological investigations, to study the organisms that live in the hypogea.
Piana contributed precisely to these investigations into the underground world, potentially insidious like all environments, but also completely fascinating. Entering a karst area in fact means setting off on an exploration. Walking, crawling, rappelling and crossing stretches of water on inflatable boats, we explore unknown places, where man – understood as the entire human race – arrives for the first time. By turning on torches and light sources, a new and extremely varied landscape comes to life: a universe waiting to be explored.
This is why we cannot say that Piana – and his companions – are reckless or lovers of extremes: they are speleologist researchers. «Speleologists work for the company to return data on the subsoil to public and research bodies free of charge», he also declared in recent days Sergio Orsinipresident of the Italian Speleological Society, al Daily Fact. «We were mapping new branches that were previously unknown. In those hours we had found new environments, about two kilometers of tunnels in a single day, an incredible scientific result”, he also said Giorgio Pannuzzowho was with the woman in the cave, a La Presse.
Piana – who had already been involved in an accident last year, again in the same cave – is described by those who know her as an expert, prepared and not at all reckless speleologist. The first reconstructions of the dynamics of the accident speak of the sudden collapse of the rock on which he was resting his feet: it can happen, especially when the ground is friable, in this case because it is made up of limestone rock with the inclusion of flint.
Extracted from Bueno Fonteno, Piana was transported by helicopter to the hospital in Bergamo. He apparently said he would never go back underground. For now we can only wish her a speedy recovery and then who knows whether the vocation to the unknown will make itself felt again.
In the photo: The stretcher with the speleologist Ottavia Piana, carried out of the Abisso Bueno Fonteno cave on the night of December 18th.
