| Name | Age | Sex | Injuries | Injured areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watts, Mark | 10 | Male | Abrasions; bruising | Left shoulder, left arm, upper left leg; upper left leg |
On Sunday July 19, Rick Sell (28) and Mark Watts (10) were caving in West Virginia. They had caved all day, doing Trout, New Trout, and Hamilton Caves and then headed for Sinnit Cave, the last for the day. After visiting the waterfall and the Big Room they were heading out. It had been a long day and both were tired. They had just come down the chimney from the Big Room and passed the waterfall passage.
At about 6 p.m. Sell was in the lead when he heard Watts Say "Oh, no!" He turned in time to see Watts fall 10 to 12 feet to the bottom, striking the walls a couple of times. Sell reached the victim "in seconds' and got him to sit down. He checked for broken bones and found none. Watts had abrasions on the back of his left shoulder, on his left arm and a bruise and abrasion on his upper left leg. He was somewhat shaken by the accident but after 15 minutes of reassuring talk he obviously felt better and they exited the cave without further incident.
ANALYSIS: Sell names the pertinent factors. They were tired and actually physically over-extended. Sell, because of his experience led the way, but assumed too much for the less experienced Watts. Sell also points out that they could have been proceeding along lower down in the canyon. In all, this is a common accident. One interesting point is that Watts' helmeted head struck the wall in the fall, but when he hit the bottom the helmet popped off. Helmets should have chin straps that don't allow the heimet to come off in a fall.