Spanish climber ends 500 days isolation in underground cave
A 50-year-old Spanish mountain climber emerged Friday from an underground cave where she had been isolated for 500 days as part of a study of the effects of isolation on the human body.
Beatriz Flamini, who was wearing dark sunglasses, smiled and embraced family members who had gathered to greet her as she climbed out of the cave near Motril in southern Spain.
"I haven't spoken to anyone in a year and a half, just myself," the experienced mountaineer and solo climber told reporters, describing the experience as "excellent, unbeatable."
Flamini launched her challenge on November 21, 2021, before Russia's invasion of Ukraine and while the world was still grappling with the Covid-19 pandemic.
Except for a week when she was forced to leave the cave because an internet router that allowed her to call for help in an emergency broke down, she remained 70 metres (230 feet) underground.
Flamini and members of her team told daily newspaper El Pais and other Spanish media that while the problem was being fixed, they were isolated in a tent.
"I have no idea what has happened in the world... "It's still November 21, 2021 for me," she told reporters as she exited the cave.
Flamini stated that she spent her time reading under artificial lighting, exercising, and knitting woolly hats.
A technical team kept an eye on her and left food at an exchange point in the cave without making contact with her.
Flamini was equipped with two cameras to capture her experience, which will be turned into a documentary by the Spanish production company Dokumalia.
"There have been many challenges of this type, but none with all the rules that were set," said David Reyes, head of security for the Andalusian Federation of Speleology.
"Being alone and in total isolation, without contact with the outside, without (natural) light, and without time references," he explained to reporters.
Hector Gomez, Spain's Tourism Minister, described it as a "extreme endurance test" with "great value" for science.
Flamini said one of the most difficult parts was when flies invaded the cave, but she "never" considered quitting the challenge.
"There have been difficult moments, and it is true that there have been very beautiful moments, and both of these are what made it possible to carry one," she explained.
"I got along very well with myself," she went on to say.
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