In November 2009, 26-year-old John Edward Jones embarked on a spelunking trip to Utah’s famous Nutty Putty Cave, a journey that ended in one of the most harrowing caving incidents in recent history.
The tragic event turned Jones into an urban legend and served as a stark warning about the dangers of cave exploration.
Located roughly 55 miles outside of Salt Lake City, Nutty Putty Cave had long been a popular spot for novice cavers.
Discovered in 1960, the cave was renowned for its narrow, winding passages that opened into large subterranean chambers.
Sections of the cave carried foreboding names like The Birth Canal, The Aorta Crawl, The Scout Eater, and The Maze, hinting at the challenges within.
Richard Downey, treasurer and historian of the Timpanogos Grotto, described the cave as a “crawly little cave” with some larger passages.
“It was believed to be really easy, and that’s why all your Boy Scouts and locals went in with flashlights and sandals. You had to work hard to get in trouble,” Downey explained.
Yet, from 1999 to 2004, six individuals became stuck and had to be rescued, prompting the Utah County Sheriff’s Office to close the cave in 2006 for safety upgrades.
These included padlocking the entrance at night and implementing an online reservation system.
On the fateful day in November 2009, John Jones, a devout Christian, medical student, and father of a newborn, decided to explore Nutty Putty Cave with his brother Josh and a group of nine friends and family members.
Early into their exploration, the group split, with less experienced cavers exploring the easier sections while John and Josh ventured deeper.
Eager to navigate The Birth Canal, a narrow passage John remembered from his childhood, the brothers mistakenly entered an unmapped section of the cave.
John, leading the way, wriggled deeper into the tight passage, believing it would eventually open up. Instead, he found himself trapped upside down in a crevice barely larger than a washing machine opening.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Josh tried to free his brother but to no avail. After a while, Josh returned to the surface to seek help.
A diagram of how John Edward Jones was stuck for 27 hours in nutty putty cave before passing away. pic.twitter.com/OCK5urZJDp
— Morbid Knowledge (@Morbidful) November 29, 2023
The first rescuer, Susie, arrived three hours after John had become stuck. She attempted to pull him out but found the angle and narrow space impossible to work with.
Over the next several hours, rescue teams brainstormed and attempted various methods to free John, including a complex pulley system.
However, the cave’s narrowness allowed only one rescuer to work at a time, significantly slowing their efforts.
Despite momentary progress, a pulley system failure dashed their hopes when John was pulled deeper into the crevice after a pulley anchor failed.
Tragically, after more than 25 hours trapped, John Jones succumbed to cardiac arrest and suffocation, his body unable to cope with the stress of being upside down for so long.
A doctor on the scene pronounced him dead on November 25, 2009.
Attempts to recover John’s body were deemed too dangerous, and the cave passage where he was trapped was sealed with controlled explosives.
Many rescuers were traumatized by the event, with some vowing never to enter a cave again.
Nutty Putty Cave was permanently closed, and a plaque was placed at its entrance in memory of John Jones.
This incident serves as a sobering reminder of the risks associated with spelunking and the importance of proper preparation and caution in cave exploration.
