No injured cavers recorded.
Three novices from Columbus, Ohio, Jon and Ronnie Lucio and Jeff Thompson, intended to traverse from the main entrance of Bowden Cave to the upper entrance No. 3. The latter is a small opening above a fissure, reached by a rather long crawl from the cave's complex upstream area. They tried two passages unsuccessfully but in the process became soaking wet from stomach crawls in mud. Realizing they were near exhaustion to the point of being clumsy, they had no choice but to rest. Since the floor was quite damp, they stood from about 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. rather than risk losing body heat into the floor. In the morning they started exploring again, hoping that the sun would make the entrance easier to find. The group was found about 50 feet from entrance No. 3 by members of the Monongahela Grotto.
Analysis: The rescue had been delayed by a register note left by the lost group indicating their plan to exit by the main entrance; hence, the entrance No. 3 area was the last to be searched.
The lost group was systematically checking out the passages and had only two more to check when they were found. They fully realized the dangers of hypothermia and decided to rest and conserve energy after they recognized the first signs of hypothermia. It is not clear whether standing up all night is a good way to conserve body heat.
Sources: Report by Jon and Ronnie Lucio and Jeff Thompson.