Cave diver Artur Kozlowski, who held the record for the deepest penetration of any cave complex in Britain or Ireland, has died while exploring Ireland’s Kiltartan system, north of Gort in southern Galway.
Kozlowski, 34, who lived in Ireland and was a cave diving trainer, was diving solo on Monday at Pollonora, one of a series of karst limestone labyrinths in the Gort lowlands. When he failed to return by 9pm as planned, searches began with a number of night dives and continued yesterday, organized by the Irish Cave Rescue Organization.
Finally one team member located Kozlowski’s body at about 7pm, having followed his laid line and gone past his stage cylinders right to the known end of the cave, at a depth of 52m and about 800m in from the entrance. It had been hoped that Kozlowski might have found an air pocket in which he could have survived until rescued.
His body was secured in place and a procedure to extract it will now be planned.
Who Was Cave Diver Artur Kozlowski
Kozlowski arrived in the UK in 2006 and within a year was acquiring cave diving skills from top British practitioner Martyn Farr. In 2008 Kozlowski, supported by Tom Malone, dived to a depth of 103m at Pollatoomary cave in County Mayo’s Partry mountains. It was the deepest any cave diver had descended in either Ireland or Britain, the previous deepest having been to 90m at Wookey Hole, in Somerset’s Mendip hills.
Over 2009 and 2010, near Florencecourt in Northern Ireland’s County Fermanagh, Kozlowski managed to connect the Marble Arch Caves both to Prod’s Pot in the Cascades Rising system and to Monastir Sink in the Upper Cradle system.
This established that the Marble Arch Caves meander for 11.5km rather than the previously thought 4.5km, making them the longest known system in Northern Ireland.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Artur Kozlowski?
Cave diver Artur Kozlowski was a record-holding diver from Poland, known for the deepest cave penetration in Britain and Ireland.
How did cave diver Artur Kozlowski die?
He died while diving solo in the Kiltartan cave system in southern Galway, Ireland.
What were some of Kozlowski’s cave diving achievements?
Kozlowski set the record for deepest cave dive in Ireland and Britain (103m at Pollatoomary), and mapped Northern Ireland’s Marble Arch Caves as the longest known system.
What is the significance of the Marble Arch Caves?
Kozlowski connected multiple cave systems, showing the Marble Arch Caves stretch 11.5km, making it the longest in Northern Ireland.
Who organizes cave rescue operations in Ireland?
The Irish Cave Rescue Organization (ICRO) coordinates searches and rescue operations for cave divers in Ireland.
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