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|NEXT STORY »

Utah Cave to Be Sealed with Man's Body Inside

Recovering body from Nutty Putty cave too dangerous

By Rob Quinn| Posted Nov 27, 09 10:47 PM CST|

(Newser) – The cave where a spelunker died this week is to be permanently sealed off with his body inside, officials say. John Jones, a 26-year-old med student, died after being stuck in Utah's Nutty Putty cave for 28 hours and police say it will be too dangerous to recover his body. "If we put other people in that same location, they could get stuck or get hurt," a search and rescue coordinator tells AP.

"We feel like it would be John's will to protect the safety of future cavers," his younger brother said. The family plans to erect a permanent memorial at the site and is considering starting a fund to educate young people on cave safety. The cave, which was popular with amateur cavers but had never been fully mapped, will be guarded by police until it can be properly sealed.

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (1)]

John Jones, 26, died leaving a pregnant wife and young daughter. (Jones family)

An unidentified rescuer is seen during the effort to free Jones from the cave. (Utah County Sheriff's Office)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

We've suffered a tragedy in this cave that we hope to prevent from happening again. - Sgt. Tom Hodgson, coordinator for Utah County's search and rescue operations.

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

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20 comments

VIEWING:

youngblood
Nov 27, 09 11:30 PM CST

R.I.P. John Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Jojo
Nov 27, 09 11:39 PM CST

Since they are leaving his body because they are claiming its too dangerous to rescue him, I'm assuming they have not been close enough to check for vital signs. How do they know he is dead and just not unconscious? Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Sauerkraut
Nov 27, 09 11:50 PM CST

the smell

-6

IN RESPONSE:

Reader64481089
Nov 27, 09 11:55 PM CST

The story (the main one not the condensed version) said they checked and attempted to revive him even with him trapped but he was dead. Very sad end to a young life just at it's beginning, life is a fragile thing

IN RESPONSE:

gonzo1390
Nov 28, 09 1:26 AM CST

i never read that anywhere in the article... if they were able to get close enough to attempt to revive him, they would certainly have been able to get him out. hopefully this poor young man's suffering is over, what a terrible way to go. R.I.P. John

IN RESPONSE:

riffran
Nov 28, 09 6:20 AM CST

@saurkraut...rofl...gotta luv luv that gallows humor.. :)

-5

IN RESPONSE:

sully4411
Nov 28, 09 11:24 AM CST

he was upside down, i think that is what caused him to die so quickly...

| 0 minutes ago

JChron
Nov 28, 09 12:30 AM CST

It's almost a cool tribute in a way. Reply

-4

IN RESPONSE:

krymsonkyng
Nov 30, 09 6:20 PM CST

I wouldn't mind going down doing something I enjoyed. Just hope I could enjoy it to the end. Sounds like he didn't get that luxury. Poor bloke. R.I.P.

| 0 minutes ago

Spydiggity
Nov 28, 09 1:50 AM CST

They shouldn't seal the cave. why do people always feel they need to fuck with nature because other ppl are too stupid to know their limits. if ppl want to take risks, they should be allowed. i agree, it's very sad that this person died. but he knew the risks, and he took them. this is like when a dog attacks a person who invades it's territory. then ppl want the dog to be put down because they want some sort of pathetic revenge. leave the cave alone. there are probably animals that use that cave as a home and we're going to sentence them to homelessness or death because ppl like to explore caves for recreation and some of them are unsafe. give me a break. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Twiny
Nov 28, 09 9:06 AM CST

Come on, Spydiggity, you're not thinking it through. Mr. Jones put himself at risk by exploring an unmapped cave and became trapped. Then, he put several more people at risk as they tried to free him. Where do you draw the line? Should the rescuers say, 'Sorry, ain't gonna rescue you because you shouldn't have been there in the first place.'? And I think the cave should be sealed up. I find it very interesting and quite sad that you are perfectly willing to let someone else die in that cave, rather than evict a few animals.

IN RESPONSE:

JoeQ
Nov 28, 09 10:27 AM CST

I completely agree, Spydiggity. It isn't the proper role of government to be our daddy.

IN RESPONSE:

gonzo1390
Nov 28, 09 3:24 PM CST

I agree with you guys in principal that the government isn't responsible for telling us what risks we can and cannot take. In this case though, because the body is stuck down there and is irretrievable, out of respect for the young man and his family, the cave should be sealed

IN RESPONSE:

Spydiggity
Nov 28, 09 7:06 PM CST

i'm not putting animals before people, PC guy. i'm saying the animals are using it for survival purposes. people are using it for recreation purposes. if they get trapped in there or die, that sucks, but it's not the cave's fault. i suppose you think we should also burn down rain forests because ppl die there every year. we should also kill every person with aids because there's a chance someone else might have sex with them and contract it. the question really is...where do you draw the line? i am thinking it through. i'm saying don't fuck with nature because a person or people don't know their limits. it's a shame he died, but the cave and everything else about it shouldn't suffer as a result of this.

| 0 minutes ago

vendetta
Nov 28, 09 6:57 AM CST

Everyone involved in this rescue attempt should be fired. They got him out but their rig messed up and they dropped him back in, then thye just leave him, wow. FAIL. Reply

-3

IN RESPONSE:

cjasonhall
Nov 28, 09 8:47 AM CST

From what I have read the equipment failed, not the rescuers. They tried to save a man's life. No one should be held responsible for that, except for the guy who put himself at risk. I hate that he died, but ultimately the responsibility for his death was his own.I hope he is in a better place now.

IN RESPONSE:

gonzo1390
Nov 28, 09 3:45 PM CST

it is more than likely that human error contributed to him falling a second time, and presumably seriously injuring himself, equipment meant for mountaineering/caving is rock solid and rarely just randomly "fails". I'm not saying that the rescuers should be held responsible for his death, this guy should have known the risks. But, it should be looked into if these rescuers were qualified to undertake a rescue of this difficultly.

-3

| 0 minutes ago

Reader83544188
Nov 28, 09 8:57 AM CST

TMZ reports Donnie Osmond will dance at the funeral. Reply

-3

| 0 minutes ago

JoeQ
Nov 28, 09 10:31 AM CST

I knew a guy who did cave rescue. He told me that on one occasion they could not recover any remains for the next of kin until they started to fall apart. Reply

-3

| 0 minutes ago

grassisntgreener
Nov 29, 09 12:21 AM CST

A tragedy indeed,however people did all they could to help,the mission failed,and now someone would question their qualifications?Heros are people that TRY to help,the results differ with each attempt! What a sad ending. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

View all 20 comments »

Utah • caving • spelunking • John Jones • Nutty Putty cave

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Utah Cave to Be Sealed with Man's Body Inside