Irish Cave Rescue Organisation - ICRO

08/04/2026

08/02/2026

The Irish Cave Rescue Organisation (ICRO) wishes to express its gratitude to HiiKER, which has sponsored the team again this year with free Pro+ subscriptions to its app for use by our Wardens and key volunteers.

ICRO has been using HiiKER Pro+ for the past 2 years to aid in overground navigation for search and rescue training and response.

We have found it to be a really useful tool to navigate in upland areas and rough terrain and it enables us to overlay cave entrances and underground locations for accurate communication location and search purposes.

- Adam de Eyto - ICRO Chairperson and Warden.

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18/12/2025

The ICRO committee has fixed the following dates for team training in 2026.

If you're a caver interested in getting involved with ICRO, contact your local warden.

UPDATE, 22 December 2025. Please note that the calendar previously posted has been edited to reflect with the corrected date for Reek Sunday, 26 July 2026.

30/11/2025

ICRO medics level up

Congratulations to ICRO's new Wilderness Emergency Medical Technicians (WEMT) John Sweeney, Alan Butler and Niamh McSherry, who've qualified alongside new Wilderness Emergency First Responder (WEFR) Angela Prior.

Its a double "well done" to Alan Butler, who has also separately completed training as an EMT.

24/11/2025

ICRO joins ECRA

A significant milestone for cave rescue in Ireland was reached in the autumn, when delegates to the European Cave Rescue Association voted unanimously to approve ICRO as a full member of the body.

It was clear recognition of ICRO’s continuing integration into the broader cave rescue community across Europe – as well as an affirmation of our commitment to international best practice in cave rescue.

Ten ICRO delegates attended the conference in Wojcieszów, Poland, from Thursday September 25th-28th, which was hosted by the Polish cave rescue group, GRJ, and the national mountain rescue organisation, GOPR.

The vote approving ICRO’s full membership followed a presentation by our newly-elected chair, Adam de Eyto, on ICRO’s capabilities and mission.

During the conference, Warden Brían MacCoitir also gave the keynote address, on ICRO’s leading role in the Downpatrick Head incident in 2023.

As part of the conference, our delegates took part in workshops focusing on casualty care, stretcher handling, passage enlargement and casualty care.

The ICRO delegates also had the opportunity to visit a number of caves and mines in Lower Silesia in the company of fellow conference attendees from across Europe.

The team has now forged new links with members of cave rescue teams across Europe, and may now be called upon to provide manpower and specialist skills in the event of a major cave rescue incident requiring an international response.

Pictured: the ICRO contingent at ECRA, with scenes from the conference workshops, with thanks to Daniel Droidz

16/11/2025

Rescue exercise, Saturday 15 November 2025

Pictured: Scenes from this weekend's rescue practice on east Cuilcagh.

Some 30 ICRO volunteers participated in the exercise on Saturday, which simulated the extraction of two casualties from neighbouring potholes Pollnatagha and Poll Pruglish on the Fermanagh-Cavan border.

At Poll Pruglish, a search and comfort team, made contact with a simulated casualty, a woman in her 30s, suffering from a lower leg injury and severe hypothermia, with medics following to assist. Communications were established to the surface using two CaveLink sets and then with field phones for voice.

Having already established rope access to both caves, rigging teams then set up rope hauls and counterbalance systems to bring out simulated casualties from both caves.

The underground environment in this system presents a number of hazards to be considered by the team, including loose rock, active waterfalls and mucky conditions.

//Ends

01/09/2025

ICRO held a very successful fundraising day at Mitchelstown Cave on Saturday 30 August.

ICRO members from all over Ireland were on site to demonstrate cave rescue equipment to the many tourists and locals who came to visit this spectacular venue.

Many thanks to John English and the team at Mitchelstown Cave for hosting us!

27/07/2025

The ICRO team for Reek Sunday.