| Name | Age | Sex | Injuries | Injured areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dare, Cindy | 18 | Male | Broken leg | Not recorded |
hannon Dare (17), Mike Gannon (17), Phil Kwasny (18), Richard Geer (45) and Cindy Dare (18) entered Eller's Cave at about 1:45 p.m. A short time later the caving party split into two groups with Shannon Dare, Gannon and Kwasny in one group. They checked out several narrow passages with wet, mud-coated walls, but when one of the passages pinched out, they started retracing their steps. Gannon climbed safely down a muddy wall. At 3:30 p.m. Dare slid down on his stomach while holding onto a projecting rock.As he was searching for a foothold, his hands started slipping because of the heavy, bulky gloves he was wearing. He dropped about 4 feet onto the mud floor below, catching his right foot on a projecting rock.
Dare realized he had broken his leg. They improvised a splint from two flashlights, a T-shirt and a piece of rawhide cord. Dare left the cave without assistance from outside his group.
Analysis: Had the group been more experienced, they might have been able to climb down instead of dropping to the floor. After Gannon got down safely, he should have assisted Dare. The heavy, loose-fitting, winter work gloves were not suited for caving. All members of the group showed ingenuity and calmness in handling the situation once they were faced with the problem.
Source: Report by Shannon Dare and Richard P. Geer.
This record was last updated on 27th Apr 2024 at 23:11 UTC.