![]() This article was updated in conjunction with AI technology, then fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor. "We're here to inform, teach and get people into caving safely." "That's why there are grottos of the National Speleological Society like ours all over the United States," says Paulson. Paulson mourns the death of Jones but insists that caving is a very safe activity, especially when it's done with the right equipment and with an experienced guide. When it became clear that Jones' remains couldn't be extricated from the cave, Nutty Putty was permanently closed and sealed as Jones' final resting place. He left behind his wife Emily, a young daughter and a baby boy on the way (he's named John).ĭowney says that many of the volunteer rescuers were traumatized by the experience and some haven't entered a cave since. One rescuer was badly injured when a pulley ripped free and struck him in the face.ĭespite the heroic effort to free John Jones, he died a few minutes before midnight on the day before Thanksgiving. Rescuers installed a pulley system to try and pull John out, but the clay walls of the cave couldn't bear the weight. "They told me, 'I need to get contact information for really skinny cavers.'" "I was the Grotto secretary and I had all of the contact information for the local caving community," says Downey. Analyses done on the clay in the 1960s found that it was composed of tiny particles of silicon dioxide (the main component of sand) roughly 3 microns (less than 0.0001 inches) in diameter. ![]() Like Silly Putty, the clay would change from a solid to an elastic fluid when lightly squeezed.ĭowney says that the clay was even "sound active," meaning that if you yelled at it, it would ooze and move. The most recognizable characteristic of the cave was the strangely viscous clay oozing from some of its walls, which the cave's first explorer, a man named Dale Green, compared to Nutty Putty, the original product name for Silly Putty. A survey conducted in 2003 was able to map 1,355 feet (413 meters) of the cave to a depth of 145 feet (44 meters) from the surface. Perhaps because of its hydrothermal past, temperatures inside Nutty Putty stayed around 55 degrees Fahrenheit (12.7 degrees Celsius) year round. It was very characteristic of a hypogenic cave." "It had tight squeezes that opened up into a big room, then back to another tight squeeze. “They’ve never been to Nutty Putty before, but they toured many harder caves in the Logan area that required vertical climbing skills,” said Leavitt, one of dozens of cavers who volunteered with the unsuccessful rescue effort."Traditionally, these types of caves are very complex and feature lots of domes and three-dimensional passages, which was true of Nutty Putty," says Paulson. ![]() Reservations and an access pass are required to explore the cave, with usage restricted to about six groups daily.Ĭave access manager Michael Leavitt said John Jones and his group had a pass and were experienced cavers. Nutty Putty Cave is privately owned by Utah’s State Institutional Trust Land Administration. Search and rescue workers successfully rescued two people from the same spot in the 1,500-foot-long cave during the same week in 2004. “It’s not very often where you come in, you have high hopes and you are going into an operation you have done before with success and then you get into a situation where it doesn’t go as you planned.” But in the hours after he became wedged again, Jones’ physical condition deteriorated. Rescuers were able to get him food and water during that temporary freedom. Jones was freed from the crevice late Wednesday afternoon but fell back several feet into the tight space when an anchor in the cave roof that supported the pulley system failed, Cannon said. The crevice was about 150 feet below ground in an L-shaped area of the cave known as “Bob’s Push,” which is only about 18 inches wide and 10 inches high, said Utah County sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. At times, more than 50 rescuers were involved in trying to free him. ![]() The 6-foot-tall, 190-pound spelunker got stuck with his head at an angle below his feet about 9 p.m. John Jones was part of a group of 11 people exploring the cave passages. Cannon said recovery work can be more aggressive than a rescue because the victim’s well-being is considered differently. ![]() Rescue teams had been using drilling equipment to try to free Jones from the cave. It’s unclear when the effort will resume. John Edward Jones tragically died on 24 November 2009 whilst caving in ‘Nutty Putty Cave’ in Utah, a hydrothermal cave. The effort to recover John Jones’ body from the cave was on hold Thursday as the sheriff’s office tried to determine how best to proceed, Sgt. A woman whose husband died the ‘worst possible death’ has spoken out about the trolling she and her family are subjected to 13 years on from his passing. Digital Replica Edition Home Page Close Menu ![]()
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