Death of a caving guide in Isère: "She saved a child at the cost of her life"

A 55-year-old caving guide died Thursday in the caves of Sassenage, in Isère, saving a teenager from the sudden rise in water. The flood surprised the whole group.

The drama was tied in a few minutes. Sabine Lorne, a 55-year-old caving guide, died on Thursday May 5 during a school outing in the vats of Sassenage , in Isère. She lost her life saving that of a schoolgirl swept away by the waters.

Guides qualified in speleology accompanied a class of 5th in the caves when the flood occurred, at midday. Two professors from the Grésivaudan college in Saint-Ismier were also in the group. The speleologists quickly undertook the evacuation of the students while they were in the gallery of the underworld, very close to the exit.

"When the flood carries away the last child exposed to the risk, Sabine comes to her aid, keeps her head above water , recounts Thierry Larribe, technical adviser in caving to the prefecture of Isère. She deploys a lot of effort and managed to extract it. By the time his colleague returned to lend a hand, he hadn't been able to get Sabine out of the water. She saved the child at the cost of her life."

The body of the 50-year-old was discovered about a hundred meters from the entrance to the caves. All the students were able to return to the surface safe and sound. Two people, a speleologist guide and a teacher from the Grésivaudan college, remained stranded in the Saint-Bruno room, with a high ceiling, before being rescued in the evening.

"We've never seen that"
The water rose very quickly in the gallery, surprising the whole group. The weather, rainy on the day of the tragedy, raises the question of maintaining this school outing despite the risk of flooding. Thierry Larribe emphasizes the experience of the speleology guides who supervised this outing, "very qualified professionals" each with a hundred outings to their credit in these caves.

"(The rain) has given rise to movements of water underground which are disproportionate to the quantity of water which has fallen on the surface , he explains . It is this disproportion that we cannot not to explain. In fifteen minutes, the gallery was already out of access. It's exceptional, we've never seen that."

Especially since the precipitation was more abundant than announced in the forecasts. For the mayor of Sassenage , Christian Coigné, it is "a concomitance of unforeseen meteorological events which led to all this." Sabine Lorne, originally from Lans-en-Vercors, has been a professional in supporting nature sports since 1989.

On the website of the Vercors monitors' office, this mother described herself as a "mountain dweller at heart" who "likes to explore virgin spaces on the surface as well as underground" .

"Very sudden" disappearance
The disappearance of this figure of speleology in Isère caused a shock wave in the environment. "I was confident, I thought they were safe. The announcement of his death was very brutal. She came to remind us of the harsh reality, (…) it is that we cannot win every time. We can't get everyone out alive. As a rescuer, you have to accept it ," adds Thierry Larribe.

The speleologist insists on the rapid rescue of the occupants of the cave in dantesque conditions. " It was at the cost of effort and capital decision-making at the right time," he says.

The Grenoble prosecutor's office has opened an investigation, entrusted to the PGHM of Isère, to shed light on the circumstances of the accident. It should determine the causes of this sudden rise in water and the possible responsibility of the supervisors.