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“You aren’t saying much.” Vera didn’t know why that was making her nervous. She and Hammond had sat with the others for hours, reliving the Silver Cave rescue, among others.
Unable to remove the top of the cave, and knowing the boat would never leave the cave intact, Vera had the helicopter back off from the cave’s mouth.
Disconnecting the winch’s cargo hook from the boat, she’d tied a rope line just above the hook. One by one, they attached the survivors to the cable. Then, they’d eased the line until the person swung off the boat and sideways out of the cave, but clear of the heavy surf. Once they were winched aloft, the helo lowered the cargo hook again, and they’d pulled it back into the cave with the line. A right-angle rescue; out then up.
One by one, everyone had gone aloft u
